(As we end the Indigenous Peoples Month celebration, this Ikarao writer is giving this day to a guest columnist, Mr. Wilber Gondales-a, Teacher-In-Charge in one of the schools in Kabayan, to give his views on the integration of IPs in the school system.)
What is IP Education for? Are we trying to bring back the old days? How can we do the contextualization or indigenization in our lessons? Most teachers are confused and usually pose these questions.
The Department of Education adopted a National Indigenous Peoples Education Policy Framework on 2011. DepEd Order No. 62, s. 2011 was then contextualized by the regional office for all schools division offices to formulate its own inter-cultural IPEd Framework. Hence, consultations with the council of elders, conferences and seminars were done.
Most schools division offices in Cordillera Region are yet to start its IPEd Framework as compared to other divisions in the country who were almost done with their framework. Mr. Belmer Yano, Benguet Council of Elders Chairperson, noted that as IPs, being the majority in the region, it made them complacent on the seriousness of IP Education. In fact, several schools division offices in Mindanao have totally embraced that it is through IP Education that their identity as IPs will be strengthened and that IPs be recognized by the government.
On October 16 – 18, 2018, I was given the opportunity to participate in the Benguet Division Indigenous Peoples Education Framework Enhancement Conference at Venus ParkView Hotel, Kisad Road, Baguio City. It was attended by School Heads, IPEd Coordinators and Council of Elders of Benguet Division. The following were my realizations after the sessions with Mr. Yano; the end goal of IPEd is understanding who we are and that all IP learners must have the capacity to theorize from experiences. Our identity as peoples who can easily connect and relate to each other have been all forgotten merely because of our education system. Yes, it is education who made us forget who we really are. But, this IPEd is a tool to correct the mistakes of the past.
Curriculum makers together with the council of elders are then trying to reclaim the core and key knowledge in the past that can be applied in today’s technology. Curriculum guides made by the central office will be contextualized based on culture – for example, Ibaloy thinking or knowledge systems to be put in the curriculum. IPEd is not necessarily teaching the activities, rituals and practices of the past but to develop learners to “BE” – to be the children we want them to be. Teachers are then being challenged with this question – what kind of learner are you developing? Doing the Tayaw, Bindiyan and playing our musical instruments can be easily acquired by our learners but useless when they cannot relate with life.
The implementation of IPEd in Benguet Division is being guided by DepEd Order No. 50, s. 2016 - Hiring Guidelines for Teacher I Position in Schools Implementing IPEd effective School Year 2016 - 2017. For teacher applicants, kindly read the contents of the order. (Wilber Gondales, Kabayan, Benguet)