Finding the PhET Community in the Philippines
One of the joys of the teaching profession is finding like-minded souls wherever one goes. Teaching is truly a global profession, and committed educators share a similar passion for humanity that cross all cultural boundaries — an experience recently shared by PhET staff and three teachers in the Manila metropolitan region at the Asian Development Bank’s 10th International Skills Forum.
In mid-October 2023, Director of PhET Global Initiatives, Rebecca Vieyra, received an invitation to present PhET’s resources and programs to 300+ policymakers and education development specialists across predominantly southeast Asia. To accompany her, she contacted some of PhET’s most active users, three of whom had the time and generosity of spirit to share PhET and their teaching expertise with the wider world: Ed Lorico, Iris Caidic, and Glenn Mendoza. Together, the four of them engaged attendees with a taste of PhET simulations during drop-in sessions, as well as a classroom demonstration.
Glenn Mendoza is a high school physics teacher at Aguinaldo J. Santos National High School in the province of Bulacan, near Manila. He shared his practical experience of using PhET simulations with attendees, who were curious about what instruction with PhET simulations looks like, highlighting the attitudinal shift he regularly observes:
By letting students take charge of their learning, the simulations encourage active learning. They can generate a sense of curiosity and discovery by running virtual experiments, formulating predictions, and seeing results…turning what might have been perceived as challenging topics into exciting and approachable learning experiences. ~ Glenn
Also supporting activities at the Skills Forum was Ed Lorico, DVM, MSci., a recently retired faculty member of Arellano University’s School of Education. Originally trained in veterinary medicine, he eventually found himself teaching high school science, and, soon thereafter, responsible for pre-service teacher education for a large portion of the Manila region’s teachers. He included PhET within his methods courses, helping students to consider how to use the most active methods possible, even in large classrooms.
The Skills Forum rekindled the feeling of what I enjoyed doing for the past 30 years. Sharing the life in curiosity and a desire to know or learn. I have received invitations to conduct workshop on how to use PhET simulations in science lessons. I guess retirement for me is not yet the end of the road. ~ Ed
Iris Caidic, a teacher currently on leave to pursue graduate studies in education, earned her teaching certificate with Ed as her professor. She shared her recent experience using PhET in her school, which she learned about while in her undergraduate program:
In Kids’ World Christian Academy, our students eagerly anticipate laboratory activities. Before the pandemic, I utilized PhET simulations to introduce and prepare them for actual lab work. This not only ignited their curiosity and enthusiasm but also deepened their understanding of concepts and honed their laboratory skills. Throughout the pandemic, PhET simulations became a crucial tool for online teaching. I crafted curriculum-aligned lab reports and organized them into digital notebooks for each grade level. Providing students with simulations that fostered exploration and discovery proved both convenient and effective. ~ Iris
Iris collaborated with Ed to prepare the classroom teaching demonstration at the Skills Forum, carefully coordinating their teacher moves. To demonstrate the flexibility PhET simulations while emphasizing the importance of hands-on, low-cost physical materials, they crafted a lesson around the Balloons and Static Electricity simulation by first having participants run actual balloons against their clothes or hair to pick up bits of paper and hypothesize why electrostatic attraction was occurring.
Attendees marveled at the accessibility and user-friendly nature of the simulations, appreciating the abundance of appropriate tools for teaching concepts and skills. During the classroom demonstration, we showcased how simulations complement actual activities by presenting elements that can’t be explained solely through concrete objects — such as the charges causing the balloon to be attracted or repelled. I was pleased to share my experience, hoping our demonstration inspires others to use PhET simulations, ultimately improving teaching and supporting enhanced learning. ~ Iris
PhET is grateful to Iris, Ed, Glenn, and all PhET users for their commitment to quality STEM education!
