February 28, 2025 - Friday

Today, I got permission to informally present my possible special project with my mother’s church organization, the Commission on Catechetical and Religious Education (ComCare) based in our local church, the San Antonio de Padua Parish. Unlike the UPOU FMDS Perma G.A.R.D.E.N.; the church is quite nearby.

I explained to my mother what I would be able to help with in their organization, namely, improving their learning materials and teaching approaches so that they can be able to meet the learning needs of the students better. My mother mentioned that from March to May, they will be hosting catechesis classes to prepare children for their First Communion. This seemed like a great opportunity for us to collaborate. After our discussion, my mother relayed this information to her head. 

I was surprised by the support and enthusiasm of the leader in my project. She said that it would be a great thing for the organization. The head herself admitted that she does not have a background in teaching so my help is greatly appreciated. 

I was invited to observe the parent-communicant meeting tomorrow, Saturday, March 1, 2025 to get an idea of how they teach and explain. I plan to talk with the head of ComCare, Sister Todie, after the meeting.

March 1, 2025 - Saturday - Parents' Orientation on First Communion

I was told that the meeting today would be from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. We started a bit late at around 1:30pm due to many parents arriving late but we also ended early since most of the parents’ questions were addressed on-the-spot.

I actively observed the parent-communicant meeting since my mother (Sister Perry) and her boss Sister Todie requested me to give them feedback. The meeting had over 200 attendees – 227 children are part of the batch that signed up. Although, my mother said that around 10% of the children usually do not continue to receive First Communion (due to lack of attendance at the catechesis classes).

The 2025 Parents Orientation for First Holy Communion was held at the San Antonio de Padua Parish. The meetings were handled by Sister Grace (another catechist) and Sister Todie. From my observation, the meeting had three parts – discussing the role of parents, discussing the schedule, and handling the parents’ questions.

The catechists employed a projected PowerPoint. The venue employed one side of the church pews. The presentation was visible and audible from the back. Both parents and children were present.

The catechists handling the meeting got the attention of the parents and reminded them to be mindful of their actions, particularly when doing the sign of the cross. They presented probing questions during the lecture to engage the parents. Aside from engaging the audience, the hosts gave them a chance to answer the questions and give their own inquiries. 

While observing, I thought that using the ADDIE model would be most useful if ever I get formal approval from COMCARE. The ADDIE or the analyze, design, develop, implement, and evaluate model is a widely used instructional design process. Several other ID procedures build on it. The model helps designers go through the process of creating an instructional product. While originally linear, its workflow has evolved to be iterative (Heaster-Ekholm, 2020).I heard in the parent orientation meeting that a big issue with the First Communion is that the children did not memorize the basic prayers. Another problem is that the children have trouble paying attention in class. Comcare is also practicing cost cutting by disseminating parent information through their group chat instead of physical flyers. I seek to use pretests, implementation, post tests, evaluation, and iterative improvements to address this problem and others that I may identify later on.

Through the meeting, I learned that the catechesis classes will span across seven weekends from March 15 to May 4. The six catechists will handle around 35 students each. The three classes will be conducted on Saturday and the other three on Sunday, every morning and afternoon. I noted to myself that I need to have all the documents ready before March 15, the first day of class.

After the meeting, Sister Todie asked for feedback, which reminds me of how I already plan to incorporate feedback into my ID. Feedback is crucial to the learning process. It lets students know what good performance is, makes self-assessment easy, supplies learners quality information on their learning, and inspires motivation (Al-Bashir, Kabir, & Rahman, 2016). 

I informed her that the PPT is underutilized for the first part. They can put cues to help parents follow along and to help maintain their attention. I also said that it was good of them to ask questions and encourage the parents to share their thoughts as well. 

During our talk, I sought to get a feel for the current instructional goals, materials, and approaches of COMCARE. I explained my goals and intentions as well as my need for their consent and a formal approval letter. We discussed the roles and responsibilities of the gatekeeper and the need to inform the students and parents of my special project. I also inquired on the context of COMCARE and the current learners.

This conversation served as part of my needs assessment. Performing a needs assessment is a higher competency in the planning and analysis phase. It is a crucial step in developing appropriate design solutions (ibstpi, 2012). Essential to the ID process are consultation with the subject matter expert (SME), in this case Sister Todie. As instructional designers, we must find out what the learners' needs are. A helpful equation for a needs assessment is "Desired status - Actual status = Need" (D’Angelo, Bunch, & Thoron, 2018). Through this assessment, we can gain information on the potential learners, the learning environment, and the instructional task before beginning production of costly materials. This is a crucial time and resource saver. A needs assessment also solidifies and clarifies the reasoning behind the instructional approach (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2019).

The head of COMCARE, Sister Todie, said that most of their learners are aged 10-12 but there are a few that are 15 and 16 years old. She shared that they aim for the learners to master the basic prayers, understand the importance of the mass (liturgy), and for the children to know their faith.

I saw from the meeting that they were very strict with attendance. I observed that they also use a laptop, projector, and sheet (for the projector) as materials. She clarified though that not all of the catechists have laptops they can use and that the projector is not always available for ComCare. Sister Todie elaborated that they also use visuals, activity, games, singing, exams. When it comes to the  catechism lessons, the teachers use modules from Vatican 2.  With each assigned topic, the catechists integrate doctrine, moral, and worship. They incorporate church teachings based on doctrine and relate it to values: what do learners want to transform? 

After discussing it, Sister Todie confirmed that I can work on the special project.  It was good to know that COMCARE already had a direction. I was pondering how I can help balance their creed with learner needs. I was excited yet challenged by the path ahead.

March 3, 2025 - Monday 

Today I had an unexpected learning from a video resource in my subject EDS 170 education policy. The talk was a policy chat with Toix Cerna, a public policy consultant. The video taught me to not overplan and be more flexible (Agbon, 2025). I realized that I need to manage my anxiety over this special project. I need to trust in the process and in myself. I gained a new perspective on my failed SP idea. I see it now that it was good that I was rejected early.

The video highlighted the need to pivot, change plans, and let go when it came to education policy. It is all a personal journey (Ibid.). I'm working on catching up with my EDS 199 so I can do my other tasks.

In the evening, I discussed with my mother the possible items they need in ComCare and prepared a checklist.

March 4, 2025 - Tuesday

Today I prepared the formal approval letter, consent forms, and gatekeeper form. I asked Sister Perry what materials I can prepare for COMCARE while waiting for Sister Todie to send the lesson plans. My mother tasked me to make a fill-in-the-blanks activity including  the following:

• The Sign of the Cross

• Antanda ng Krus

• Our Father

• Glory to God

• Hail Mary

• Ama Namin

• Luwalhati sa Ama

• Aba Ginoong Maria

I closely read each of the rubrics and documents in EDS 199 again to ensure I’m in alignment with the requirements. I made notes to ascertain that I'm on schedule.

March 7, 2025 - Friday

Today, I started on creating the learner and needs/context assessment tools. By determining what learners need, the ID process is with direction, resource-friendly, and properly serving its purpose (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2019). I plan to complete the data through structured interviews, informal interviews, observation, and surveys. I comprehensively planned the flow of my project and did my best to align their deal in my head.

March 9, 2025 - Sunday

Today, I realized that I will not have enough time to fully understand the learners as opposed to having a whole school year with them. The First Communion catechism would be more akin to a short course given its implementation over only seven weeks.

March 10-11, 2025 – Monday-Tuesday

During this time, I designed, completed, and continuously revised the Fill-in-the-blanks activity and slides Presentation for Week 1 based on the feedback of my gatekeeper and my mother (who is also a catechist for ComCare). The presentation was a task assigned to me by COMCARE. I followed an iterative process in my design, such as is the case for the ADDIE model (Heaster-Ekholm, 2020).

March 11-12, 2025 – Tuesday-Wednesday

Very late in the night, I asked mom to review my PPT work. She gave various feedback and corrections. I also received clarification on what  the lessons are since the English and Filipino lessons seem totally different. Apparently, the Filipino one was Lesson 2 while the English lesson was the first. 

March 12, 2025 – Wednesday

Communication with COMCARE was confusing today. The slides were heavily edited by the senior catechist and the head said there was not enough time for the activities. I am confused and disheartened since I am not sure what else I can contribute if not through new activities. I am thinking of an approach to make the lecture more engaging to the students while fitting into the 2-hour time frame. It is still unclear to me on how to mix religion and academics. It is a challenge to mix what I know about instructional design and the established organizational processes and standards.

March 13, 2025 – Thursday

Today, I refined my observation and analysis tools.

March 14, 2025 – Friday

I really appreciate my mom. Aside from being receptive to my materials and recommendation in instructional design, she is also serving as my mentor in dealing with issues in the professional education sphere. My mom has been teaching for a long time so she can impart a lot of her wisdom. She is helping me cushion the blows of challenges.

One of the challenges I am facing so far is the compromise of content and learner needs. The senior catechist put in a lot of content in each slide so the materials are becoming more content-based and teacher-centered rather than learner centered. I plan to deal with this by observing, adjusting where I can, and being flexible with my plans.

March 15, 2025 – Saturday – Lesson 1 Sister Todie

Today is the first day of First Communion classes. I am observing Sister Todie’s class every Saturday and my mother, Sister Perry’s class every Sunday.

OBSERVATIONS:

Classroom Setup + Teacher resources

• I arrived at the venue for Sister Todie’s class at 8:50 a.m. She, and another catechist, Sister Lorna, were taking class attendance. The tables and chairs were already set-up.

• Many of the parents brought the parents’ permission form for my special project which gave me more confidence. There were 26/35 permission forms from the parents for the research. 

• Several students came a few minutes late. Because of this, Sister Todie officially started at 9:15 A.M. 

• There is an assistant catechist

• There are available extra materials (paper, pen, water, towel)

• Name tags are required from the learners.

• Orientation of the children; allowing the children to go to the CR before beginning the lesson

• Laptop, TV, microphone, and speaker are all setup before class,

Learning environment: SAN ANTONIO HALL

• Well-lit and spacious.

• Laptop and television available for displaying the slide presentation.

• Microphone and speaker available. Microphone audio is not that clear.

• Quite warm inside despite the electric fans.

• Accessible venue but not that obvious to those that not been to the church yet; nearby CR

• Parents can watch from the back of the class.

Materials

• The text is slightly small but learners at the back say they can still read it

• Visuals/images are engaging

• Senior catechist heavily edited my work to better suit their needs

  • Senior catechist changed the font and font size of the originally proposed slide presentation

  • Senior catechist made last-minute changes to the lesson plans

• Use of both English and Filipino in the slides

Teaching Approach

The formal Lesson Proper started at ~9:15am. There were 3 absent students and around 6 late students. 

• Content Alignment and Delivery

  • Learning objectives were not discussed.

  • The teacher has a good pace in teaching; relating the content to real life allows the students to connect more with the lesson.

  • Teacher is relating the story to the lesson; elements are aligned.

  • The whole period tackled only one lesson (Faith/Pananampalataya) instead of two.

  • Sister Todie returned to the topics that the learners did not understand (according to whether they can answer the formative questions).

  • Progressing the difficulty of the lesson throughout.

  • 10: 20 am – 5 mins break (It was extended to around 10-15 mins).

• Learner Engagement

  • After reminders, she used a story relevant to the lesson to capture learner attention.

  • Sister Todie asked many questions to engage learners and reinforce their understanding

    • Encourages and acknowledges the learners’ answers.

    • Kids are engaged, particularly, they are good at answering questions about Jesus and what He means to them.

  • The teacher walks around and has much energy to engage the students. 

    • The catechist approached the children’s tables to let them speak with the microphone

    • She especially approached the shy children to give them a chance to speak

  • The learners are listening and answering but most are not writing down notes. Learners started writing down more as the lesson became more difficult.

  • Activities to read altogether.

• Formative and Summative Assessments

  • The students are participating in recitation.

  • Sister Todie did not employ the designed prayer pre-test. 

  • Near the end of the class, a Summative Assessment was done in the form of a  Q&A. Sister Todie called from the attendance students that did not recite yet. 

  • Reinforced learning through questioning; questions as formative assessment; provides immediate feedback

  • Homework assigned: 

    • Write the “Ten Commandments” or “Sampung Utos ng Diyos.”

    • Write “Our Father” or “Ama Namin” prayer; random recitation of the prayer planned for next week.

  • Checked how all the learners did the sign of the cross.

  • Three learners ended the session reciting Ama Namin/OurFather.

Others

• Sister Todie established house rules before class.

• Teacher instructs the kids to stretch and ask each other, “okay ka lang?”, as a short break

• Teacher instructed children to help clean up and keep the tables and chairs

• Kids appear to already have rapport with each other

During the break, I interviewed one of the parents (see Interview transcript here).

After Sister Todie’s class, I interviewed some of her learners (see Interview transcript here) and Sister Todie herself (see Interview transcript here). Findings from the interviews will be used to guide my project proposal and first three chapters of my research.

REFLECTION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Sister Todie employed various effective techniques to keep the lesson engaging such as approaching the students, giving them many opportunities to recite, and letting them stretch. The materials are heavily edited to be more aligned with the lesson. As the senior catechist is the content expert on this matter, in my role as the instructional designer, I seek to work around their changes. 

From observations, the learners enjoyed the story at the beginning of the lesson. The learner interviews revealed that the students are “okay” with Sister Todie’s approach. They were able to share learnings that were impactful to them. The learners like activities such as drawing, group work, and writing stories. I recommend that we add these into the lesson.

However, these techniques of deepening understanding may be too time-consuming. Only one lesson was taught in the two hours while the standard must be two lessons per session (there was earlier miscommunication on this, initially the catechists thought it was only one lesson per day). The fill-in-the-blanks pre-test could have been used to gauge learners’ knowledge on the Basic Prayers, which are important for the learners to master in order to perform confession. 

I seek to put more thought into how we can balance thought-provoking activities, COMCARE content, and the standards of the organization. More analysis of the interviews is needed on my part.

March 16, 2025 – Sunday  – Week 1 Sister Perry

Today, I am going to observe mom’s first day of class. My sister and I attended choir practice at the church that ended at around 1:00 PM so we opted to wait for our mom to arrive and start her class set for 2:00 PM. We were getting quite anxious as it was already past two and our mom had not arrived. 

OBSERVATIONS:

Classroom Setup + Teacher Resources

• Another catechist, Sister Che, took attendance for Sister Perry’s class.

• Teacher asked parents to sign the permission form for research

• Microphone and speaker were adequate.

• Laptop is slow.

  • Some technical issues were faced. Could be addressed with more preparation.

• Teacher was late. Many parents and kids were waiting.

• There was a TV available for the class

• Tables are separated, grouping the children. There were enough available chairs.

• The arrangement of chairs makes it difficult to see the TV screen from some angles.

Learning Environment: 2ND FLOOR, NEW BUILDING

• Warm classroom despite electric fans.

• Room was slightly dark due to the shadows; writing notes is still possible

Materials

• Large text is easy to read; the slides and text are visible even from afar.

• Sister Perry used my original design for Lesson 1 but did not have enough time for my proposed activity (Tableau).

Teaching Approach

The formal lesson started at 3:00PM. Around five students were absent. The lesson started one hour late.

• Content Alignment and Delivery

  • Bilingual approach to teaching and instructions.

    • About three learners are English-speaking but understand Filipino

    • She clarified which students are English speaking 

    • She guided the English speaking kids sit together

  • Sister Perry asked the kids why they are here; establishing the purpose and objectives of the learning.

  • Sister Perry is explaining a lot of interrelated concepts. Lesson is a bit all-over the place.

    • Sister Perry introduced the learners to the Basic Prayers

    • She related the lessons to the pretest

    • Teacher is pausing in between the story scenes to explain what is happening

    • Clarified how to do the Sign of the Cross 

    • Kids are listening to mom about how many is God (only one) and how many personas there are (three – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit)

  • She relates the lesson to real-life scenarios. 

    • Values like listening in mass, listening to elders 

    • May be overwhelming to the students

    • Mom is relating the lesson to things relevant to the kids but not that much with catechesis; more balance is needed

  • Many fundamentals of faith need to be taught

    • Teaching of the basics were rushed due to lack of time

  • 10 minute break

  • The class concluded with a prayer led by one of the learners. The class ended at 4:00 PM. 

• Learner Engagement

  • Story in the slide presentation captures student attention.

  • Catechist has a lot of energy in the explanation; however she is explaining the questions instead of letting the children speak .

    • More engagement needed from the kids

    • Some students are falling asleep

    • Active listening seems to be difficult 

  • Learners were more participative when they were given something to do; she did not ask them to write down notes.

  • There were some students that went out of the classroom without asking permission.

• Formative and Summative Assessments

  • Students answered the Fill-in-the-Blanks pretest about the Basic Prayers while laptop was being set-up.

    • Some learners were embarrassed that they did not memorize the prayers. They said that the Filipino version is difficult. I reassured them that it is only a pretest and that they would learn to memorize the prayers throughout the lessons.

  • Oral recitation activity

    • Children are having difficulty reciting

  • The kids were asked to read the slides together.

  • Homework: Write down good deeds you can do to your neighbor/kapwa.

Others 

• Mom was late due to teacher burnout and overwork. She has a lot of responsibilities at home.

• She had to make the 2-hr lesson fit in half the time.

While waiting for mom/Sister Perry, I interviewed two parents/guardians about their situation at home and how the child learns (see Interview transcripts here and here). After class, I interviewed Sister Perry on what she thought about the class so far (see the interview transcript here). I also interviewed some of her students and the assistant catechist. During mom’s class, I counted and checked the pretests. Fourteen (14) students chose an English test while seventeen (17) chose to answer it in Filipino. 

INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The pretest was useful for determining the students’ prior knowledge on the Basic Prayers. This diagnostic data will help determine whether the classes improved their understanding of these prayers.

The teaching approach mom took was more teacher- and content-centered. As such, I recommend having more formative and summative assessments that the learners would enjoy. The learner interviews revealed that they enjoy writing activities. These can be incorporated into in-class activities or in assignments.

Another way for the learners to be engaged is if Sister Perry asks them to write down notes during class. Most alarmingly, to me at least, were the students sleeping in class and those going outside without permission. Some practices from Sister Todie’s class such as establishing house rules and frequent questioning can be used as a model to maintain engagement and discipline in the classroom.

For future classes, I must assist mom in her preparation, streamlining of explanations, and in being more mindful of the time. Since she is often burnt out from responsibilities at home, mom needs more support from me as a teaching assistant. Over the coming week, I will compile my recommendations for mom so she's ready to tackle the next lessons. 

March 22, 2025 - Saturday – Week 2 Sister Todie

Sister Todie’s 9:00 AM class is very different today. Two sections, Sister Todie’s and Sister Ning’s, were compressed into one room (the second floor of the new building). There was only one available TV but both teachers needed to display the slide presentation. There were four (4) teachers in total, two (2) being assistant catechists. There were around 70 students in total. The room had several electric fans but it was still warm. This session will be compressing three lessons to catch up with the first day only having one.

Lessons 2-4 will be discussed today. These are, “Ibigin Mo ang diyos ng Higit sa Lahat”, “Kahangahanga ang Diyos na Lumikha ng Lahat”, and “Jesus Dakilang Tanda ng Pag-Ibig ng Diyos” respectively.

OBSERVATIONS:

Classroom Setup + Teacher resources

• Two classes were compressed into one room due to them needing to share a TV.  

• There were four (4) teachers in total, two (2) being 2 assistant catechists. 

• There were around 70 students in total. 

• This session will be compressing three lessons to catch up with the first day only having one.

• Students at the back could not read what was written on the TV.

• Having teaching assistants makes it easier for the facilitating catechist to manage the large class.

• Technical issues 

  • One of the lesson videos could not be played

    • Downloaded backup video was available

  • HDMI connections was slow and intermittent

• The Internet allowed access to play the prayer action song.

• Teachers use the breaks in between lessons to prepare the next activities.

• Teaching assistants can double check the attendance.

Learning Environment: 2ND FLOOR, NEW BUILDING

• The room had several electric fans but it was still warm. 

• There were enough chairs for the students

• The teachers turned on the lights even if it was morning. The room was a bit dark due to the shadows cast.

Materials

• For the Lesson 2 PPT, the senior catechist changed my original design 

  • Fontface and size was changed

• The video on creation was easily heard and seen. 

Teaching Approach

• Some late students 

• Content Alignment and Delivery

  • Lesson 2 was led by Sister Todie. She began the lesson with a review of last week’s session. She employed recitation and the students were able to answer well. When the students recite, she looks at their name tags and acknowledges the learner. She related the assignments, writing the Ten Commandments and Our Father, to the current lesson. She informed the students that they will be compressing the lessons.

    • Sister Todie made the lesson/story of the Golden Calf understandable to kids and related it to the lesson

    • She had a faster pace due to the need to explain several lessons.

    • First lesson took ~30 mins

  • Lesson 3 was facilitated by Sister Ning Marcelo. She deepened the lesson that Sister Todie taught using similar techniques such as recitation. After viewing a video on creation, Sister Ning related a learning activity to it. She related it to the value of loving your neighbor, forgiveness, and knowing when to rest –  reinforcing earlier learnings from Lesson 2.

    • Her pacing was good. Sister Ning did not sound like she was pressed for time.

    • The amount of information was quite a lot. The information overload was tiring.

    • The second lesson was also ~30 mins long.

  • The learners had a ten-minute break.

  • Lesson 4 was also handled by Sister Ning. In this lesson, she emphasized the need to attend mass and touched on steps in how to love Jesus.  The lesson ended on an action song relating to the aforementioned topic. She repeatedly acknowledged the teachings of Sister Todie.

    • The class extended by around 15 minutes to accommodate the lesson

• Learner Engagement

  • Sister Todie explicitly reminded the children to listen since there will be a recitation.

  • There were a lot of students in one class. There were also a lot of lessons discussed. It may be distracting and overwhelming to both the students and the teachers.

  • At the start of the class, most of the children were attentive

    • Some were writing notes and some were just listening, but some students were talking amongst themselves.

    • Certain students at the back were very chatty but most of the learners were well-behaved

    • By the third lesson, the learners were loudly talking to each other and more obviously not listening. Sister Ning and Sister Todie approached and scolded them at different times.

  • The students were engaged by relating their personal experiences to the lesson content (baptism, attending mass; "Sino ang mas importante si Lord o ang paglalaro ninyo?"; relating it to parents; helping classmates).

  • Sister Ning reminded the learners to read their notes, to take the lessons to heart, and to practice what they have learned in real life.

  • Sister Todie approached the children and assisted them with the activity discussing creation.

  • The action song, story and video captured the learners’ attention.

  • There were already parents waiting outside before 4:00 PM. They were distracting the class. The assistant catechists asked them to wait downstairs.

• Formative and Summative Assessments

  • Recitation

    • Asked students questions about the Creation video.

    • The catechists prepared more difficult and reflective questions for the students this week compared to last week.

    • Recitation was assisted by Sister Todie.

  • Writing activity – list 5 important people, 5 of the most delicious foods you’ve eaten, and 5 gifts from nature

  • Final review of learning was done before the end of class

  • Homework for learners under Sister Ning.

    • Write down the Ten Commandments.

Others 

• Children brought water to stay hydrated.

• At least one of the students forgot to bring their notebook and pen.

• The children were quite rowdy when the teacher allowed them a ten minute break.

• The large number of students were generally well-managed due to the preparedness of the catechists.

• Sister Ning reminded learners to make sure they eat breakfast before going to catechesis class.

INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

In general, Sister Todie, Sister Ning, and the assistant catechists were able to manage a class of 70 students and clearly explain three complex lessons. For the most part, the learners were participative in the recitation and activities. However, when the teacher is rushing a lesson, the ideas become hard to follow. I can recommend extending the class if needed, as long as the parents of the students are informed ahead of time. Dedicating more time to planning the lesson flow would also be beneficial to deepening students’ understanding. Similar to the lesson last week, the learning objectives were not explained due to a lack of time. I see this as a missed opportunity to prime the students’ mindset for what they will learn. In the future, it would be best to keep the class sizes small as much as possible. The learners become rowdier in large classes. Still, the collaboration among multiple teachers allowed for the success of the class despite such challenges.

The sudden problems faced during classes made me realize that the ADDIE model alone is insufficient for COMCARE’s context. After researching alternative ID processes, I found that the AGILE model is closest to what COMCARE does. The AGILE model is a relatively new process originally used in software development. It stands for “align”, “get set”, “iterate and implement”, “leverage”, and “evaluate.” Crucial to this model is its iteration, feedback, and collaboration aspect. Through cross-team efforts, solutions are developed quicker without sacrificing quality (Instructional Design Models, n.d.). I chose this due to the limited time in COMCARE's context and due to the collaborative aspect of my special project. Now knowing this, I can design better materials and approaches for the context.  

Best Practices and Recommendations for Mom’s Class:

• Explain objectives

• Remind them to bring ballpen and notebook

• Return the pretest to the learners and mention the results

• Listening Activity: Listen to the prayers and write the missing words on the blanks.

• Assignment: Memorize the basic prayers; Write down the Ten Commandments (Eng or Fil)

• Can assist on teaching

• Put those with poor eyesight near the front of the class.

March 29, 2025 - Saturday – Week 3 Sister Todie

I opted not to observe Sister Todie’s 9AM class today due to the depth of data I already gathered. I also did not feel well today.

March 30, 2025 - Sunday  – Week 3 Sister Perry

Classroom Setup + Teacher resources

• I originally planned not to observe Sister Perry’s class today but mom asked my sister and I to provide her assistance. We got to the classroom at around 1:40 PM. It is good that we went with mom early as the usual assistant catechist, Sister Che, was not there today. 

• My sister and I helped a lot with the class setup. We set up the chairs, table, TV, laptop, and slide presentation. The classroom was dirty but we had no cleaning materials (broom, dustpan) to clean it up.

• I assisted with the attendance, checking of homework, “next”-ing of slides, and timing of the presentation.

Learning Environment

• In keeping the classroom equipment, there was a lot of trash left but no materials to clean it up.

Materials

• Objectives are aligned with content but do not follow Bloom’s taxonomy

  • No assessment available to measure these objectives

• The Mother Teresa moving slides with audio might be hard to follow as what the audio is being said is different from the text on the slides

Teaching Approach

• Content Alignment and Delivery

  • Teacher has a sore throat but is understandable

  • A relevant resource on Mother Teresa (that will be discussed later in the lesson) is played to the early students while waiting

  • The catechist contextualizes the slides; explains more so it is not confusing 

  • Explanation on human dignity is related to doctrine, worship, and morals.

  • At 3:10 PM, Sister Perry allowed a 5-minute break.

  • Class ended early at 3:44pm

• Learner Engagement

  • Most, if not all, students are listening to Sister Perry. 

  • Pace is understandable and easy-to-follow, the teacher has energy

  • The learners seem to be distracted by the teaching assistants (my older sister and I), so we need to be mindful of that

  • Visuals were engaging.

• Formative and Summative Assessments

  • Learners complied with the assignments, have not counted who specifically have, and who do not

  • During recitation, only a few students are participative  

  • More recitation, catechist calls other students especially those that haven’t answered

  • Select students are invited to read the slides (quotes from the Bible)

Others

• After class, some learners approached us assistants to ask about some of the content, to get their homework checked, and to note their attendance

Ideas for assignments:

• Write down your favorite Bible verse, share this in the next session (catechist forgot to mention)

• Recitation and prayer assignment due next week

• Count and note which students have complete homework

INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Arriving early is crucial to have enough time for classroom preparation. Sister Perry’s pacing is much better compared to the first week. Explaining the objectives helped pace the lesson but some goals did not have clear content or assessments to align with these. I hope to address this by designing activities or assignments that will allow students to meet such expectations.

The students are engaged with the slides and audio but do not seem to comprehend on their own what is being discussed. This may be because the text is very small from afar and what is being said is different from the slide’s text. 

The learners had more difficulty reciting in this lesson compared to last week. It may be because the current lesson was more abstract than the previous ones. 

Teaching assistants are very important in supporting the facilitating catechist when it comes to class setup, attendance, and checking of assignments. Sister Perry can set house rules reminding the students not to litter and not to be late. The second floor of the new building needs a dedicated and accessible broom and dustpan to ensure the room’s cleanliness. 

Additionally, the assignments are important evidence of students’ learning. COMCARE can measure the students’ understanding by assessing their outputs more closely. The teaching assistants may be assigned to checking the learners’ homeworks.

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This is a message I constructed for mom to ask the parents of her students. By noting which students have completed their assignments, we can measure how attentive they are in class. We also informed them in advance on the recitation that will be conducted.

“Hello po parents. As part po ng research para sa maimprove ang pagtuturo sa mga bata, paki check po ang notebook kung kumpleto ang assignments nila:

March 16

1. Mabubuting Gawin sa Kapwa (Good Deeds)

March 23

2. Kopya ng Tanda ng Krus, Ama Namin, Luwalhati, at Aba Ginoong Maria (Eng or Fil)

3. 10 Utos ng Diyos (Eng or Fil)

March 30 (kabibigay lang po nito today)

4. Letter card to Mama Mary

5. Isang Mabubuting Gawain (Good Deed)

Dadalhin po ito ng mga bata next week. Ililista po kung sino ang mga batang kumpleto ang outputs. Magtatawag din po kami ng mga magrerecite ng prayers sa klase. Maraming salamat po.”

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I already have a plan in my head but haven't been able to write it down:

Outcomes of the action research:

• develop a lesson creation and assessment guide (for the catechists)

• design a post test (for the learners, reusable)

April 5, 2025 - Saturday – Week 4 Sister Todie

This morning, instead of observing the class, I interviewed Sister Todie and asked her about her difficulties during the class. I also took the opportunity to explain the progress of my research so far. 

Sister Todie shared that her learners are creative. She estimates around 90% of the students mastered the sign of the cross, while 60% have mastered the Our Father prayer. She has difficulty in capturing the learners’ attention. Materials from the Senior Catechist was too deep, so Sis Todie chose to use her old lesson instead. She also added that “makukulit na bata” can be disruptive to the class.

INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

COMCARE catechists have the freedom to use their own materials. It is the teacher's prerogative to decide what is best for the class based on their experience, teaching style, and what can best move instruction progress forward (Kincaid & Pecorino, 2004). 

To maintain student attention, learners need more engaging materials. Student engagement is important for optimal deep learning, It is also related to student motivation. Often, engagement in the classroom varies. Actively fostering it is crucial for students to learn what they need to learn (Cents-Boonstra et.al, 2020). Based on the interview and my observations, learners are engaged by videos.

April 6, 2025 - Sunday  – Week 4 Sister Perry

Today, I observed and helped mom in her class. I will check the assignments in the students’ notebooks. I also conducted a learner preferences assessment, with the help of my mom Sister Perry, to understand how the students learn. 

“March 16. 

1. Mabubuting Gawin sa Kapwa (Good Deeds)

March 23

2. Kopya ng Tanda ng Krus, Ama Namin, Luwalhati, at Aba Ginoong Maria (Eng or Fil)

3. 10 Utos ng Diyos (Eng or Fil)

March 30 (kabibigay lang po nito today)

4. Letter card to Mama Mary

5. Mabubuting Gawain para sa Ina (Good Deed)

Boys

G-----a - 1, 3, 5

L--- - 1, 3

Girls

L-----g - 1, 3, 4

L---z - 1, 2, 3, 4”

Observations:

• Learner assessment had to be explained in Filipino

• Could only be done for students who came in early to not eat up class time

• I feel some stuff is too personal to assess (i.e. the homework to write sins in your notebook) but the sins are the focus of the communion and the confession

• Teacher emphasized telling the students the different kinds of sins, I feel this is important for themto know

• Teacher approached the disruptive students to get them to be quiet, maybe they need something to do

• It might be good to give the learners access to the slides

  • For personal review and for possible future long tests

• Teacher related lessons to earlier learnings 

• Teacher has an energetic reading of the story; kids are paying attention 

• Noticed some students sleeping

• The material is in Taglish, this is better for accessibility but is not used consistent 

• Each slide is not explained; some redundancies

  • I could have observed/asked Sister Susan too to see her ideal way of using the slides as the dominant materials and lessons designer

• The kids look a bit bored, sleepy, shy to speak/read

  • Most are cooperative

• Some are using their cellphones

• Not that many related engagement questions 

• Not many writing down notes

• Summary of lesson 8 is simple, I like it

• Had a part where students had to name 3 things they learned

HW given: Write down their sins in preparation for the confession for first communion.

INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The language for assessments and content should be understandable to the learners. Many need guidance in Filipino if the English content is new to them. Engaging story-telling helps learners. More efficient slide design needed. Students need more engagement to increase learning motivation. Suggestion to possibly teach students how to write down notes.

I couldn’t get all of them to submit their notebooks due to lack of time. They were confused on who I was XD They mainly listened to Sister Perry.

April 27, 2025 – Sunday  – Week 5 Sister Perry

I didn't attend the class today. Instead I worked on finishing the long test from 10:37am to 12:40pm and again at 8:21pm to 8:50pm.

My mom said that there was no speaker available for the class and that she had to handle two sections due to an unavailable teacher. However, there was a teaching assistant available to help her. She said that, “okay naman ang lesson.” She and the assistant catechist discussed what to do with students not meeting the minimum required number of classes. They talked about the remedial class arrangement.

May 3, 2025 - Saturday – Remedial class and Practice Sister Todie

I saw Sister Todie at the church but did not observe her class. She had to do something at Don Bosco that morning so her class was handled by another catechist, Sister Leni. I am still unsure whether they administered the long test.  I also didn't get to see what the new long test looks like since Sister Todie was busy and she need to talk with other people.

May 4, 2025 - Sunday – COMCARE Remedial class and Practice Sister Perry

We had a family emergency this day so my mom was not able to teach her class. She informed her COMCARE group chat about the situation, asking Sister Che to substitute her for today. Mom told me to still go to the church since I had to administer and collect the post tests for prayers.

• Some confusion, surprise, and a bit of panic from Sister Che and Sister Lara as they only saw mom’s message around 2pm

• A lot of students asked where mom is

• Printouts of the test were ready but I waited for Teacher Che before we began

• The learners were helpful in the classroom set up

• The students submitted the notebooks

  • Around 15 notebooks collected; some forgot their notebooks, others did not do the assignment

• Did the posttest

  • I did not have enough Filipino tests printed so I improvised by letting the students share and by hand-writing another copy for one of the students 

• Learners joined a class downstairs for the practice of confession

  • It was cooler downstairs at the San Antonio hall

• Maybe next time just make the activities by pair

• Practicing confession

  • While they were doing this, I was checking their assignments in their notebooks

• Grouping kids by counting 1 to 5

• Kids were fidgety when there's nothing to do; understandable

• Last minute changes made the class extend by 30 mins; done without notice

INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Catechists need to be ready for unexpected events. Teachers can explain to the parents and children early on if there are delays. Learners may explore more dynamic activities like doing things by pair or having an activity for them to do. The post tests can help me determine of the students learned anything from the previous lessons.

With this, I can finally compile everything in one go in order to complete my other 199 requirements. The next tasks I have to do are:

1. Complete my other 199 requirements

2. Maybe help on May 11 for the children’s practice

3. Help COMCARE on May 17 for the actual First Communion

4. Create a lesson plan kit based on the findings

May 11, 2025 - Sunday

I am finalizing the PPT the same day as the remedial class. It is last minute but it got done. In the future, I need to be better prepared.

The remedial class was good. The kids paid attention and were actively engaging. At first they were shy but mom encouraged them to answer the questions. Mom had to step into the roleplaying part since the two learners were too shy to interact with each other. My mother said it was much easier for her since she only had to focus on two learners.

The remedial class hosted by the researcher showed to be beneficial in giving more time to concepts learners did not understand well. The topics for remediation were gathered from the analysis of long test scores.