embracing the culture of excellence

A NARRATIVE OF MAHARLIKA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: It’s Community and Progress Report

Maharlika Elementary School is committed to achieving its vision, mission and core values towards well-rounded, competitive and institutionalized public institution. It is geographically located at the heart of Maharlika Village, a Moslem-dominated community in Taguig City. Amidst conflict and other violence – related issues, it managed to rise as one of the peace – loving and child – friendly schools in the entire vicinity. In fact, the school id gaining consistent popularity as it is continuously gathering numbers from the student populace, among different schools in Taguig City, Maharlika Elementary School is a community where multilingualism from different ethnicity is ubiquitous. However, teachers’ population is of Christian majority. In promoting quality and innovative education, the school is a school that can be bragged of because it has been collecting various distinctions and recognitions. With its performing trainers and students, the school is being associated to a connotation that Maharlika Elementary is an ‘award bagger’. Every student leaving the portal of the school would never deny if asked that they had a quality, fun – filled, competent and remarkable stay in the school. On the other hand, the community’s livelihood is reliant on small businesses and establishments, to the extent that some parents undermine attending school activities and programs. With the initiatives of the authorities, needless to say from Mayor down to Barangay Chairman, allocation of school facilities and materials has never been neglected. It is for the fact that it is really a fun to study in MES. To describe a few, MES is a prime promoter of safe, fair, quality over quantity, and free education with emphasis on health, good leadership, and hazard-free living.

In the essence of reporting the school’s progress, it is better to start with the enrolment statistics. The school has been gathering numbers of enrolees for the past years but year 2015 has been reportedly decreasing enrolees due to migration and for ‘greener pasture’. Parents don’t find it financially efficient to stay in Maharlika leading them to migrate in other areas with their children. Health and Nutrition is not an issue in MES, in fact, majority of our students have been supported with necessary measures to improve their health. Learners’ materials were provided in sufficient numbers, library is timely updated with needed books and other printed materials. In case of professional development, MES has been sending teachers to different seminars and training with their corresponding expertise and fields; the most recent was K-12 seminar which was participated by K-12 compliant grade which is Grade 5. Notably, some teachers were also sent seminars that will develop their skills in writing action research, knowledge in ICT and others. The school’s fund source is coming from MOOE, though canteen is also a source but minimal.

The school recently received various awards both from Division and Regional, which MES has always been doing. Last school year, during the MMYWCC out of different schools who competed, the school was awarded the 6^th in Collaborative Desktop Publishing Filipino and we brought home the trophy. For the past years, there were reports of dropout cases and found to be due to family problem, armed conflict, financial problem, health and nutrition and child labor but majority of the drop out reason is family and financial problem, though some pupils’ drop out was caused by health and nutrition and child labor. Child labor to describe is also prevalent in MES because some pupils prefer to work to survive and support their family instead of schooling.

Of all the progress that we stood remarkable, MES performance in NAT and LAPG is outstanding. The previous years showed impressive performance especially in English but we need to provide extra effort and attention to subject like Math and Hekasi and that is something that the Maharlika teachers are working out now.