Reflection 1

REFLECTION JOURNAL EARL JON MARI P. BAGACINA

Watching my mother as a teacher, I learned a series of important lessons: TEACHING IS DEDICATION Every weekend, you can find my mother at her school preparing for the next week. Her dedication and commitment to excellence is exceptional. She truly believes all students can learn and takes it upon herself to give them access using the best instructional strategies and educational tools of which she is aware. She is dedicated to her administrators and colleagues, and refusing to engage in conversations that don’t move the school community forward. The extraordinary amount of time and energy she puts into the school is a clear indication of her dedication. PRIORITIZING FAMILY No matter how busy my mother has been over the years, she always made my brother and me a priority. I'm not exactly sure how she did it. My mother packed the best lunches, helped me create the most amazing school projects, and listened to every story I ever told. I never took a backseat to her career. She always stayed calm under pressure and helped me to relax during my intense teen years. Though my mother's dedication to her job is unwavering, she's always kept our home a place of refuge and comfort.

A CONTINUOUS LEARNER My mother has always been an innovative teacher. She is continuously reinventing and refining her practice, seeking knowledge through collaboration with others, and trying the latest strategies. She leads as a teacher by constantly learning herself.

IMPORTANT OF SERVICE My mother took a substantial pay cut to become a teacher. Her dedication and calling to serve her local community was incredibly apparent. This created a model of public service which reminds me of my own responsibility to be committed to my community. Understanding the importance of selfless behaviour and advocating to improve the world for future generations was a wonderful example that my mother lived every day.

My first and most important teacher: MY MOTHER. Being a legacy teacher one whose parent is also a teacher is grounded in watching our parent’s commitment to service and learning. My mother paved the path for me to change and impact this world. Sometimes, it seems like my mother feels she's becoming obsolete or too old for teaching. Perhaps she feels a sense of no longer being competent or nimble enough to change with the times. Yet, my mother is exactly the opposite. She is young at heart. She seeks out open educational resources for her student’s She was and still is my role-model in both life and in teaching. #ForeverMama’sBoy