Education is a basic right. Unfortunately, not all kids get to avail of this very important tool they need for their future. This is why I strongly support advocacies that help educate young Filipinos and give them better chances of being successful individuals and upright citizens when they grow up.
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| Teacher Ohne Lopez with her students under the Coordinartes for Life Program |
In 2013, Coca-Cola FEMSA Philippines and Teach for the Philippines formed a partnership that introduced FEMSA's flagship education program in the country. Coordinates for Life is a series of training modules created for children and young adults so they can develop and strengthen their decision making skills, as well as decrease their vulnerability when faced with difficult situations.
The modules address issues such as healthy lifestyles, bullying, and culture of lawfulness, among others. The program furthermore provides training support for parents, teachers and mentors through lectures and workshops to help them be better equipped to participate more actively in children’s holistic development as they go through various stages in life.
Coordinates for Life is designed around 16 life skills, which include assertiveness, empathy, understanding consequences, peer pressure, anger and stress management, among others. Aside from imparting decision making skills, the program likewise aims to promote better communication and self-awareness.
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| Clarissa Delgado and Juan Dominguez |
Juan Dominguez, Corporate Affairs Director for Coca-Cola FEMSA Asia Division, described that for the first year of their partnership with Teach for the Philippines, "We focused our efforts on customizing the workshops and educational materials so that it applies to the Philippine context, since this was a program that was developed in Mexico and primarily implemented in Latin America.” He added that they spent a lot of time conducting intensive knowledge transfer workshops for Teach for the Philippines led by DEHYCO, a leading Human Development and Organizational Change company in Mexico.
In 2014, Coordinates for Life was rolled out to 15 public schools in Metro Manila. That first year of implementation, the program was received by 2,178 elementary students and 304 parents and teachers.
“We’ve had very promising results during our pilot year,” reported Clarissa Delgado, CEO for Teach for the Philippines. She said feedback from the parents and teachers show that some of the most disruptive and undisciplined students have exhibited positive improvements in their behavior and attitude in the first year after the implementation of the workshops.
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| Teacher fellow, Nico Fos and his student, Kristoff Diaz |
There has also been an improvement in the students’ performance in school and in their relationships with their family and peers. Parents also expressed appreciation for the workshops as a safe place for them to share their concerns and to receive feedback and advice from other parents.
The positive reception from the students and teaching community for Coordinates for Life inspired Coca-Cola FEMSA Philippines and Teach for the Philippines to renew their partnership in order to expand the program’s reach to more Filipino students. “We have seen the potential impact of Coordinates for Life and are excited to bring this to even more schools and more Filipino communities,” said Dominguez.
Delgado added, “It is believed that with the right skills and values, students can create a better life for themselves and those around them. As the fellows of Teach for the Philippines grow in number, so will the opportunities for more schools to benefit from the Coordinates for Life program. On our second year of implementation, we are expanding geographically with two schools in Mindanao.”
Coca-Cola FEMSA Philippines will be investing another Php10 million over the next two years for its Coordinates for Life program
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| Monette Santos, Chief Program Officer, Teach for the Philippines |
Coca-Cola FEMSA is the largest franchise bottler of Coca-Cola products in the world. Teach for the Philippines is a non-government organization that places volunteer educators in public schools all over the country. You can read my other blog post about it, here, especially if you are interested to become one of their teachers.
To contact Teach for the Philippines, you may visit their website: http://teachforthephilippines.org/ or call their landline (632) 808-8837. For inquiries about the Fellowship program, please email admissions@teachforthephilippines.org. For other inquiries, please email generalinquiry@teachforthephilippines.org.
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