NEAP, RCTQ capacitate core trainers for national rollout of HOTS learning resources
RCTQ collaborated with the National Educators Academy of the Philippines (NEAP) in capacitating a core team of Department of Education (DepEd) trainers who will lead in the national rollout of the Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) Professional Leaming Packages (PLPs) for Science, Mathematics, and English/Reading teachers.
The training will support public school teachers in performing pedagogy and assessment practices that promote higher order thinking skills for Grades 7 to 10.
Held in Cebu City on 5-8 June 2023, the training was participated in by more than 300 education leaders who are chiefs of Curriculum and Learning Management Division (CLMD) at regional offices; chiefs of Curriculum and Instruction Division (CID) at schools division offices (SDOs); public schools district supervisors specializing in Science, Mathematics, or English; and high school principals.
RCTQ directors Dr. Jennie Jocson and Dr. John Pegg led a total of six traiing sessions including a review of the three sets of PLPs, applying HOTS in the classroom; understanding the elements of the Structure of the Observed Learning Outcome (SOLO); and supporting classroom teaching-learning through learning approaches.
The development and national rollout of these learning packages is part of DepEd’s and RCTQ’s shared response to the findings from a series of international assessments showing poor performance of Filipino learners. The results of the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) for Filipino learners. ranked the Philippines last in Reading and second last in Mathematics and Science out of 79 countries. PISA is an assessment that measures 15-year-olds’ ability to use their higher order thinking skills in Reading, Mathematics and Science to meet real-life challenges. The same areas of learners’ poor performance were also documented through an analysis of teachers’ performance in RCTQ’s Teacher Development Needs Study in 2014.
Dr. Pegg, recognized as a world authority on the SOLO Model of cognitive development, said that “through our collaboration with NEAP in promoting HOTS in DepEd schools, we aim to empower our teachers to transform classroom learning from basic comprehension and memorizing materials to actively analyzing, evaluating, and creating solutions.”
“By fostering an environment that encourages critical thinking and creativity, teachers can support learners in achieving their full potential,” Dr. Pegg said.
The four-day training deepened the participants’ understanding of HOTS and the appropriate approaches on how to help teachers reflect these skills in their respective classroom practices through the development of HOTS items/questions for Science, Mathematics, and English/Reading subjects.
Mr. Angelo Uy, a public school district supervisor from SDO Dasmariñas City in Cavite, said when the learning resources are cascaded to teachers, “they will make teachers revisit how their brains work as they think in designing lessons, activities, and assessment for learners, and as they help their learners develop their own critical thinking and problem-solving skills.”
“Learning and applying HOTS should be an integral part of the teaching practice,” Mr. Uy said.
The PLPs address the following indicators in the three sets of DepEd’s professional standards:
Philippine Professional Standards for Teachers (PPST)
- Indicator 1.5.2: Apply a range of teaching strategies to develop critical and creative thinking, as well as other higher order thinking skills.
- Indicator 1.5.3: Develop and apply effective teaching strategies to promote critical and creative thinking, as well as other higher order thinking skills.
Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads (PPSSH)
- Indicator 3.2.2: Provide technical assistance to teachers on teaching standards and pedagogies within and across learning areas to improve their teaching practice.
Philippine Professional Standards for Supervisors (PPSS)
- Indicator 3.1.2: Apply appropriate instructional leadership support strategies to help divisions/districts/schools and/or learning centers with the continuous improvement of the teaching-learning process.
In 2021, RCTQ provided research and technical assistance to NEAP in the development of the PLPs with support from the Australian government through its Philippines COVID-19 Development Response Plan. (RCTQ Comms)
Current joint NEAP-RCTQ team on HOTS PLPs
