Two Pinoys in Massachusetts cited for their teaching excellence
Two Filipinos are among 15 teachers in Massachusetts in the United States who will be recognized for their teaching excellence.
Fred Pontillas and Jodie Reyes were named Partners in Excellence Teacher Award by the Boston-based nonprofit group Mass Insight Education, along with 13 others. They will be honored in a ceremony on March 7 at the Museum of Science, also in Boston.
The awards recognize a “top math, science and English teacher” from each of five regions in the state of Massachusetts who have contributed to its Mass Math + Science Initiative (MMSI).
The MMSI is the state’s largest at-scale academic program designed to increase participation and performance in the fields of science, math, and English in the US’ Advanced Placement program, in which high school students may take college-level tests and courses.
Pontillas is a biology teacher from the John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics and Science in Roxbury in the Greater Boston Area.
Reyes, on the other hand, is an English Language and Composition teacher from Marlborough High School in the Central Massachusetts area.
"Pleasantly surprised"
In an email to GMA News Online, Reyes said he “was pleasantly surprised and extremely gratified by the recognition.”
The Ateneo de Manila graduate said he has been teaching in the US since 2000.
According to Reyes, choosing to teach English was a “no-brainer” decision because of his passion for the subject.
“I've always loved literature, and I've had several teachers who believed in me and inspired me with their passion for the subject,” he said.
“To work every day in an environment where I have the opportunity to share my love of English and, just as my teachers did, inspire others and impact their lives was a no-brainer for me,” he continued.
On pursuing knowledge and excellence, Reyes said it was important to find “something that excites you...devoting yourself to it, and putting your own personal stamp on it.”
“You'll never excel at something if you're only willing to do just enough to get by in class. You have to love it enough to pursue it even if it is no longer required, even if the material is difficult, even if others express doubts,” he said.
Reyes, also a fellow in the prestigious Silliman University National Writers Workshop in 1997, added that one should take intellectual risks, challenge notions previously learned, and accept one’s own mistakes.
He said one stops evolving as a person when one begins to assume he or she already knows everything.
A support system of like-minded people was also stressed by Reyes as a significant factor in one’s development.
“Being able to exchange ideas with people you trust is one of the most exciting things about the whole process, and the encouragement they give you helps drown out the naysayers and makes it easier to continue the pursuit even when you begin to doubt yourself,” he said.
GMA News Online tried to contact Pontillas but received no reply. - VVP, GMA News
Fred Pontillas and Jodie Reyes were named Partners in Excellence Teacher Award by the Boston-based nonprofit group Mass Insight Education, along with 13 others. They will be honored in a ceremony on March 7 at the Museum of Science, also in Boston.
The awards recognize a “top math, science and English teacher” from each of five regions in the state of Massachusetts who have contributed to its Mass Math + Science Initiative (MMSI).
The MMSI is the state’s largest at-scale academic program designed to increase participation and performance in the fields of science, math, and English in the US’ Advanced Placement program, in which high school students may take college-level tests and courses.
Pontillas is a biology teacher from the John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics and Science in Roxbury in the Greater Boston Area.
Reyes, on the other hand, is an English Language and Composition teacher from Marlborough High School in the Central Massachusetts area.
"Pleasantly surprised"
In an email to GMA News Online, Reyes said he “was pleasantly surprised and extremely gratified by the recognition.”
The Ateneo de Manila graduate said he has been teaching in the US since 2000.
According to Reyes, choosing to teach English was a “no-brainer” decision because of his passion for the subject.
“I've always loved literature, and I've had several teachers who believed in me and inspired me with their passion for the subject,” he said.
“To work every day in an environment where I have the opportunity to share my love of English and, just as my teachers did, inspire others and impact their lives was a no-brainer for me,” he continued.
On pursuing knowledge and excellence, Reyes said it was important to find “something that excites you...devoting yourself to it, and putting your own personal stamp on it.”
“You'll never excel at something if you're only willing to do just enough to get by in class. You have to love it enough to pursue it even if it is no longer required, even if the material is difficult, even if others express doubts,” he said.
Reyes, also a fellow in the prestigious Silliman University National Writers Workshop in 1997, added that one should take intellectual risks, challenge notions previously learned, and accept one’s own mistakes.
He said one stops evolving as a person when one begins to assume he or she already knows everything.
A support system of like-minded people was also stressed by Reyes as a significant factor in one’s development.
“Being able to exchange ideas with people you trust is one of the most exciting things about the whole process, and the encouragement they give you helps drown out the naysayers and makes it easier to continue the pursuit even when you begin to doubt yourself,” he said.
GMA News Online tried to contact Pontillas but received no reply. - VVP, GMA News
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