There are places I’ll remember
All my life, though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone, and some remain
All these places had their moments
With lovers and friends, I still can recall
Some are dead, and some are living
In my life, I’ve loved them all…
– Singer/songwriters: John Lennon/Paul McCartney
YES, A JOURNALIST is never about his own story but sometimes even the runner stumbles, so just indulge this sentimental old fool. He’s almost in his December years anyway.
As John Lennon once said, there are places he’ll always remember and for this old man, Angelicum School Iloilo holds a special place deep down inside his battered and bruised heart.
An announcement posted last week by the Director of Angelicum School Iloilo that after 41 years the school will cease operation on July 31, 2020 brought back memories of my time as a teacher in Angelicum, and it prompted this revisit.
My Angelicum experience begun some 37 years ago, the summer of ’83 to be exact just before the opening of school year 1983-1984. I was in my late 20s when I first walked through the gates of the Lizares Mansion to start a new adventure in life into what was to become the “Angelicum experience”.
The Director then, the late Fr. Amador Ambat OP, greeted the new faculty members with this line, “Welcome to the Angelicum Experience.” When I heard this, first thing that came to mind was, “Is this going to be anything like the Jimi Hendrix’s Experience?”
Obviously it was not, but in more than many ways there were parallels, and most of my colleagues then where not even aware of it. I can only guess they were not into Jimi Hendrix or probably have never even heard of the man.
I was not surprised that some of my students, particularly in the YS-10 and YS-11, were very much aware of who Jimi Hendrix is or was and his music, and even understood what the line “excuse me while I kiss the sky” from his song “Purple Haze” meant.
The soundtrack of my Angelicum experience, however, was smooth jazz, particularly David Benoit, Randy Crawford and later Sadao Watanabe and Roberta Flack.
So what is the “Angelicum Experience” really in terms of seriously educating the learner who dared to be different and decided to go through the gates of the Lizares Mansion?
The concept of the “Angelicum Experience” is a school catering to the individual needs of the learner with the following methods or systems:
The Non-Graded System of Education is based on the philosophy that learners are different from one another and the belief that all children are capable of learning the same quality of knowledge.
The Non-Graded System of Education sees a subject area as a continuous whole with a complete set of skills to be learned without the usual time frame.
The learner’s progress in a given subject area level is determined by his personal capacity to learn coupled by the efforts he exerts as conditioned by his moods, degree of responsibilities and maturity.
The Open Classroom System of Education is based on a principle that the process of learning transpires wherever the learner is. In the classroom, the teacher sets the mood for learning, but the process is not confined to it. Learning could happen in the next room, in the playground, in the library or under the trees.
The whole world is the classroom.
At that time this was a revolutionary concept in education and it was just the perfect place for the unconventional free spirit hippie. It was so refreshing to come in to the open classroom system, coming from a traditional structured environment with stiff upper lips teachers.
This hippie thrived in that almost bohemian atmosphere and it was so fulfilling to see one’s students explore their potentials and be creative without the fear and stigma of cut-throat competitions usually de rigueur in most traditional, conventional learning systems.
In this progressive environment no learner loses, you win just by being yourself.
That was the Angelicum School Iloilo then. I really don’t know if it stayed true to the original concept of founder Fr. Rogelio Alarcon OP or it reverted to the conventional system.
I was with Angelicum School Iloilo from 1983 till 1985 as a faculty member and coach of the boys football and basketball teams, and stayed on till about mid 1986 when then Director, the late Fr. Edmundo A. Espinas OP, asked me to stay awhile to help the sports program.
When I left Angelicum School Iloilo I never looked back and went on to pursue my inner demons and became a journalist. I guess I made the right choice.
My Angelicum School Iloilo experience is quite sentimental and has a special place deep in my heart. My three sons, and they’re all boys (pun intended), are alumni of the school.
It is also in Angelicum where I found love only to lose it in the end. (brotherlouie16@gmail.com/PN)
