The MEKA campaign during the 13th Washington SyCip National Education Summit

Overview

Meka is Synergeia’s drumbeat for transformation of leaders, institutions, and communities.

Meka defines Synergeia’s deep commitment to a unified movement for transformation that brings good governance and education together.

Meka articulates and amplifies the distinct value system and culture embedded in Synergeia's core vision and education together.

Meka is Synergeia’s story of transformation of leaders, institutions and communities which create, propogate and nurture values of:

  • Relevance - MEKAbuluhan
  • Knowledge - MEKAtalinuhan
  • Discovery - MEKAtanungan
  • Brilliance - MEKAgalingan

Meka Stories of Transformation

Videos

https://youtu.be/tC4vHFvB5nQ

Prof. Ernesto Garilao (Chairperson and President, Zuellig Family Foundation)

Two days ago, there was an article in the Inquirer regarding a study from the Philippine Institute for Development studies, our think tank. And it said that if we were to bring back the quality of our students to that level, we have to quadruple our budget.

During the pandemic, hindi na maganda. It really got disrupted. Four million did not enroll, education went online, and when online, we all know that not all the schools have Internet access and they had to do modular. There’s economic disruption. 4.3 M jobs lost last year, so you really see when incomes start to reduce, the spillover is on education.

What is the local government response? Ano ang puwede nating gawin? I think we have to put this in the context. We need to respond in the context of equity, retention, quality. Ibig sabihin, nakakapasok ba ang learner? Hindi siya nagda-drop out? What will be the parameters? Education is really a complex problem. It is a complex issue. You need to identify the educational ecosystem. Who are the stakeholders and what is long term strategy? And that we begin to see in the presentation of Rex Gatchalian. Iba yung presentation. Mas malawak.

Let’s take a look at what he did. He made investments. He was a mayor for eight years, he did all these. May lumalabas ba in terms of improvements? By Year Eight, cohort survival rate was 100% for Grade 6. Very good. It took him eight years to be able to get everybody to graduate Grade 6, 100%. It took him three years to reduce the percentage of non- and frustrated readers—97%. Nakakabasa na and it will be worthwhile seeing that they can trace this cohort; that they should be able to be faster in learning three years from now.

So what seems to be happening here? I think this is what Rex is showing. Unang una, may pag-aako ang mayor, that he is committed to provide good education to his constituents. Legacy niya yan. Ikalawa, dapat mahusay siya. I always hear Mayor Robredo saying, “Yung mayor, dapat mahusay.” That’s why I always say, yung alam ng superintendent, dapat alam din ng mayor. You have your own vision and capacity. And, thirdly, you have to think long-term. You cannot improve the scores overnight. It takes a lot of time to do that and mayors normally have nine years and, after nine years, maybe his wife or his brother comes in. So, you have a long term to be able to address that.

The next one: listen, listen, listen. Which means you need to have your stakeholders talk.

Lastly, you draw up your community-owned plan.

What does it mean to have this education? I just want to point this out. At the end of the day, you really want to see your constituent graduate from college so that he can be productively and gainfully employed and be a good citizen. Normally, we just look at it as six years, pagpasok niya sa education. Pero yung pre-education requirement. I think we need to be aware of it primarily because you want to be sure that once the student enters Grade 1, he is healthy and with cognitive skills. And healthy begins with a pregnant mother who was healthy during pregnancy and he has normal birth weight. At Year 2, he is not stunted, he is provided early education, which is the example of Cong. Garcia yesterday, so that he enters Grade 1 healthy and cognitive.

The reforms are there, but it takes time for them to take root. But while waiting for those reforms to come in, mayors can really be game changers. Because kung binabantayan mo naman: Is he in school? Is he dropping out? Is he learning? And learning has data base. May scores yan. At kung hind nagle-learn, the question to ask is: Bakit ang scores, ang baba? Ano ang magagawa natin at ano ang gagawin natin? Bantayan yung scores.

6 January 2022

Challenges of PH Basic Education: Current and Pre-Pandemic

7 June 2021

SGEG Pledge Batch 2

28 May 2021

NES BTS & Blooper Reel

9 April 2021

POA Visayas

Communities of Resilience

For barangay leaders and other members of the School Governing Council in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, they all took to heart what this means and made it their own ethos in influencing and shaping the mindsets and behaviours of people in their communities toward the 3Rs of solid waste management- reduce, recycle, reuse.

Synergeia, with the support of Coca-Cola Foundation and Bongao’s local government, provided a training and workshop on the concept of climate change and the necessary processes to understand and apply the 3Rs to save their communities from the impacts of waste on environmental degradation.

In particular, the participants were taught to recycle old textiles and clothing materials and transform them to reusable things for the home or office. These can also be sold, thus helping communities to have additional sources of income or livelihood.

Bongao’s Mayor Jimuel Que said, “This builds on our efforts to achieve environmental sustainability by having increased awareness of what we can do in our communities to reduce, recycle and reuse our wastes. Let us continue to be vigilant of our actions to ensure our efforts will not be put to waste.” #bongaolgu#cokefoundation

11 September 2023

“Reuse the past, recycle the present, save the future.”

Taas-noo kami sa bayan ng Taraka, Lanao del Sur sa kanilang pag-sungkit sa prestihiyosong Seal of Good Governance Award noong taong 2019. Samahan natin ang kanilang SK Federation President na si Damdam at and kanilang LSB Secretary na si Bainarie upang malaman kung anu-ano ang mga isyu ang hinarap ng kanilang komunidad at anu-ano ang mga stratehiya ang kanilang ginawa upang masolusyonan ito.

25 February 2022

Taraka, Lanao del Sur

On The Spot

Taas-noo kami sa bayan ng Taraka, Lanao del Sur sa kanilang pag-sungkit sa prestihiyosong Seal of Good Governance Award noong taong 2019. Samahan natin ang kanilang SK Federation President na si Damdam at and kanilang LSB Secretary na si Bainarie upang malaman kung anu-ano ang mga isyu ang hinarap ng kanilang komunidad at anu-ano ang mga stratehiya ang kanilang ginawa upang masolusyonan ito.

25 February 2022

Taraka, Lanao del Sur

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