Edvin Cabrera: An unconditional love for 'special children'
The teacher must modify her lessons to arouse the interest of the pupils. The strategy employed inside the classroom should fit their needs and mood
Edvin Cabrera is a dedicated special
education teacher.
EVEN if teacher Edvin Cabrera was punched by a child with mental retardation when she was pregnant, it did not stop her from giving herself to children with special needs. In fact, it brought the best out of her. It gives her serious responsibility towards her pupils.
In 2006, Edvin bagged the first place in the Children with Mental Retardation Category when the Special Education (SPED) celebrated its 100th anniversary. The celebration prompted the Department of Education (DepEd) to recognize during outstanding SPED teachers in the entire country.
The Special Education is under the Bureau of Elementary Education. It prepares instructional materials specifically designed for the children with special needs. At the same time, it establishes linkages with agencies concerned with the education and welfare of these children.
The kids during their activities.
Edvin said, that teaching God's special children offer her the opportunity to know herself better by giving unconditional love to kids with special needs. "Helping them to maximize their potentials gives me the feeling of self-fulfillment," she added.
Teaching mentally challenged children requires a lot of patience, commitment and personal attitude. She would prefer to call these children as "mentally challenged." It is a very challenging and tough job handling children with mental retardation. At present, she handles 10.
Mental retardation is a label used to identify an observed performance deficit, failure to demonstrate age appropriate intellectual and social behavior. Mental retardation describes performance. It is not a "thing" a person is born with or possesses.
The kids during their activities.
Edvin recalled that she was carrying her third child when one of her students suddenly hit her tummy. Her desire to teach was not dampened at all. The incident did not provoke her to inflict harm on her students but it taught her not to be complacent because these kids are "moody". The teacher must exercise "behavior management" to address violent reactions.
Edvin added that winning the national award requires her tall tasks. "It requires me to even be more responsible towards these children and strive for excellence," she said. Her 18 years of teaching these children was rewarded with winning first place in the national level for children with mental retardation. Recently, she passed her comprehensive examination for Master of Arts in Education, Major in Special Education at the West Visayas State University.
She said she loves her job of teaching these children. Edvin said he could not have stayed long in her work if she lacks the interest in molding them. "They need attention more than anything else," she said. Another factor that made her hold on to the job is the full cooperation of the parents. In this generation, parents with special children do not have "closed minds". They are very cooperative and mindful of the needs of their children.
Edvin said it requires them to teach for six hours. "The teacher must modify her lessons to arouse the interest of the pupils. The strategy employed inside the classroom should fit their needs and mood. There are moments that these children have "tantrums," said Edvin.
The teachers must be "enthusiastic" to capture the attention of the students. "There are times when only one of two of the pupils sung with me but I have to continue singing even if I appear like a fool. These children have different mental abilities compared to their ages," she explained.
They are in their "chronological age," which means, their mental ability is lower compared to their age. There are children who are already 12 years old but have a mental ability of that of a six years old or even less. The situation where students are not attentive to what the teachers had been discussing is a normal one inside the classroom, said Edvin.
The teaching modules for the mentally challenged children is not centered on their academic achievements. It is more of teaching them self-help skills such as caring for themselves, social competence, communication and number skills. The communication and number skills are just basic learning. They are also being prepared for pre-vocational skills and vocational skills, she said.
Edvin said a teacher has accomplished her role when there is a change of behavior in every student. It is more of how one relates with one's peers, classmates, teachers and everyone around. One can differentiate them from the normal children. There are children who are clearly deficient in academic, social and self-care skills.
The programs and SPED projects are inspired by the 1994 Salamanca Statement on Principles, Policy and Practice in Special Education by UNESCO member countries, which states, "the fundamental principle of inclusive schools is that all children should learn together, wherever possible, regardless of any difficulties or difference they may have."
The children considered with special needs are those with mental retardation, visually impaired, children with autism, hearing impaired and gifted and talented children. These mentally challenged children have deficiency in academics but they excel in sports. In last year’s Special Olympics held in Shanghai, China, several special children grabbed a gold in weightlifting, a silver medal in swimming (relay), gold in gymnastics and another silver medal in table tennis. Sport activities give them self-esteem. Every Friday, these kids have their sporting activities at the Iloilo Sports Complex.
Edvin, 44, started her teaching career as a substitute teacher in two public schools namely Jaro National High School and Montes Elementary School before she got a permanent position at the Special Education (SPED) in Iloilo City in 1988.
She is a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, major in plant science at the Central Philippine University (CPU). Edvin took extra educational units to land a teaching job in the future. She took the teachers board exam and passed. She was lucky enough when SPED’s former principal Filomena Layson backed her up. The principal died long ago.
Edvin, who has five children and married to Severino Cabrera Jr, a seaman, believes she was destined to impart knowledge and take care of the mentally challenged children. There were number of teachers who applied for a slot but did not make it.
She also has plans of seeking geener pastures as it is a high paying job in other countries. But for now, the award-winning teacher is contented in teaching children with mental retardation here.