“Teaching, for me, is a reward in itself… I think no good teacher goes into teaching expecting to have an award,” said Lee-Chua.
“[Teaching] is my life. It has not affected my life, it’s me. I can’t see myself doing any other thing…it was the life I dreamt about since I was 7,” said Abad.
Lee-Chua and Abad, together with Vice President Ma. Assunta Cuyegkeng, Ph.D., won the Metrobank Foundation Award for Continuing Excellence and Service (ACES) on January 22.
The ACES is an award given to educators who have been previously given the Metrobank Outstanding Teacher Award. Cuyegkeng was recognized Outstanding Teacher in 1997, Abad in 2001, and Lee-Chua in 2003.
They were awarded at the Metrobank Plaza Auditorium in Makati City.
Surprise and validation
The criteria for choosing the ACES awardees were not disclosed by Metrobank. “We’re just happy that we were awarded…the nice thing about this award is they don’t tell you… talagang [it’s really a] surprise!” Lee-Chua said.
Winning the award, for Lee-Chua, was a validation of her contributions to the different fields she’s involved with.
For Abad, additional expectations and challenges come with this validation. “Na-aaffirm ‘yung work mo (your work is being affirmed)…But [there is] also a challenge…you already have two awards from Metrobank and then you begin to think [that] you have to live up to another set of expectations,” Abad said.
The educator in nation-building
One challenge is how teachers can contribute to nation-building. For Lee-Chua, forming students holistically is the primary way to reach that goal.
“I teach them [my students] to be the best people they can be mentally [and] cognitively. But I also try to impart and model the best people they can be, emotionally [and] socially,” said Lee-Chua.
According to Lee-Chua’s student Stefanie Orandain (II AB Comm), Lee-Chua is an exceptional teacher. “She’s one of those teachers [who] really want to make you work hard. I don’t think I’ve ever worked that hard in any class in my entire life,” she said.
For Abad, nation-building starts within the classroom and the teacher. He said, “Classrooms [should] come alive through teachers. [And] in teaching, [teachers should] stress creativity over control… how can you teach while sitting on the desk? Move! How can you teach if you’re not gesturing wildly? Gesture wildly!”
He also emphasized how great the Filipino is. “Our history books in the past have made Filipinos look like victims of colonial powers. Walang (there is no) assertion of the Filipino. And Filipinos should [know that] magaling kaming bayan at kaya namin (we are a great nation and we can do it),” he said.
In theater, Abad is a very motivating director, said Tanghalang Ateneo officer Kathreen Marie Solis (III AB Psy). “As a director, he does his best to preserve his artistic vision. He puts a lot of time and effort into whatever he does, and [he] motivates you to do your best as well,” she said.
Cuyegkeng was unavailable for comment as of press time.
Beyond the Ateneo’s gates
Lee-Chua and Abad have contributed greatly not just to the Ateneo community but outside Ateneo as well.
Aside from teaching in the Ateneo, Abad has dedicated a lot of his time in theatre, while Lee-Chua is highly involved with the media through her column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, and guestings in radio and television shows. Lee-Chua and Abad also give talks and seminars to other educators in the Philippines.
Lee-Chua said teachers should also get highly-involved outside campus.
“I hope that a lot of other Ateneo people would also take the challenge of serving the wider Filipino community. Kaya naman kasi matatalino ‘yung mga professors (the professors can do it because they are smart)…They can easily spread their mission outside,” she said.
