The Pearl Principle Formation School: CIE’s Response to the Challenges of Functional Illiteracy and Poverty Through Social Entrepreneurship

The Pearl Principle Formation School provides pre-school education with emphasis on Reading & Critical Thinking, Writing, Mathematics, English as a Second Language and Pearl Principle Values to children ages 4 to 8 years old of economically disadvantaged or lower middle-income families by delivering an effective and relevant curriculum.

The Pearl Principle School is a parallel school system to our public school system. It allows any non-profit or non-government organizations, business organizations and even government instrumentalities to set up a Pre-school Education Program in underserved communities.

The system provides support for faculty training and development, a license to a proven system of teaching, financial and school management system, free consulting services and quality assessment to aid organizations in setting up and operating the school in their community.

Why 4-8 years old? Why lower middle-income?

The first six years of the child's life is the most crucial because it is within this period that the foundation of one's personhood is laid out. We believe that with proper formation, the child is in a better position to succeed in subsequent learning stages. This is where, we believe, we can ultimately eradicate functional illiteracy.

The data on education should already give you an obvious clue why we chose the lower middle-income families. They constitute the bulk of the public school population. There were 12,089,365 students in Grade 6 in the Public Schools all over the country as against 926,122 from the private schools in school-year 2004-2005. 5,043,776 students were in 4th year high school in the Public Schools against 1,268,255 students in the Private Schools. This population constitutes the aggregate population of our future human resource. It is obviously not realistic to project appropriate or gainful employment of 10 million every year if more than 6 million of the emerging workforce is functionally illiterate.

The Pearl Principle Formation School: A Summary

• It is one of CIE’s Social Engagement initiatives under the Six High Impact Programmes (S.H.I.P.).
  
  
• It is the operationalization of CIE’s Vision and Mission.
  
  
• The PPFS was designed specifically to address the issue of functional illiteracy and gaps in the educational system.
  
  
• The PPFS is packaged as a Social Enterprise that any non-profit, business organization or non-government organization can invest in and operate in their respective communities.
  
  
• Its curriculum is designed and developed benchmarked by CIE GEQ.
  
  
• The operation, management and curriculum development are governed by the terms and conditions of a License Agreement.
  
  
• The license to use the PPFS System is currently free but applicants are required to invest in the training workshop where they will be certified and given the manuals of operation. A PPFS school must be an institutional member of CIE GEQ which requires a nominal registration fee renewable every 5 years.
  

Where to get information?

The Executive Director
Pearl Principle
Centre for International Education
168 Pres. Magsaysay Street, Kasambagan
6000 Cebu City, Philippines
Call: (032) 2332566 / 4127622
Email: virgilio.paralisan@cie.edu

The State of Our Public School Education

Let us have a glimpse of the state of national education today. We’ll have quick tour of our national education statistics. The most recent data so far is in School Year 2004 to 2005. There were 12,089,365 students in Grade 6 in the Public Schools all over the country as against 926,122 in the private schools. 5,043,776 students were in 4th year high school in the Public Schools and 1,268,255 students were in the Private Schools.

Note that there are more than 12 million students in Grade 6 and only less than 6 million in the fourth year high school. This population has not change much in the last 5 years. This pattern alone indicates that less than half finish high school every year.

We may console ourselves assuming that at least half of those who get to high school should be doing well academically. Our national data on the academic performance of students in the public school says otherwise.

In school year 2004-2005, the Achievement Rate of a student in the public elementary school averaged 58.73 while a high school student averages 46.80. The acceptable national rate is 75.0.
This pattern has also not change much for the last 5 years. In retrospect, we are introducing an average of at least 6 million high school students into college who may not be able to read, understand English or do basic math.

There has been many interventions introduce to address these shortcomings and gaps in the educational system. Here are some of the most common ones:

• Creating special classes or sections like the Science Classes and Special Education Classes.
  
• Introducing Computers.
  
• Feeding programs.
  
• More classrooms and buildings.
  
• Introducing multi-media into the classroom.
  
• Scholarships.
  
• Others are creative combinations of any or several of the above.

In spite of the many strategies and intervention introduced not only by Department of Education or DepEd but also by well-meaning civic organizations, we will not be seeing a real improvement in the quality of our educational system. The interventions themselves have inherent flaws and problems.

Common Problems encountered in these interventions:

• The intervention is almost exclusively coming from outside the school and in all likelihood will be from a private donor.
  
• The intervention is not consistent because there is no cohesive program behind it, a different intervention is being introduced every year, and by a different donor.
  
• It is almost always cash-strap or always plague by lack of logistical support from the school itself.
  
• The interventions are not sustainable and often times the stakeholders have no ownership of the projects.
  
• Donor-stress, donor-fatigue or donor-burnout sets in and the intervention project or program loses its sponsors and champions.

Knowing all these, you got to ask the question: What then is causing these shortcomings and gaps?

Why in spite of many interventions, many well-meaning organizations, and so many millions of pesos spent in improving our educational system are we still faced with more than 5 million functionally illiterate high school graduates.

The Underlying Causes of Our Educational System’s Shortcomings or Gaps:

• It has failed to recognize or appreciate the critical impact of the formative years of the child.
  
• It has not provided a dynamic strategy for curriculum development that appreciates the environment under which the child will have their learning experiences
  
• The educational system does not provide mechanism for the pro-active participation of parents or the community as a whole in improving the child's learning.
  
• The existing curriculum in pre-school does not provide the most fundamental skills and does not prepare kids to succeed in subsequent learning stages.
  
• There is no independent body outside the school that validates the quality of the content and delivery of the curriculum.
  
• Quality entails cost. Cost inhibits further investment in the development of the curriculum or its delivery hence sustainability is a perpetual issue.
  
• Existing mechanisms for delivery of pre-school education bars businesses and community organizations from directly participating in the development of their local pre-school education.

We know that government have had many difficulties improving our educational system. We know that the Department of Education is dealing with the challenges of its own evolution aside from its mandate of managing our educational system. Current interventions have not drastically improved the state of our public school system.

What are these problems telling us?

• The Government or the Department of Education cannot improve our educational system alone. They need our help.
  
• We need to introduce a better way or strategy to develop learning content and delivery of this content.
  
• The strategy or system for the delivery of a better educational system must be cost-effective, can be replicated, has internal mechanism for assuring quality of content and delivery, it must pay for itself hence should be sustainable: An Alternative or Parallel School System.
  
• The school must be affordable to the lower middle-income family.
  
• Organizations or even businesses have an opportunity to get involved or to invest in this alternative or parallel school system.

The Centre for International Education or CIE believes that rather than enduring the pains of the many problems plaguing our educational system, stakeholders, meaning you and me, should take a more proactive approach and turn this very "aged" and nagging problem into an opportunity.

You may have this question in your mind about why CIE should even participate considering that it is already an established institution. It has already a very good curriculum and it is already managing several campuses.

CIE's social engagement and even its many endeavors recently are clearly defined by its Vision and Mission.

CIE's Vision states that:

CIE is a veritable institution in the Asia Pacific that develops and nurtures influential generative leaders who champion the upliftment of the quality of human life.

CIE's Mission states:

We transform ordinary individuals to become extraordinary catalysts of social progress through a philosophy of education for leaders anchored on social engagement and the Pearl Principle.

You can say that our social engagement actually defines who we are. We are seeking out partnership from seemingly ordinary individuals and organizations to participate in the process of influencing the development of their respective communities by being socially engaged. In this case, hopefully, by investing in a Pearl Principle Formation School.

The Pearl Principle: TEACH DREAM SUCCESS

By Teacher Nelia*

VISION, MISSION and STRATEGIES

The People’s Vision

The Philippines: A S.T.R.I.N.G of P.E.A.R.L.S.

The Philippines is a Soaring and Tenacious Republic Instituted by Nation-loving Generations of Passionate, Ethical, Action-driven, Results-oriented Leaders of Society

The People’s Mission

We T.E.A.C.H.

We Train, Engage, Assess, Create opportunities, and Harness individuals, communities and organizations to apply The Ten Tenets of the Pearl Principle within their spheres of influence.

The People’s Strategies

We D.R.E.A.M.

Discover who you really are. Use your inherent God-given
gifts for a higher purpose.

Reinvent yourself. Create a personal vision aligned to the
service of your fellowmen.

Energize yourself. Be a life-long learner by re-tooling and
associating with positive-minded people.

Act on your 4 Ps.
Pray for discernment
Plan your course of action
Persist on achieving your plan
Pursue your dream with passion

Manage yourself. Be driven by SUCCESS:

Sense of
Urgency
Competence
Congruence
Enlightenment
Self-sacrifice
Service

We measure success by the number of people whose lives have improved because of our existence.

Personal success is only a means to an end, making the world a better place.

The Goal of Life

C.I.E.A.N.

Communion with God
Integrity in thought, word and deed
Empathy with commitment
Accountability for my actions

Nobility in my aspirations

The Tenets of the Pearl Principle

Our worldview is rooted in the transformation of adversity into a gem of a life…as in the creation of a pearl.

We believe that…

1. Adversity is the catalyst of growth and progress.
2. Transformation is the proactive engagement of one’s sphere of influence.
3. Every person has inherent gifts that can be used to overcome challenges.
4. People can reinvent themselves at will.
5. Introspection is the key to unlocking the right core values that guide our discernment for change.
6. Self-sufficiency is a philosophy that we can nurture to eradicate mendicant behavior.
7. Personal success is only a means to an end: making the world a better place.
8. Success is measured by the number of people whose lives have improved because of our existence.
9. Wealth accumulation is only justified when it is re-channeled to uplift the quality of life of communities through purposeful intervention.
10. Change begins from within...change begins with me.

* Teacher Nelia is Prof. Nelia Cruz-Sarcol, a Filipino thought-leader who convened the Pearl Principle Advocacy.

The 10 Tenets of the Pearl Principle

Every advocacy or ideology must have some foundation or a set of core beliefs. We must have a way at looking at or interacting with world at large.

Our worldview is rooted in the transformation of adversity into a gem of a life…as in the creation of a pearl.

As Advocates of the Pearl Principle, we believe that…

1. Adversity is the catalysts of growth and progress.
   
2. Transformation is the proactive engagement of one’s sphere of influence.
   
3. Every person has inherent gifts that can be used to overcome challenges.
   
4. People can reinvent themselves at will.
   
5. Introspection is the key to unlocking the right core values that guide our discernment for change.
   
6. Self-sufficiency is a philosophy that we can nurture to eradicate mendicant behavior.
   
7. Personal success is only a means to an end: Making the world a better place.
   
8. Success is measured by the number of people whose lives have improved because of our existence.
   
9. Wealth accumulation is only justified when it is re-channeled to uplift the quality of life of communities through purposeful intervention.
   
10. Change begins from within.

A Pearl Principle Advocate must adapt these tenets into his or her belief system. It is our way of explaining our relationship, our perpsective, and describing the color of the window panes through which we see the rest of the world.

The Pearl Principle Formation School Orientation: An Invitation

We are please to invite you to an Orientation about the Pearl Principle Formation School this August 12, 2006, 10:00a.m. to 12:00 noon at Unit 10A 10th Floor of the Cordova Condominium, Valero corner Sedeño Streets, Makati City. There are limited seats in this orientation so we encourage you to confirm your attendance. Please call (02) 888-0909 / 892-3088 and look for Glenda Francisco.

Pearl Principle Formation Schools is a concept of learning centers that is a result of the Pearl Movement. The Pearl Movement started in a meeting of 500 middle class Filipinos last September 28 and 29, 2004 at the Hotel Intercontinental in Makati City.The objective of the Pearl Movement is to create a generation of Filipinos who are Nation-loving, Passionate, Action-driven and Results Oriented. Hopefully this will also create leaders advocating these beliefs.

Nelia Sarcol founder and President of the Centre for International Education have successfully come up with a curriculum that provides strong academic background in Math, English, Science and Values to young people. She believes that the only way to put the greater portion of the masses in the same footing as the elite in terms of education is to share a well-grounded elementary and high school education to the poor. Change is expected to have far deeper impact this way.

To get acquainted with the Centre for International Education please visit its website at:

http://www.cie.edu/

The Pearl Principle Formation Schools or simply Pearl Principle Schools are schools providing formal elementary and high school education to children of economically disadvantaged family by delivering a world-class curriculum within socialized tuition fee rates. Currently, initial implementation aims to put up pre-schools in barangays.The Pearl Principle School is a system. It is a socialized educational system that allows any not-for-profit or non-government organization and even government instrumentalities to set up a Basic Education Program in any community. The system provides support for faculty training and development, a license to a proven system of teaching, financial and school management system, and consulting services to aid organizations in setting up the school in their community.

Components of the Pearl Principle School System

Pre-qualification Engagement
The Pre-qualification Engagement is the component of the system that allows the prospective licensee to understand and to appreciate the Pearl Principle and the School System. It is actually a learning process providing an opportunity to assess the commitment of the licensee to apply the Pearl Principle in the community and comply with the standards set by the Pearl Principle Program in managing the school and complying with the quality standards for schemes of work and curriculum delivery.

Pearl Cluster Engagement
This engagement creates the team in the licensee organization that will manage the school system and comply with the terms and conditions of the license. The Pearl Cluster shall be responsible for the roll out of the components of the Pearl Principle School System.

Faculty Training and Development
The Pearl School System provides a program for the training of teachers and their continuous development. The training workshops include the license to use the materials and techniques currently use in the academic programs of the Centre for International Education.

Teaching Materials, Aids and Tools
A set of approved and CIE certified materials that form an integral part of the Pearl Principle School curriculum. The materials, teaching aids, tools and techniques are provided to the licensee under a Limited Use Agreement.

Quality Assurance and Control
The success of the School System is hinge on the adherence to the standards set by the terms and conditions of the License and the deliverable metrics that CIE specifies. The Pearl Principle Program reserves the right to conduct Audit on all components of the Pearl Principle School license. This Standards Audit ensures that all Pearl School licensees regardless of the community or geographical location comply with highest educational standards set by the CIE and the Pearl Principle Program.

Management Systems and Best Practices
The Pearl Principle School license comes with a recommended business model. This business model ensures that the setting up and operation of the school reach a certain level of liquidity and thereafter maintain a consistent rate of growth. The business model was designed to make the educational program self-sustaining after a certain period. Pearl Principle's recommended systems and best practices are merely guides to enable the licensee to operate with a certain degree of efficiency while maintaining its autonomy in terms of management.

Financial Systems and Best Practices
Financial management is a very specialized business process and requires a set of specialized skills. Part of the operational manual of the School System is a set of accounting forms and templates including recommended accounting processes to guarantee that a licensee school's financial resources are managed professionally however small.

Community Development Program
Every Pearl Principle Formation School becomes integrated into the Community Development Program of the Centre for International Education. What does this mean to a Licensee and a Pearl Principle Corporate Partner or Sponsor? It means that the community where the Pearl Principle Formation School is located becomes a recipient of the following:

• The use of research data critical in conducting community needs assessment and resource planning.
• The network of support partnership that the Centre for International Education nurtures to drive its development programs in entrepreneurship and community development. The internal social or community programs of its various operating and academic units which may choose to adopt the community in one of its project
• Assistance in the event the community chooses to pursue its own development programs in the form of the different consulting services that the Centre for International Education currently provides.

Community and CSR Program Matching
There are many Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Programs being launched and managed every year by more than a thousand business organizations. The network of alliances born out of CIE's research, enterprise and community programmes, provides CIE many options and creative opportunity to find the best fit for a community. CIE and the Pearl Principle Movement can work together to get a community and a business enterprise on the right track to launching a program that both will be more than happy.


What is really the Value Proposition of the Pearl Principle Formation School?

The Launching of a Truly Integrated Approach to Community Development Work
It is very difficult to conceptualize, plan, develop and implement community or social development programs. Very few actually make it through the concept phase. The Centre for International Education through the Pearl Principle Movement and the Formation Schools allow for the adoption of truly integrated community development program using a Basic Education Program as a launching pad for community projects. The development model of the Pearl Principle Movement encourages stakeholders to take the initiative. The Pearl Principle Movement through the Centre for International Education merely sets the framework and a vehicle for organizing and putting focus into the stakeholders' initiatives. The Centre for International Education has the resources to arrange and to manage the partnerships required to make community projects work.

The Emphasis on Personal Involvement of Stakeholders
We believe that the values that we see in the formation of a pearl can be applied to our personal lives and communities. The oyster does not suffer in silence; it takes action to neutralize the irritant. The oyster does not depend on external factors to address the irritant; it relies on what it can produce. The oyster works within the area it can act on, which is inside it self.We believe that, as in the creation of the pearl:

• We should overcome problems, instead of simply enduring them;• We should use our inherent resources and talents to face our challenges;
• We should work within our sphere of influence;Furthermore, we believe that transforming ourselves and our nation will be a continuous and never-ending process of growth, which we can pursue by taking on challenges of increasing complexity. The Pearl Principle Movement is confident that communities can indeed take on challenges of increasing complexity if the right environment is nurtured deliberately.

A Wholistic As Against Cosmetic Approach to Alleviating Poverty
Most Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs are very palliative in its approach. An example of these programs are awarding one or more years of scholarships, providing school buildings to public schools, delivering computers to public elementary schools, etc. These initiatives are truly laudable but year after year recipients and proponents alike reap a rising tide of growing frustrations by the inability of these projects to contribute to real economic growth for communities, real acquisition of high level knowledge or skills in children, or even dramatic improvements in the quality of life.

After all the millions are spent managing and delivering these projects, the dignity of the Filipino has not risen to a level far greater than last year. The same people or families will be asking for the same thing this year or next. The never-ending cycle of "begging" or taking scraps from donors continues each year eating away the last patches of human dignity from "beneficiaries". The United Nations Millennium Development Goals is in a capsule suppose to uphold the human state everywhere. Corporate Social Programs seem to be doing the absolute opposite.

What the Pearl Principle Movement upholds is the chance not to send one child to school or change the life of one family but to help people build their own communities through a serious and well-thought of investment in a program that is managed professionally with metrics of success clearly established from the very start. In a sense, the Pearl Principle Formation School is an investment in a Social Management System that pays for itself after the startup investment. The design of the Pearl Principle Formation Schools takes into consideration the development needs of the community, and directly integrates community realities into classroom learning.

Please confirm your reservation to the Pearl Principle School Orientation by calling Glenda Francisco now at (02) 888-0909 / 892-3088.

Pearl Principle Formation School Orientation

August 12, 2006, 10:00a.m. to 12:00 noon

Unit 10A 10th Floor Cordova Condominium

Valero corner Sedeño Streets, Makati City

We hope to see you there.