Filipino Librarian of the Month: Ma. Fatima D. Delfin

Our Filipino Librarian of the month is Ma. Fatima "Phia" D. Delfin. Phia graduated with a Bachelor in Secondary Education degree, major in Library Science at the PNU. In 2008, she earned her Master of Education in Library and Information Science at the same university. She is a librarian of the Makati DepEd Library Hub. 

Read more about her work and the challenges she face as a library hub librarian. Her story is pretty inspiring!

How long have you been working as a Library Hub librarian in the Division of Makati?

I started working on February 2, 2009; it has been 7 years now.  The Division Library Hub is serving the 28 Elementary and 10 Secondary Schools in the Division.  

What challenges do you face and encounter as a Library Hub librarian?

*Provision for New Books.  

Our Hub had the same books since it started its operation in August 2009. 

I often hear the question, “Wala na ba kayong bago libro?!” from teacher-librarians.  The ‘Sawa’ factor might kick in anytime soon.  Though there have been minimal donations from institutions and individuals, I believe it is still not enough to satisfy the need or demand.

There is a provision prohibiting the purchase of books through the MOOE (Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses)

*School Libraries/Teacher-Librarians Concerns.  

For seven years, I was able to build relationships with the teacher-librarians in each school.  I have heard all their sad stories and difficulties, and sometimes it saddens me that school libraries are always taken for granted.  I believe that supportive administrators always equate to beautiful and functional libraries.

How do you overcome these challenges?

It would be beneficial if you change the way you look at things and to never stop thinking and finding ways to overcome these challenges.   

What are you happiest about your job?  

Just the sight of a child reading makes me extremely happy.

The Makati Library Hub Steps Up on Professional Development for Teacher Librarians

With Phia Delfin

The Library Hub in Makati City is alive and functional. Catering to more than 40 schools in the division, it is manned by a licensed librarian, Ms. Phia Delfin and aided by a library staff. I first met Phia in 2010 during a workshop for librarians and teacher librarians (full time teachers assigned to do library duties) who were assigned to run the hubs.

It was a workshop sponsored by Adarna House. I have blog entries about it. One is about the outline of my seminar workshop while the other post featured Mrs. Digna Aquino who was then the assigned teacher librarian in the Pasig Library Hub. At the time, the library hub in Pasig was the exemplar of best practice. Now I wonder what has happened to the library hub in that city. Mrs. Aquino is a retired teacher who made wonders for the library hub. She is probably in her 70s now. Is she still working as a library hub teacher librarian? If not anymore, who replaced her? Is the hub being sustained as an exemplar of best practice? The challenge of succession, leadership and sustainability are issues that many libraries and communities willing to have functional reading centers, at least, face constantly.

Since Phia has been with the Makati City Library Hub for six years now, she has been able to build relationships with the teacher librarians in each schools. The workshop she organized last Friday, February 5 at the Makati Elementary School was the first for the year. I got the impression that there will be more in the months to come.

Here is the presentation I used in the workshop.

Dep ed libraryhub_makati from Zarah Gagatiga

Teacher Lorima read aloud their book to a listening adience.

I live blogged the morning session of the workshop. It was an input session on basic library organization and programming. In the afternoon, Mrs. Leonila Galvez of the Library Hub DepEd Central shared more reading promotions and projects. After an hour of sharing exciting activities on reading, I was back to facilitate the book making and story writing workshop. These are staple workshop activities I do in all my teacher librarian workshops. It may not be a new activity since they have had experience with this kind of workshop before.

As a storyteller and published author, I believe that creating stories, writing and reading them aloud to an audience is a creative experience. The exercise will not lead them to publishing instantly. The point is for participants to look at themselves as a collection of stories. A living and human library. With in them are life stories that are worth sharing to others. To code and write down these stories into self made books empowers them to create and communicate. What happens when there are no books? The answer is, tell stories. Life stories.

Tell personal stories. Code it. Write it. Read it aloud.

Live Blogging: Seminar Workshop on Organizing the Library at the Makati Library Hub

Presenting right now is Ms. Leonila Galvez, consultant for Library Hub, DepEd Central Office on best practices, reading activities and programs for the school library. We are here in Makati Elementary School where the Library Hub workshop on Organizing a Library is being held. We are speakers to sixty teacher librarians.

This morning, I did a perspective taking on library concepts and emphasized the important role that librarians do in learning communities. I gave them basic principles in organizing a library and provided steps in setting up a book collection. I showed samples of online directories and e-book collections. Wikis. Pathfinders. LibGuides. Librarian made online directories via google sites.

The participants enjoyed my read aloud of Library Mouse by Daniel Kirk using an ebook. I couldn't find my print copy so I bought on Amazon. I got the same response from the teachers. They were engaged and entertained. Because the ebook was projected using a LCD, everyone can see the colorful visuals of the illustrated story books.

After Madme. Leony Galvez, I will be working with the teachers for a book making project.

Creative Reading Activities

The three day workshop on Creative Reading Activities sponsored by Educo and Adarna House in Naga City, CamSur ended yesterday. There were two batches of teachers who attended the workshop. Along with these teachers are their school leaders: reading coordinators, division and district supervisors, and regional supervisors. The three day workshop consisted of topics on Creative Play and Movement, Developing Creative Connections (which focus on literacy and thinking skills) and Library Improvement. Apart from myself, Teacher Pam Razon and Teacher Michelle Agas were the two workshop facilitators.

In my workshop, participants recalled their reading history and identified their reading beliefs. I had an input on library concepts and the role of books on national development. In the afternoon, I conducted a workshop that allowed teachers to create books and assemble a classroom resource center. Since the theme of the workshop is creativity and connections, I instructed the teachers to save their output from Teacher Pam's and Teacher Michelle's workshops since these will be place in the classroom resource centers that they will set up.

The participants had a working knowledge of the topics I covered thus, the different groups of teachers produced wonderful outputs. What I enjoyed doing the most with them was the book making activity. Teachers made mini-books. They wrote, illustrated and read aloud their stories. Using story prompts, they were all able to finish one after an hour and a half of work. Teachers who read aloud their stories were very proud of their work. Indeed, reading, writing, speaking and listening are empowering skills to have!

I then reminded the teachers to keep their books since they can build a collection of mini-books in their classrooms. They can do this project with their students. So, the concept of the process of creation is an experience that both teacher and students experience. Keeping these "self published" books in the classroom as a collection is one way to CREATE a LIBRARY. After this activity, the groups of teachers assembled a classroom library where, apart from the books available in their school library, can have the self published books, and visual aids made by the teacher.

In this time of budget cuts and limited resources, creative ways to set up libraries as literacy centers must be thought about. The how-to can come easily, but it is the concepts and principles that would hold the steps and process in creating libraries as literacy centers together.

In a lock-in session I had with the school leaders during the workshop, I learned how they cope and survive with the challenges of limited resources. Activities and programs like, mobile libraries, reading marathons, volunteer storytellers visiting their schools came up as sustainable projects. Sadly, there was no mention of the library hub in the region. Though the presence of the library hub is recognized, it does not seem to make an impact on the identified recipients. I see this as an opportunity to study the operational model and socio-cultural factors that affect its success, to some communities, and its failure in others.

For now, it is good to know that there are committed school leaders who will try their best to supervise and mentor teachers in developing creative literacy activities by bridging books to children through programs, working with the DepEd and making linkages with NGOs.

Filipino Librarians of the Month: The DepEd Calamba Library Hub Librarians (2 of 2)

Last Tuesday, December 16, 2014, Elinor Hemedes answered some questions about her work in the DepEd Library Hub System. This time, the blog features Myra Ortega, Elinor's partner and friend. Myra had been very persistent in inviting me to come over for a talk/training session. At last, we were able to squeeze in a schedule for this training despite a very tight calendar. I suppose we need more librarians like Myra who perseveres until she succeeds!

Myra is seated at the right. Beside me is Elinor.

1. Why did you decide to work in the DepEd library hub system? 

Security wise, I opted to grab my chance of being a member of DepEd family. I also aspired to become one. I want to help pupils and promote the love of reading. Luckily Library  Hub is a unique project of DepEd to and everything that I used to do when I was in the private institution made me realize that I have a great part of improvement and development in my present work.

2. What are the challenges you face in managing the library hub? How do you overcome these challenges?

Library hub supervision alone is really a big challenge on my part, I take it positively and I apply what I have learned in library management. I don’t see that manning the library alone is a hindrance to meet my goal.

3. What are the success stories you have so far? 

This Reading Month celebration, we invited day care centers to visit the Library Hub. We conducted storytelling. Our teachers attended such including pupils who won storytelling contest last school year base on cluster competition. Such activity may promote an essential aspect of the Library Hub and we extend the services we offer not only for public schools but to the community as well.

The Division of Calamba leads the Reading Month celebration thru competition of different category that aims to continue promoting the Every Child A Reader program, make every Filipino child a competent reader and writer and instill the love of reading among Filipino readers.