Turning Gold with RAP

To our esteemed guests from all over the world, our past presidents, my colleagues in the RAP Board, partners in the publishing industry especially from Rex Education, school leaders, fellow teachers, literacy advocates, friends, ladies and gentlemen, good day!

Turning ‘gold’ with RAP is essentially what happened to me. For literally, I was born on the same year as this association. As RAP turned 50 last year, I also turned half a century of existence. It is a year of jubilee – planned for more than a year with excitement and devotion by our luminaries and the current board. However, the pandemic struck the whole world which brought us locked down in the confines of our homes. Our grand plan is not what the greater scheme has willed for us for the game changer called COVID-19 devastated our plans.

However, education and learning must continue. In the middle of the pandemic, during the celebration of the International Literacy Day last year, we had our first literacy webinar on Facebook with a couple, both literacy educators, who volunteered to talk about ‘blended reading instruction’. That has become the start of our almost monthly outing on FB livestreaming to continue our advocacy. With all these activities for our organization on online teaching, assessments, strategies, parenting, and mental health all related to reading, we gained courage to move forward amidst the crisis. We thank all the educators, parents, and specialists who have joined us in our crusade to promote literacy amidst the pandemic. On their own, the members of the board and officers also conducted trainings and promoted literacy in various ways with government agencies and non-government organizations. Our partnerships with other literacy organizations continued. Book donation drives made possible with our friends were also undertaken though seemingly hidden. RAP chapters also continued their advocacies in their communities, and a new RAP Chapter was born in Sorsogon City during the pandemic.

As an organization, this international conference is our first major attempt for a bigger showcase. We know that this requires audacity on our part, and we thank Rex Education headed by Mr. Don Timothy Buhain and his team.

Thank you to all the teachers who have submitted their research and lesson plans. Our gratitude goes to our team of conference and program directors and our RAP advisory board.

RAP has turned gold. I have turned gold with this group of literacy educators and advocates who has transformed me to an ordinary classroom geek to a “person for and with others” journeying towards literacy development and learning for the Filipino child, for our country, and for the world.

May our hearts turn to gold to make a better world!

Thank you very much and welcome to the 7^th RAP International Conference!