Pandaigdigang Taon ng Kalupaan 2015 Tema: Masaganang Lupa para sa Malusog na Pamumuhay.

October every year is known all over the world as the United Nations Month. This is also being celebrated in the Philippines especially at the elementary and secondary levels in the different schools across the country.

UN has designated 2015 as “Pandaigdigang Taon ng Kalupaan” in which it recognizes the economic and social significance of good land management (including soil), particularly its contribution to economic growth, biodiversity, sustainable agriculture and food security, eradication of poverty, women empowerment, issue of climate change and the improvement of water availability.

Meanwhile, the Division together with our Muslim brothers and sisters, conducted various activities such as essay writing contests, slogan and poster making competitions, as well as the popular Mr. and Miss United Nations Pageant with the following objectives in mind:

raise full awareness among civil society and decision makers about the profound importance of soil for human life;
educate the public about the critical role that soil plays in food security, climate change adaptation and mitigation, essential ecosystem services, poverty alleviation and sustainable development; and
promote investment in sustainable soil management with activities to develop and advocate for rapid capacity enhancement for soil formation collection and monitoring at the global, regional, and national levels.

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The Arabic Language and Islamic Values Education (ALIVE) Program held a five-day live-in Capability–building Program for Muslim Teachers (Azatidz) with the theme, “Azatidz of the 21st Century: Access to Lifelong Learning on Teaching Profession and Values Transformation through Inclusive Education” last October 19 to 23, 2015 at the Atrium Hotel, Pasay City. This is in line with the major reform initiatives being developed and implemented for Muslim Education under the K-12 Basic Education Program.

The objectives of the said seminar-training were to: (1) empower Azatidz with knowledge, attitudes, values, and skills on how to become effective and efficient program implementers of the ALIVE program; (2) enhance teachers’ pedagogy and skills in classroom management and assessment learning; and (3) acquire teaching strategies in lesson planning in an inclusive setting. The seminar covered the sessions on the development of daily lesson plan, the reorientation/revision of the ALIVE Manual of Operations and the in-service training for Asatidz.

Participants to this were Dr. Lydia C. Abeja, CID chief and principal in-charge of ALIVE program, Mr. Anselmo B. Joven, Education Program Supervisor of ALIVE and the lone Asatidz Mr. Faisal D. Anting. They all joined forces to participate actively and discover the strategies and methodologies in the workshop to gain learning experiences that they can share to the Muslim learners and open door for peaceful engagement.