Seameo gathers Asean teachers in PH for motivation forum

DELEGATES from member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) gathered in Manila for a two-day regional research forum to develop the Southeast Asian Framework for Motivating Teachers to Stay in the Profession.

Organized by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Regional Center for Educational Innovation and Technology (Seameo Innotech), the forum saw the collaborative effort of various Seameo Centers and Ministries of Education to delve into the factors that drive teacher motivation across the region.

Asean comprises Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, East Timor and Vietnam. The event was held at the center's Pearl Hall in Quezon City on September 19 and 20.

On the first day of the forum, delegates presented their respective national contexts and policies, followed by two informative roundtable discussions, where participants shared diverse perspectives and insights about each country.

Content experts synthesized the presentations on the second day to lay the groundwork for the subsequent framework development workshop.

The forum ended with a message by Seameo Innotech director and former Department of Education (DepEd) secretary Leonor Briones, who shared her initial motivation for the research, which was to understand why Filipinos choose to teach as a profession, why they remain in the job, and what drives some to leave eventually.

«Innotech recognizes the key role of teachers in improving the quality of education and enhancing student achievement and learning outcomes. The insightful study conducted in the Philippines served as the catalyst for expanding this research to encompass other Southeast Asian countries,»