Division of Cavite City through the initiative of Dr. Regin Rex P. Tosco, Education Program Supervisor (EPS) in Science the Special Science Elementary School (SSES) Project was re-opened with School (LDES), Julian Felipe Elem. School (JFES) and Manuel Rojas Elem. School (MRES).
SSES first year of implementation was on 2007-2008 where JFES was chosen to be the pilot implementer of the project. Unfortunately, the said school was also having the SPED program that time and the principal, Mr. Jose J. Matias , needed to choose it over the SSES having it removed from the school curriculum on 2009.
After almost a decade, the Schools Division of Cavite City through Mr. Celedonio B. Balderas Jr. through the Dr. Tosco enthusiastically rekindled the operation of SSES for the first three grade levels at LDES in the school year 2018-2019 where the three selected teachers; Ms. Maricar Pascua of grade 1, Mrs. Thelma Torres of grade 2 and Mrs. Elenita Arayata of grade 3 catered the first batch of gifted and talented SSES pupils.
A year after, LDES had its complete SSES program since it was continuously implemented to grades 4-6.
On the same year, JFES and MRES passed the screening procedure in the implementation of SSES thus, the two big schools of the division are now accommodating grades 1-3 pupils who were able to meet the requirements of the said program while grades 4-6 are in preparation stage for the next school year.
Training, benchmarking and seminar-workshops are some of the things conducted by the division to ensure that the teachers as well as the principal of SSES will really contribute to the development of scientifically and technologically – oriented and skilled individuals.
“ SSES provides an avenue for the gifted and talented pupils to be globally competitive through the opportunities and exposures to Mathematics, Science and Technology which are rendered by effective and exemplary faculty who were capacitated by different professional development programs,” said EPS in Science, Regin Rex Tosco.
In attaining the program’s goal of providing a learning environment to the gifted and talented through special Mathematics and Science curricula which recognize multiple intelligences geared towards the development of God- loving, globally competitive, nationalistic, creative, ecologically aware, scientifically and technologically-oriented and skilled individuals who are empowered through lifelong learning skills – DO no. 57 s, 2011, a well-structured building with complete Science facilities must be established.
“At present, I, together with the school heads and teachers of SSES is working very hard to make every SSES be equipped with laboratories, science apparatus and equipment, technology-based learning resources, Science and Mathematics textbooks and other references,” added Sir Tosco.
SSES program also gives chance to the gifted and talented pupils to explore by joining in a variety of Science- oriented competitions like investigatory projects, science camps, robotics and other contests held in the division, region, or national. (Teresa R. Remalla, Editor, DO Express)