Dr Michael Downey

Dr Michael Downey, consultant, author, retreat facilitator and teacher from Australia summarises his thoughts on Chaplaincy Teams in Singapore.

Chaplaincy Team Training by Dr Michael Downey

Dr Michael Downey has many years of experience in the educational field and gives regular formation sessions to school leaders, chaplains, teachers and others.
He is in Singapore from the 4th of April to the 7th of May conducting training for new and experienced chaplaincy team members, school leaders, priests and religious education coordinators.
His doctoral dissertation was on the Spirituality of Lay teachers in Catholic Schools.
Pictured above, on the left, is His Grace Archbishop Nicholas Chia addressing a group of 42 participants with Dr Downey.

Integral Pedagogy - what is it?

We've often been asked what Integral Pedagogy is and to answer it we've come up with the following: One Foot in the Gutter of the World and the other in the Library.
It has its origins in Ignatian Pedagogy which comes out of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises and in turn, the heart of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises is the appreciation of how much God loves us and therefore we cannot but feel compelled to love the world more deeply. Addressed in the first instance to teachers, Integral Pedagogy (or IP), is the way teachers accompany learners using an outward looking world view and a vision of the human person as dignified and loved by God.
Very briefly, IP is a five stage process; the first is a pre-learning element which is the Context. This takes into account things like the students’ environment, background, community and learning style so that the teacher becomes as familiar as possible with the students’ context and life experience. The second is Experience where the teacher creates conditions where students grasp new information in the light of previous experience. This also moves beyond rote learning to one of understanding, applying and being able to analyse knowledge.
The third is Reflection – the key to IP. Here the thoughtful reconsideration of some subject matter, experience, idea or purpose is used in order to grasp its human significance and application to their own lives. In this stage values can be reflected on.
The fourth is Action – this is where concepts are shared and group projects are initiated where the learners move beyond knowledge and “make it real”. The experience and reflection touches the heart and brings about a change of attitude.
The last is Evaluation – Checking on how my attitude has been impacted and thinking about what went well, what needs to be changed and improving further from there.
We've been systematically promoting this pedagogy to Catholic Schools for the last three years via a series of workshops, talks and meetings with educators ranging from teachers and principals to personnel from the Ministry of Education.
Fr Norbert Menezes, the Jesuit educator whose forte is Integral Pedagogy and is the secretary for Jesuit education in South Asia has now visited Singapore for the third time and engaged local Principals and Teachers of all faiths, NIE students, the clergy and parents.
In the 30 minute video below, Fr Menezes introduces the process to a group of teachers.

Supervisors Meeting

 

Supervisors of Catholic Schools gathered today at the SPI conference room for their regular meeting. On the agenda today was the discussion on the  common purpose and goals of Catholic Education; growing towards becoming a family of Catholic Schools.

Present at the meeting were Bro. Emmanuel SG, Fr Frederick Quek, Sr Maria Ng FMM, Christina Kheng, Fr Henry Siew, Sr Delphine Kang RGS, Sr Cecily Pavri FDCC, ACCS Executive Director Wendy Louis and ACCS Executive Secretary Ursula Quah.

October Marian Programme: Following Her Ways: To Jesus Through Mary

We are a few days away from October, the month celebrated in honour of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. During this month, we especially remember what God has done through Mary and continues to do with her for us.
We have prepared a set of the Marian Prayer booklet for use in Catholic schools. In this prayer series we would like to encourage one another, especially the students to imitate her and to live as she did and still does – giving glory to the Lord and rejoicing in God her Saviour!
The overall theme of the sessions is “Following Her Ways: To Jesus through Mary.” The materials were written with clear guidelines making it possible for students with facilitating skills to lead the programme in the absence of the teacher, if necessary.
There are a total of 5 booklets: 
1. To Jesus, through Mary – an introductory booklet that contains the introduction and some relevant information on the use of the materials.
2. Week 1 – Praying with the Rosary.
3. Week 2 – Feast days of Mary.
4. Week 3 – Mary in the Scriptures.
5. Week 4 – Shrines dedication to our Lady
RE teachers who have not received this programme may contact ACCS Project Director (RE-Secondary Level) Jeanette

Road Show at Christ the King church

We had a road show on the 14th and 15th of August at the church of Christ the King. The aim was to acquaint parishioners on the work ACCS does, to contact teachers from non Catholic educational institutions and to look for volunteers amongst the parishioners for service at the various schools.
Announcements and a brief were made at the three most well attended masses, Sunset 5.30pm, 9.45am and 11.30am. We received some thirty written requests and countless inquiries.
ACCS would like to thank Rev Fr Peter Koh for use of the church.
More photos may be viewed at our facebook page - www.facebook.com/singaccs

Towards a Shared Vision for Catholic Schools in Singapore

In a continuing effort towards having a shared vision for Catholic Schools in Singapore some principals, supervisors and SMC chairmen met at CAEC on the 3rd of August.
The participants came from the Gabrielites, Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, the Marist Brothers and Holy Innocents as well as His Grace Archbishop Nicholas Chia and ACCS Chairman, Mr Bernard Chen.
Sr. Maria Lau, Ms Wendy Louis and Mrs Ursula Quah from ACCS were also in attendance.
The proceedings were led by Christine Kheng and consisted of the participants breaking into three groups and then sharing discussions with the main body of participants.
The meeting ended at 6pm.

Picture shows ACCS chairman Mr Bernard Chen delivering the opening speech.

CHIJ cluster meeting - "What is Catholic Education"

The second event on the 2nd of June was the cluster meeting amongst the SMC chairperson, Ms Donne Aeria, CHIJ principals and vice-principals and IJ supervisor Sr. Deirdre . It was held at CAEC in Highland Road. His Grace Archbishop Nicholas Chia, Msgr Eugene Vaz and ACCS deputy chairman Mr John Yip were also present. The topic was "What is Catholic Education?". It was facilitated by Christine Kheng.
The agenda for the day consisted of a reflection on articles and questions, common elements of a vision of Catholic education and feedback on future plans and needs.

Marian Programme for Catholic Schools

Twenty One secondary students from four schools - CHIJ St Nicholas Girls' School, CHIJ St Joseph's Convent, Maris Stella High School and Assumption English School today attended a Marian Programme for Catholic Schools at CAEC in Highland Road.
The programme was designed to enhance the student's knowledge of Our Lady and also for them to initiate a Marian programme in their schools for the month of October.

CHIJ Our Lady of Good Counsel's 50th Anniversary

The 23rd of April marked an important date in the history of CHIJ Our Lady of Good Counsel. The school in the Serangoon Gardens area celebrated the occasion with a series of events, the highlight being today's feast day.
Mass was celebrated by His Grace the Archbishop Nicholas Chia and was followed by up a speech given by the school's principal, Mrs Catherine Seah.
On behalf of the school's board Sr Celine Low later addressed the gathering.
The school had earlier, on the 5th of February, organised a golf tournament and had raised funds for Catholic Welfare Services. It raised five thousand dollars and a cheque was presented by Mrs Seah to its Executive Director, Mr James Chew.
The morning's events continued with awards being given to former principals of the school.
The school's choir also lent their melodious voices to the day's activities and led the assembly in singing a specially composed song "With Your Grace" to mark the school's 50th anniversary.
The day's activities ended with the burying of a time-capsule which contained mementoes of the day's celebration. It will be re-opened in ten years time.
It was a joyous event and very clearly, judging by the detail which was put in, one which the organisers should be proud of.
The picture shows (in the front row) teacher Ms Constance Tan, Vice-Principal Angelina Lim, Head Prefect Michelle Lee, Msgr Eugene Vaz, Principal Mrs Catherine Seah and His Grace Archbishop Nicholas Chia.

Walking with Jesus workshop

Holy Innocents' Primary School played host to the second "Walking with Jesus" workshop today.
The facilitators, in sequence, were Msg. Eugene Vaz, who provided the biblical basis for the series,  John Chan who again touched on the WWJ programme itself, Trevor Nerva who spoke on the use of music and Ms Wendy Louis who provided the synthesis.
A total of 20 teachers and parent-volunteers attended the session which included active role play in the form of planning and delivering an actual lesson and enthusiastically took part in the music section.
Additional copies of the WWJ books and complimentary materials were also made available for sale.
Picture shows the participants demonstrating an actual lesson. Watch the videos here http://www.youtube.com/user/accscommunion

Integral Pedagogy

 

Fr Norbert Menezes SJ today delivered his third talk in  two days at CAEC. This time addressing a few principals of Catholic schools and tailoring his discussion to a summary of Integral Pedagogy as a vision of what Catholic schools should have. He reiterated its value as a way in which teachers accompany learners in their growth and development. It is an art and science of teaching and cannot be reduced to methodology. And lastly that it must include a world view and a vision of the ideal human person to be educated. The two hour session also included a question and answer time frame.

Chaplaincy Team Communio

St. Anthony's Cannossian Secondary School in Bedok played host to the first "Communio" session of the year on the 26th of February. Entitled "Practices in Catholic Schools/ Chaplaincy Team", it sought to give greater insight to the concept of Chapliancy teams in Singapore Catholic schools.
It was a lively three hour session and was delivered by Ms. Daisy Tan from the host school, Ms Soh Lai Leng & Sr Assunta Cheng, FMM from Holy Innocents' High School and Friar Michael D’Cruz OFM from St Joseph's Institution. A total of 58 educators coming from a cross section of Catholic schools attended the dialogue session which ended with a synthesis by Fr Norbert Menezes, SJ.

Who is the Learner

CHIJ Katong Convent played host to a workshop led by Fr. David Garcia OP today. A total of 15 teachers from Assumption English School, St Patricks, St Joseph's Institution Independent and CHIJ Katong Convent attended the two hour workshop.
The session examined the person of the learner who is at the heart of the teaching - learning process. It was aimed at the Civics and Moral Education teachers as well as those involved in RE, religious education.

Call to Discipleship

On the 9th of February, sixty four students and eight teachers from nine Catholic schools gathered at CAEC for the "Call to Discipleship" Lenten journey preparation. The students will in turn go back to their schools armed with the skills they picked up at today's session.
It encompassed the following:
1. Appreciating their role as a Catholic student leader.
2. Learning about their role as facilitators and the skills required in handling small groups
3. Familiarisation with the Lenten booklet.
In addition, the participants were provided with a copy of the 52 page Lenten booklet, a purple cloth to signify Lent and a cardamom seed representing the strong influence that the student leaders can have amongst their fellow students.

What is a Catholic School?

On the 2nd and 3rd of February a total of 20 Operation and Administration Managers of Catholic schools, gathered at the FMM House of Prayer and Formation at Holland Road. The occasion was an induction and half-day retreat on the theme of "What is a Catholic School?"
It aimed to explain the basic tenets of a Catholic School and to expound on the ethos that a Catholic school educates the whole person.
Conducted by Bro. Dominic Yeo SG, the 4 hour sessions were tailored for operation and administration managers separately.
Participants commented, "It creates awareness of working in a Catholic school as compared to a normal school" and "Sharing with our brothers and sisters, it helped me to understand the basic tenets of a Catholic School".

Civics and Moral Education Workshop

On Tuesday the 2nd of Feb, St Gabriel's Secondary School played host to a workshop on Enhancing CMECS, Civics and Moral Education for Catholic Schools. A total of 26 teachers from the school attended the two hour session.
It aimed to provide an overview of the programme which is to be initially taught in stages to Secondary One students at the school.
The workshop consisted of talks by ACCS executive director, Ms. Wendy Louis and project director (secondary), Ms Jeanette Atabelo. It also involoved role play by the participants and served as a platform for feedback from the teachers as well.

Principals' Commissioning 2010

The 5th Principals' Commissioning was held at the Church of the Holy Family on the 23rd of January. The occasion saw His Grace, Archbishop Nicholas Chia celebrating mass and commissioning 18 new principals as well as leading the prayer of commitment for some 70 principals and vice-principals of Catholic Schools.
In his homily, the Archbishop asked the congregation to truly search in their hearts and ask what they were doing in their life and their schools. He also encouraged the reaching out to non Catholics in our schools as they too were children of God. In conclusion, he thanked the school leaders, committees and boards for bringing quality education to the some 50,000 students and assured of the Church's support and prayers.
A dinner at the church's function room followed the mass.
Two video clips of the event may be viewed here.

Kindergarten Principals & Supervisors gathering

On 23rd July Principals, teachers and a few Supervisors from 12 of the 19 Catholic Kindergartens gathered for the first time to meet with the Archbishop and to get to know each other and share the challenges they face.

Also presenting at this meeting were Christina Ying and Julie Ong who are both Montessori trained kindergarten educators and pioneers in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, a way of leading young children to God.

Archbishop Nicholas welcomed the 24 Kindergarten educators and stressed the importance of pre-school education today. He explained that on the one hand we have affluent Singaporeans who have little time for their children. These children who come from small families often lack social skills. On the other hand, at the other end of the spectrum, he said, there are children at risk in families where parents have become recently unemployed or are single parent families. Archbishop said that these early childhood educators are VIPs in the education family as they are dealing with children in their most formative years.

Christina Ying and Julie Ong, Montessori trained Kindergarten educators and pioneers in the ‘Catechesis of the Good Shepherd’, spoke passionately about ‘protecting’ the spirituality of the child which can be quite easily crushed in the rush to get through a great deal of reading and writing skills leaving little time for wonder and quiet. For the pre-school child, the capacity for wonder is even more powerful than for many of us adults who have become jaded by routine and daily grind. If we want children to relate to the spiritual and have a warm and loving relationship with God, they need time to wonder at creation, wonder at themselves and spend time with friends. The same of course is true in the family, not only in kindergarten.

In the latter part of the afternoon Principals, Supervisors and teachers discussed the challenges they are facing today in running Kindergartens.

One challenge all agreed they faced was the ability to communicate the message of the love of God to children of different faiths in a way that is appropriate and sensitive.

Another challenge was to recruit teachers who could support the Catholic ethos of the kindergarten. The principals called for more gatherings of this type where they could share their ‘best practices’ and support each other.
During the afternoon, resources were displayed and made available from Catholic bookshops, the ACCS and the Singapore Pastoral Institute.

The event was organized by the Archdiocesan Commission for Catholic Schools.

New Appointments to Catholic Schools

ACCS would like to say,

to the following newly appointed leaders in our schools:

Principals:

Mr Wee Tat Chuan, Assumption Pathway School
Ms Terry Theseira, Canossian School for the Hearing Impaired
Mr Andrew Tan,Montfort Sec School

Dr Koh Thiam Seng, SJI Independent

Vice-principals:
Mr Chee Chit Yen, Catholic High School
Mrs Yap Dai Jee,CHIJ St Nichlas Girls' School
Mrs Sim Swee Yeong, Maris Stella High School
Ms Genevieve Chye, Montfort Junior School
Mr Timothy Goh, St Anthony's Primary School
Ms Pang Wee Mian, St Stephen's School
Ms Ng Foong Meng, Assumption English School
Mdm Jeanne Ho, CHIJ St Joseph's Convent
Mdm Chan Lai Chun, CHIJ St Theresa's Convent
Ms Lena Seet, Hai Sing Catholic School
Ms Valerie Goh, Assumption Pathway School
Mr James Muthiah, Assumption Pathway School

Assistant Principals:
Mrs Jenny Leong, SJI Independent
Mr Dominic Ang, SJI Independent

We also congratulate Mr Benjamin Lui on his appointment as Director, SJI Independent, and Mr Christopher Neo as Executive Director, Assumption Pathway School.

May God bless you in your new roles and work!