First Visit to Philippine Normal University (PNU) Campus
On this day, we woke up at around 6 AM to perform our morning prayer. After that, we washed our clothes, took a shower, and prepared ourselves for the day. By 9 AM, we were ready because some PNU students were coming to our dormitory to invite us for a campus tour. We introduced ourselves to each other and started exploring the Philippine Normal University (PNU) campus together.
At first, I thought that the campus was quite small, but after exploring it further, I realized that it was actually much larger than I had expected. One thing that made us grateful was that PNU provided a prayer room for Muslim students, which made us feel more comfortable during our stay. During the tour, we also had the opportunity to meet several lecturers and listen to stories shared by the PNU students about their campus life. It was such a fun and memorable experience. We also met Dr. Rita Inderawati, our Vice Dean at Sriwijaya University, who had just arrived in the Philippines.
At around 12 PM, we returned to our dormitory to perform our prayer and have a short lunch break. Then, at around 1 PM, we went back to PNU to observe several classes. The class observation took quite a long time, but it was a valuable experience for us. My first impression of the teaching and learning process in the Philippines was related to the teaching style. In the classes we observed, the teachers played a more dominant role by delivering explanations and lectures to the students. This was slightly different from the learning approach commonly implemented in Indonesia, where students are often encouraged to take a more active role in the learning process.
However, what impressed me the most was the variety and creativity of the teaching media used by the teachers. Even though the teachers provided more explanations, the students were still actively engaged in the classroom activities, especially when responding to the teachers’ questions. Interestingly, every time students answered questions correctly, the teachers gave them stamps or stickers that they could collect behind their name tags. This simple reward system encouraged students to participate more actively and made the learning atmosphere more enjoyable.
After the class observation, we were invited to attend the reflection session of PNU practice teachers. After completing their teaching practice, they were required to reflect on their own teaching performance, while their peers, co-teachers, and lecturers provided feedback and suggestions. I found this reflection activity very meaningful because it helped future teachers identify their strengths and areas for improvement. It showed me that reflection is an essential part of becoming a better educator.
After finishing our activities at PNU, we went to SM Mall again to have dinner and purchase some additional necessities for our stay. It was quite an exhausting day because we arrived back at our dormitory at around 9 PM. After cleaning ourselves and preparing for the next day, we finally went to bed.
Motivation from this day: Always give your best effort in every performance, and never forget to reflect on it, regardless of how good or challenging it was. ✨
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