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New Developments at Goducate Training Center

Goducate Training Center in Iloilio, The Philippines, continues being developed even as its pioneer batch of trainees undergo training.

As soon as the basic infrastructure (Phase 1A) was completed in April 2011, the pioneer batch of trainees began their training.

Since then, work has been going on on students’ dormitories and staff quarters. The target date for completion of these projects was this month. However, unusually heavy rains hampered construction work over the past 2 months and caused erosion problems in our impounding pond and some slopes around the site.

The typhoon season continues to bring in much rain, but we hope that the dormitories and staff house will be completed in 2 months’ time. After the rainy season is over, the main roads will be concreted.

We hope to be ready to take in a larger batch of about 50 students in 2012 and train them to help the poor to help themselves

The three new student dormitories
Faculty housing complex
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Goducate Training Center’s Pioneer Batch Get Cross-Cultural Training

Okkie from South Africa teaching cross-cultural studies

Goducate Training Center in Iloilo, Philippines, has been training its pioneer batch of 20 over trainees since April.

The training includes: basic agriculture, sloping agricultural land techniques, teaching adult literacy, teaching English to speakers of other languages, counseling, driving, self-defence, cooking.

The lecturers come from different countries, backgrounds and disciplines. Cross-cultural training is essential because the workers may have to work abroad. If so, they need to quickly understand the people they work with, and more importantly, to be readily accepted by the new community.

The objective is to produce Goducate workers who can work among the needy to help them help themselves, not just at home but also anywhere where needed.

 

Okkie from South Africa teaching cross-cultural studies
Okkie from South Africa teaching cross-cultural studies
Thomos from Indonesia teaching about Indonesian demographics and culture
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Progress with building of Talahiban Goducate music learning center

A few weeks ago, Thomos (our new Indonesian Coordinator) and I visited The Philippines. For Thomos it was part of his orientation program to familiarize him with Goducate projects in The Philippines. For me it was a chance to catch up with our new Filipino workers and new projects.

We visited Talahiban village, where we are constructing a new Goducate learning center. The walls of the training room are already being built (see blogs July 15 and July 29 for earlier stages).

The new training room

Our worker, Sandy and his wife Lisa have been visiting the village for several months already, and many of the children of this village are enrolled in our music program. At present these children practise their instruments in the yard of a Goducate supporter in the village. However, the sound (not music!) from many enthusiastic youngsters is deafening and disturbing to the neighbors.

The new center, which is overlooking a field of trees, is nicely tucked away from the main village. It is also situated at the border of Talahiban village and the neighboring village, thereby making it accessible to people from the two villages.

Sandy has green fingers and has been successful with his crops. The little land around the new center will be a good place for him to set up a model sustainable backyard farm to encourage the neighbors to grow vegetables to supplement their diet.

Sandy’s teenage daughter, Melissa, is a good violinist and music teacher. And more importantly, she is a good role-model for the other children.

We expect this talented family to help the people of Talahiban to help themselves!