Jose Roger Pelatan, a Grade 4 learner, is enthusiastic about reporting to school everyday, saying he enjoys learning from his teacher, Ma’am Jovie.

Jose said he learns a lot from Ma’am Jovie, who he describes to be the nicest person among his mentors.

“Marami kaming natututunan sa kanya. At si Ma’am Jovie ang pinakamabait sa kanilang lahat. Bawat isang classroom, lahat kami dito parang magkakapatid,” Jose said.

Dr. Jovie Guillergan is a master teacher at Bo. [barrio] Obrero Elementary School in Iloilo City, with 19 years of service as a public school teacher.

According to Ma’am Jovie, it is her objective to make lessons easier for learners to grasp, so she has come up with the best supplement - writing her own storybooks.

In fact, she has been recognized by the Schools Division of Iloilo City for her initiative on making learning more engaging and fun.

“Gumagawa ako ng storybooks na aligned sa competencies namin sa aming curriculum. Sa ganitong pamamaraan, ma-enjoy nila (estudyante) ang learning at ma-love nila ang reading,” Ma’am Jovie underscored.

However, Ma’am Jovie admits she has plenty of challenges as a teacher, such as striking a balance between graduate studies, teaching, and family.

Aside from young learners, she is also a mentor to intermediate teachers as a master teacher, which means sparing time out of the substantial time she spends for other endeavors, interests, and concerns.

Despite challenges in time management, she hurdled all the obstacles because of her determination to teach with the mark of excellence.

“Hindi ako nag-give up kahit mahirap siya and that makes me a living testimony of discipline, hard work and my love for teaching,” Ma’am Jovie said.

In celebration of the National Teachers Month, we are called to acknowledge and thank teachers, such as Ma’am Jovie, for their contribution to nation-building and their sacrifices to developing lifelong skills and success among learners, because good teachers inspire hope, ignite the imagination, and instill deep love of learning.