By Elena D. Castro
The current school year may not be the best for everyone, but it opened new doors in many aspects. Such blessing is being recognized not only by the host country but also by a global education research organization such as TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study).
In an appreciation letter sent by the Assistant Undersecretary for Private Education Affairs of the Ministry of Education, Omar Abdulaziz Al Naama conveyed the agency’s deepest greetings on Philippine School Doha’s above the global average of 500 points in the framework of Qatar’s participation in TIMSS 2019.
TIMSS is by far the largest and most ambitious international assessment of student performance in mathematics and science.
“This achievement reflects the big efforts by the teachers and staff of the school,” Al Naama emphasized in his letter as he wished the school more success and progress.
School Principal Dr. Alexander S. Acosta expressed his pride and joy in this recent feat, saying that this humble accomplishment must be shared with parents, teachers and students, especially as exam takers who put the school in a global rank bespeaking the school’s dedication to maintaining its international curriculum standards.
Acosta stated, “This further reveals that with the teaching force of PSD, our students and parents are confident that our school provides the best education that they expect of us not to mention the qualifications of our teachers who are master’s and doctoral degree holders.”
When asked about what this recent accomplishment meant to the PSDians, he ensured that our school maintains its academic standards under its philosophy of service and excellence. He told The Link that under this tenet, it is the responsibility of our teachers, under the supervision of the school management, to remain focused on their purpose-driven profession of delivering the heart of teaching; that is teaching with the heart. With this mantra, PSD has proven her worth of being simply the B.E.S.T. (Balanced Education in Science and Technology).
He ended with this heartfelt message, “The academic accolade that PSD has received from the MOEHE would not be possible if it were not of the combined effort of the school management and stakeholders. We, in the school management are grateful to our teachers, parents, and students for keeping the banner of Service and Excellence of our school soaring high. Thank you for entrusting your children to us. We celebrate this accomplishment with a grateful heart most dearly to our Almighty God who is the source of everything that we have including wisdom, intelligence, and talents of our students. KUDOS, PSDians.”
It can be referred that TIMMS selects schools as per MOEHE’s choice. The directive orders such participation from among the schools in Qatar. TIMSS data have been collected from students at grades 4 and 8 since 1995, generally every four years to gather information about the background contexts for learning.