Marianne Lourdes Miguel Leonor was named one of the awardees for the 2025 Award for Promoting Philippines-China Understanding (APPCU), recognizing her 13 years of work as an English teacher in China as an example of strong working relations between the two countries through cultural exchange in education.
She was recognized as a distinguished awardee of the 5th China-Philippines Mutual Understanding Award, which she will receive during the APPCU ceremony at the Manila Hotel on June 3.
Marianne, known as Teacher Mary to her students at Suizhou Foreign Language School, has taught English to toddlers and grade school children in Suizhou City, Hubei Province, since 2010.
Prior to enriching children’s vocabularies through song and play, Teacher Mary had been teaching English since 1999 to older students at Colegio de San Agustin and Palawan’s own Seminario de San Jose and Holy Trinity University—the latter of which she is an alumna.
Early childhood education was something she stumbled upon, as the opportunity to teach in China came after her thesis advisor recommended her as a tutor.
“Back in 2010, I was finishing my master’s in [University of Santo Tomas], my master’s in psychology. I was invited by my thesis advisor, who happens to be also [part of student admissions]. Sabi niya may incoming Chinese students. Sabi niya, ‘Since you majored in English, can you teach them English as a second language or as a foreign language so maka-adapt sila, maka-adjust sila bago mag-entrance exam sa UST,’” she recalled.
Teacher Mary then started teaching English to these foreign students three times a week for two hours.
She credited this initial stint, as well as a six-month training in China in 2009, as the reason why she adjusted easily to her students’ culture.
At first, Teacher Mary was challenged by the different materials used in teaching English as a foreign language—and to a younger class, at that.
“Proud to say, we Filipinos are very resilient when it comes to these kinds of situations. So what I did, I tried to modify my lessons. And since the employer trusts me to what kind of teaching. Hindi siya—wala akong book. Gusto niya, mag-klase ka, turuan mo ng English, maglaro, sayaw, at kanta, so all of those kinds and styles and methods I applied,” she narrated.
Teacher Mary went on to share how her students, from kinder up to Grade 9, adored Filipino pop artists and celebrities. They would frequently perform songs from SB19 and engage in class discussions using pop music.
She said that the faculty and her students will be performing in a special program for Children’s Day this May 30, singing and dancing along to BINI’s breakthrough hit Pantropiko.
“We’re talking about toddlers, as young as two years old, so songs have really basic English, greetings, body language (…) and purpose kasi sa akin is they would be part of an English [language] environment, then mag-adapt yung mga bata,” she added.
After seeing the effectiveness of her play-based teaching methods, her employer kept Teacher Mary on for the past thirteen years and counting.
She would go on to teach in five schools in Suizhou, with her employer ensuring her safety and well-being throughout the years—especially during the COVID-19 outbreak in nearby Wuhan.
“Fortunately, I was really safe. I was being taken care of by the government, they visited all the foreigners to make sure we were safe. (…) I have an apartment provided by my employer. Everything is free, nasa campus yung apartment ko, so total hard lockdown siya but we were provided with food. We did the online classes at the time, we call it Ding Ding. It’s a Chinese kind of app,” she said.
During the pandemic, she recalled teaching a class of 500 students whom she could not see, livestreaming her lessons.
After getting used to 20-minute sessions for her classes, Teacher Mary began recording her own videos and uploading them to her public Facebook page, following praise from parents and teachers for her online classes.
“My employer personally talked to me about it. Wow, Teacher Mary, your online class is really good. Because I thought about a theme, when she said ‘You teach online. But that’s it. The methods and techniques—ako yung bahala. (…) Para siyang TV program,’” Mary stated.
Teacher Mary said she looks forward to continuing her teaching in China, sharing that she will be on a flight back by June 5 as their summer break and end of classes won’t come until July.
She expressed gratitude and joy at the recognition of her work, crediting her longevity and passion to the students she has taught.
“The reason why I am really here is because of them. How much I fell in love with my students, my work,” she said.
