Revisiting the past should be continuously pursued and its lessons should be faithfully taught to children, Education Secretary Leonor Briones said as the country celebrates the 501st commemoration of the victorious Battle of Mactan.

In a virtual symposium on Tuesday, Briones pressed on the significance of highlighting the victory of Philippine hero Lapulapu against the Spanish colonizers, led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan.

Briones stressed the importance of teaching such winning moments in Philippine history to the younger generation.

“I believe that we should teach our children not only our tragedies, not only our sad history, not only our unhappiness as a people, but celebrate our victories as well, and we do have victories of which the battle of Mactan is one of the greatest,” she said.

Equally important, Briones said, is spreading awareness about the Filipino narrative of Lapulapu’s heroic act, and doing away with the former “eurocentric, demonizing image of him who killed the explorer who brought Christianity to the Philippines.”

“This is why I initiated the holding of this webinar, so we can discuss the various aspects of the role of Lapulapu in our history as Asian peoples, and as a nation… I’m happy that we are claiming the narrative of Lapu-Lapu and his people, Lapu-Lapu is not the villain, Lapu-Lapu is the hero,” she said.

Briones, meanwhile, noted that with the help of technological innovation through a blended teaching approach, children nowadays are better equipped not only to face the demands of the future but also to cherish the lessons of the past.

“A blend of a change in the role of the teachers, and parents, as well as the community, which would include face-to-face classes, so we should not be late for the future. We should not also forget the past,” Briones said.

She expressed hopes for the country to continuously remember the “now famous Battle of Mactan” even after her term ends. (PNA)