Division of Lanao Del Sur I Prepares for the New Normal Assures Quality Education and The Safety of Learners
Education is one of the most important things that every child deserves. As stated in Article 14, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines, “The state shall protect the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.”
However, since the COVID-19 pandemic began, all school-based learning, both public and private, stopped. As classes begin anew, the Division of Lanao Del Sur I, headed by Focal Person Ms. Aleida Nameerah Mangata-Noor, prepares for the New Normal way of learning among children.
“The Ministry of Basic Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE) of BARMM had interventions,” Ms. Aleida explains. She said that before issuing the guidelines to all schools under MBHTE, consultations were conducted. These consultations had 3 phases. The first phase was Consultation with the Parents and Communities along with the local teachers. The second phase was Consultation with the Division Officials, Principals, and District Supervisors. The third phase was the Collection of Data, which serves as the basis of plans for the best learning modalities.
“MBHTE released several memorandums, one of them was Memorandum 200, which was actually a survey asking all teachers on how prepared they are to face the New Normal. Preparedness includes the accessibility of equipment (e.g., personal computer or laptops and internet) to conduct online education. ”At the Division level, “we required all the school heads and district supervisors to have school Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH) facilities to ensure the health and safety of everyone.
“Alhamdulillah, with the moral governance of the MBHTE they even added to funds for the maintenance and operating expenses of school principals. With additional funds,” schools will be able to implement protective measures “for the teachers and learners,” Ms. Aleida says.
Ms. Aleida notes that during their consultations, most people prefer to have face to face learning for their children. On the one hand, not all teachers can afford to buy their own disposable masks every day. On the other hand, they realize that online classes will be difficult because not everyone has online access.
“Even in Marawi, we find it hard to connect online,” Ms. Aledia notes. Only 15 to 20 percent of learners currently have online access.
As of last week, two currently asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Lanao del Sur. The Lanao del Sur Inter-Agency Task Force has already released a statement about this and reminded everyone to follow precautionary measures. Further advice will hopefully be released soon.
Plans for the New Normal–
In the meantime, the schools are planning to have an alternate work schedule when the New Normal begins. They will limit 20 students in a class per day. There will only be two (2) days of class per week and the remaining days will be dedicated to home assignments.
They will also have educational sessions to raise awareness on the pandemic so students can more easily follow safety guidelines.
If the parents refuse to enrol their children for fear of getting their children infected, in line with government directives, Ms. Aleida said they will be providing the WaSH facilities and other needs for protection to help allay worries. They will assure parents of the safety of their children so they can get quality education. As most of the teachers and student live within the communities of their schools, transportation will not be too much of a worry.
Ms. Aleida also revealed that 10 percent of students reside far from their school. Regarding this, Ms. Aleida adds that they are forming a partnership with the Provincial Office of Lanao del Sur to have Radio Teaching Program. This program are for those who do not have any access to social media or television.
With uncertainties in the time of the pandemic, whatever mode of learning their students will be availing and following the latest government mandates on self-protection, Ms. Aleida assured that teachers will be monitoring the learning progress of their students.
In the photo, MP Maisara’s Media Team visits the Office of Ms. Aleida Nameerah Mangata-Noor for an interview on their preparations for the New Normal.
Reference:
L. Sumpingan
Thursday |4 June 2020
MP Maisara-BTA/BARMM
(MediaTeam/MPMaisara/2020)
