synergeia, Author at Synergeia

As pandemic alters learning system, a town teaches parents to read, write

Posted on March 7, 2021September 23, 2021 by synergeia

By Manolo Serapio Jr.

Like her six-year old daughter, 25-year-old Raquela Pangantapun from the province of Lanao del Sur is learning to read and write for the first time, thanks to an adult literacy program that is helping parents help their children learn remotely.

Pangantapun is among 100 or so parents in the municipality of Masiu who either did not complete their primary education or did not go to school at all and are being taught by a team of teachers and volunteers.

“As I teach my daughter to write her name, I also learn to write my own name,” she says. “It makes me happy.”

With the coronavirus pandemic shutting schools and forcing children to learn from their homes, many unschooled parents are unable to take on the teacher’s role, prompting educators to step in.

The program called Siyap, Ugop ko mga Loks – which in Maranao means Care and Help for Parents – or SULO is the brainchild of Nihayma Macasindil, public schools district supervisor in Masiu. She said it is meant to address the grievances of parents who felt they were ill-equipped to mentor their children at home.

“Many parents were thinking of making their children skip school because they can’t possibly help them at home. So, I thought why not give the parents basic literacy lessons?” says Macasindil.

SULO, which means lamp, began in November and the literacy sessions are done twice a week. The participating parents are spread in small groups and are given basic reading and writing lessons by teachers and volunteers in the barangay learning center or open areas with strict compliance to safety protocols.

The program covers parents of kindergarten to Grade 3 students in three schools. Macasindil said they plan to roll it out in more schools and barangays after they do an assessment of SULO this month.

Spurred by the literacy program, Pangantapun plans to enrol in an Alternative Learning System when the quarantine restrictions are lifted.

Functional SGC

Some parents joined the program because they want to be able to vote on their own during the national elections in May 2022.

“Those who can’t read or write are usually assisted by someone else in the polling stations who end up voting on their behalf. A lot of times they’re not sure they get to vote for who they want,” said Macasindil.

The 35-year-old mother said she was inspired to do more for the community with the rollout of School Governing Councils (SGCs) in Masiu by Synergeia Foundation in February last year in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund and the Government of Japan (GOJ).

SGCs help craft school improvement plans and participate in formulating school policies and programs that will benefit learners. Parents, barangay officials, teachers, non-government organizations and anybody who can devote time and self in improving the education of children can be part of SGCs.

“I used to leave everything to each school. But now I have learned to step in because we need as many stakeholders as possible to help us in the education of children,” said Macasindil.

As it works with 429 local governments across the Philippines to improve the quality of basic education, Synergeia holds workshops to help mobilize SGCs and make them functional. Synergeia guides SGCs in preparing action plans, complete with a simple budget and sustainability feature.

Functional SGCs and the involvement of the community in helping parents and children during the pandemic are among the criteria that Synergeia will use in choosing which cities and municipalities to award its annual Seal of Good Education Governance.

The next batch of Seal recipients will be announced during the 14th Washington SyCip National Education Summit to be held virtually on March 25-26. It will be streamed live on Synergeia’s Facebook page.

Grade 5 teacher Sahria Pangandaman, among the teachers for SULO, is in awe of the parents who are part of the program.

“They already have families but they’re very determined to learn. They’re helping themselves and they’re able to guide their children somehow with their modules,” she says. “That’s quite inspiring.”

Senate endorses resumption of in-person classes via immediate pilot test

Posted on March 5, 2021September 3, 2021 by synergeia

By Manolo Serapio Jr.

*Volunteer teachers and students at a Purok Learning Center in Balindong, Lanao del Sur*

The Senate has recommended the resumption of face-to-face classes in the Philippines through the immediate launch of a trial run in low risk areas, nearly a year since the coronavirus pandemic shuttered schools across the country and forced students to learn remotely.

In a resolution adopted on Tuesday, the Senate proposed the “immediate launch of the pilot testing of localized limited face-to-face classes in low risk areas as identified by the Department of Education” with strict compliance to health protocols.

The pilot test will allow the DepEd, Department of Health and the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging and Infectious Diseases “to gather evidence on the ground to guide the framework for the safe reopening of schools,” the resolution said.

The participation of learners in the pilot run will be voluntary and they will need permission of their parents or guardians, it added.

Since the global health crisis led to school closures around the world in early 2020, many have reopened, fully or partially. The Philippines is among four countries in Asia where schools have remained shut, according to Zurich-based independent educational foundation Insights for Education.

President Rodrigo Duterte earlier scrapped a plan by the DepEd to hold a limited trial run of in-person classes for two weeks in January, citing concern over the new COVID-19 variant.

“During pre-COVID, our learners did not do well in international large-scale assessments and our national achievement scores were not doing great. And now, because of the lack of access to face-to-face education, Internet, and gadgets, the learners are left on their own,” said Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on basic education.

Filipino Grade 5 students lagged some of their regional counterparts in reading, writing and mathematics proficiency, based on the 2019 Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics done by the United Nations Children’s Fund and Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization.

The year before, 15-year old students from the Philippines ranked lowest among 79 countries in reading proficiency and second lowest in mathematics and science in the Programme for International Student Assessment.

Gatchalian is part of the Board of Trustees of Synergeia Foundation which works with more than 400 local governments in the country to boost the quality of basic education.

He will be among the main speakers at the 14th Washington SyCip National Education Summit on March 25-26 to be held virtually. He will discuss how the central government can spearhead the ascent towards increased proficiency.

In partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development and United Nations Children’s Fund, Synergeia has encouraged its local government partners to conduct in-person tutorials in areas where there are zero COVID-19 cases or low risk places to help students cope with remote learning.

Limited face-to-face learning sessions are being implemented by local governments and barangays in parts of La Union, Iloilo, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao provinces with strict compliance to safety standards.

During the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines from Sinovac on Sunday, Duterte still opposed the resumption of face-to-face classes, saying it will put “the children in jeopardy”.

“While various factors, including infection levels, population density, health system capacity, and school system readiness, are important considerations…global experiences demonstrate that even under very challenging circumstances schools can be safely opened and, most often, remain open,” Insights for Education said.