By Manolo Serapio Jr.

Youth leaders in the municipality of Datu Paglas in Maguindanao province have added tutoring to their workload to help children who are struggling to learn outside classrooms as the COVID-19 pandemic restructured the education system.

All 230 leaders and members of the Sangguniang Kabataan are spread out  as volunteer teachers in the 23 barangays of Datu Paglas during the week to mentor students from Grades 1 to 6.

“The main point of the free mentoring program is to focus on children whose parents cannot tutor them,” said Datu Shariff Taha Paglas, head of the SK in Barangay Damalusay.

Many grade schoolers are left to deal with self-learning modules on their own as their parents head out to work on the farm, prompting the local government to tap the SK to mentor the children.

Twenty-four-year old Ivan Kamamang focuses on slow learners in his barangay, making sure they are able to understand difficult subject areas like mathematics with examples that are easier to grasp.

With a degree in secondary education, Kamamang and his SK team spend three days a week tutoring children in all eight sitios in Barangay Bunawan. They travel by motorcycle to reach remote areas to ensure that all children who need help would be attended to.

“Our goal is that no one should be left behind when it comes to education in Datu Paglas,” he said.

Seal of Good Education Governance

Datu Paglas has been a consistent recipient of Synergeia Foundation’s Seal of Good Education Governance since it was launched in 2017, with the local government continuously finding ways to better respond to the education needs of its constituents.

Synergeia has handed out 61 Seal of Good Education Governance, and will be awarding more to the next batch of cities and municipalities at the 14th Washington SyCip National Education Summit on March 17-19.

Local governments can download the application form from

https://www.sealofgoodeducation.com/ which also has all the details about the Seal. The deadline for filing of applications is on Feb. 19.

Even as COVID-19 forced schools to close and shifted learning to homes, many local governments worked hard to ensure that education would continue unimpeded in 2020.

That includes Datu Paglas which began its SK mentoring program in November.

The SK team led by Abdullah Madidis tutors children who are in a list of students that a school principal deemed to be needing help.

It’s quite a challenging career start for the elementary education graduate who often needs to think on his feet given the rigorous tutoring schedule and the pressure to attend to every child who requires assistance.

‘Teach creatively’

Synergeia encouraged Datu Paglas Mayor Abubakar Paglas to pursue his idea of tapping the SK to help the young students.

“Another role that we want to do is to train the SKs on how to teach creatively, especially those who are not education graduates,” says Synergeia program officer Dindo Guevara.

Criminology student Jarullah Naco tends to focus on Grade 1 students, leaving the higher grade levels to a fellow SK member who has a degree in education.

“I try to help as much as I can because most of the parents of these children didn’t finish their studies. But there’s only so much I can do for now,” he said.

Synergeia, supported by the U.S, Agency for International Development, works with local governments across the Philippines to ensure that every Filipino child gets good quality basic education.

Amidst the pandemic, Synergeia has advocated for in-person tutorials in places with zero COVID cases or low-risk areas, to help students with working or unschooled parents and those who cannot afford online platforms.

With strict compliance to safety protocols, these physical teaching sessions are underway in Synergeia partner communities in some provinces including Iloilo, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao and La Union.

The horrific shooting of a mother and her son by a policeman over a minor incident, caught in a video that went viral, has led to a renewed public outcry against senseless killings.

But many have unjustifiably berated the police officer’s young daughter online, citing her seemingly cold reaction to a heinous crime that unfolded in front of her. The child’s impassiveness could, in some way, be a cry for help.

The video showed how 52-year old Sonya Gregorio was shot in the head at point-blank range by Jonel Nuezca, shortly after his daughter screamed “my father is a policeman” at her during an altercation on Sunday in Paniqui, Tarlac.

Nuezca, who was off duty, shot Gregorio’s 25-year old son Frank Anthony next. Father and daughter then walked away, according to a witness.

Nuezca has since turned himself in and has been charged with two counts of murder. His daughter continues to be the target of vitriolic comments on social media.

Synergeia Foundation condoles with the Gregorio family for the murder of Sonya and Frank Anthony and joins the call for justice for them and for their family.

Synergeia is also against the condemnation of the policeman’s daughter.

Every child has the right to live in an environment without fear and violence.

Because the child witnessed her father kill two people in cold blood, she may have experienced some form of trauma. She will undoubtedly need help mentally and emotionally to cope with what happened, instead of harsh judgment from people whose sole image of her is the one from the video of the gruesome crime.

As the late South African President Nelson Mandela said: “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.”

Synergeia has been working for every Filipino child to have access to basic education. It believes that along with education, as mandated by law, every child has the right to be brought up in an atmosphere of morality and rectitude to enrich and strengthen his character.

While millions of children learn at home after the pandemic forced school closures, Synergeia has been advocating that it is critical for parents to include character building as an essential learning competency as they take on the teachers’ role. Character building, as it is often said, starts at home.

Since parents are powerful role models for their children, it is important for them to set good examples in terms of behaviour and attitudes.

And in an era when social media has become a platform for validation, Synergeia believes it is crucial for parents to ensure that their children live in an environment free from judgment and harmful influences.

As it transforms communities to give top priority to the education of every child, Synergeia will continue to work on reforms towards a learning system that will help every child develop his full potential and strengthen his character.