The Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) of Pampanga, a province in the Philippines, has announced it is providing access to the internet for its students as support to those who are taking online classes amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
During a news briefing with the Presidential Communication Operations Office Secretary, Martin Andanar, the SK Pampanga Federation President, Gabriel Moshe Lacson, discussed their involvement in the education campaign of the national government in online schooling.
According to a press release, the President said that after the enhanced community quarantine was implemented, the administration encountered some problems especially among students with regards to accessibility to internet connection. Therefore, authorities decided to provide venues with internet connections within their barangays in order to address the problem.
Lacson shared that some funding of the program comes from SK officials with the help of their partner organisations from the private sector.
Authorities are promoting continuous learning during the pandemic. However, they do believe the welfare of the students should be given importance, he added. SK officials should also actively cooperate with the national government and local government units in order to mitigate the adverse effects of the health crisis.
Other parts of the country are also pushing for e-learning. The Siquijor Provincial Office of the Technical Education and Skills Development (TESDA) initiated the conduct of a training program, Trainers Training in Online Teaching.
The program consists of competencies designed to enhance the competence of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Trainers in an innovative training delivery approach.
The program design was developed together with the operations division unit of TESDA Siquijor Provincial Office.
Currently, the program is exclusive to TVET Trainers from Lazi Technical Institute composed of 14 participants, who are certified and registered trainers of TESDA under the different field of expertise and sectors such as agriculture, garments, tourism, TVET, and automotive and land transportation.
At the end of the training, participants are expected to come up with a training calendar designed to blend with their online classroom platform with complete e-learning materials to be used during the training in their respective fields of expertise or sector.
The activity is part of the transition period of TESDA Siquijor, adopting different ways to deliver training programs with prescribed safety measures amid the current pandemic.
With TESDA’s theme “Abot Lahat,” this activity aims to reach out to the agency’s clientele, especially the trainees, to continuously learn and be trained to make a living in the midst of the current situation.
The Department of Education (DepEd), a division of Antique, is also preparing for alternatives mode of delivering educational services like online classes.
As OpenGov reported, the Schools Division Superintendent said that the education supervisors, principals, and other school officials are preparing for modules, learning sheets, and other materials needed for an alternative delivery model and online classes.
She emphasised that the preparation is still subject to the decision of the concerned government authorities, taking considerations on the safety of children while making the most of their time to learn even though staying at home.
