Treating private schools with an iron hand
While being the biggest provider of educational services in the country, the Department of Education (DepEd) also performs the role of regulating the basic education programs offered by private schools. DepEd is expected to apply the age-old saying “what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.” Hence, it must not use its one hand to treat its very own free basic education programs with leniency while using an iron hand on the programs offered by private schools.
This is not the case in its latest DepEd Order No. 013, s. 2020. Under this issuance, private schools are required to submit a Letter of Intent to implement a particular learning delivery modality/ies addressed to the Regional Office (RO) through the Schools Division Office (SDO). It must be submitted together with the documentary requirements enumerated in the checklist for each learning delivery modality. Private schools must administer its own readiness assessment using the checklist. It shall be validated by the RO, through the SDO, during the on-site inspection. Validation of compliance to the checklist can be done during the on-site monitoring of private schools. On-site monitoring can be done in consideration of the general COVID-19 situation of the community, following the minimum safety and health standards and protocols.
The Order sets non-negotiable minimum requirements for online distance learning or blended learning. A private school that chooses to combine two or more learning delivery modalities must meet the non-negotiable minimum requirements for the said learning delivery modalities. For schools planning to combine online learning with other modalities, the school must have an educational platform or Learning Management System (LMS), either subscription-based or locally developed. This rules out the possibility for private schools with very tight budget to avail of free LMS offered by some providers.
The school must have the technical expertise to run and support the educational platform 24/7. Technical expertise can be in-house or outsourced or a combination, depending on the nature of the deployment. The more in-house/locally developed is the hosted platform, the higher the degree of the technical support personnel required. Other than security guards, private schools seldom hire personnel who work 24/7. Imagine the additional cost that private schools must shell out to maintain a 24/7 support. On top of this cost is the cost of additional required personnel such as helpdesk personnel who are working under platform managers whose main task will be to directly answer usage queries of both teachers and students.
The non-negotiable personnel training is also another stumbling block that private schools need to hurdle. Private schools must address as soon as possible the need to orient the teachers, parents and learners about the online learning policies and directions to ensure that everyone is properly informed and guided. The school must have a technology knowledge enhancement program wherein regular trainings or seminars are given to teachers, students, and parents to make them embrace the technology. Another requirement is the IT infrastructure with technology support for (a) internet service provider and its bandwidth; (b) web hosting service provider; (c) technical support for learners and other users (parents, guardians); and (d) its own Learning Management System or outsourced online system to support the learning modality.
While compliance with these requirements may probably enhance the delivery of instruction under this modality, the accompanying costs to comply with the bare minimum will certainly make the online option beyond reach. This now leaves majority of private schools with the remaining alternatives such as modular distance learning, or TV/Radio-based instruction, or probably modified face-to-face classes.
In public interviews, DepEd admits having difficulties in the use of the different learning modalities even with the government supporting its operations using public funds. With private schools relying heavily on tuition fees from the students, will private schools be able to measure up to the standards or will they simply vanish in the abyss of oblivion?