The Class of 2020
The deferment of class opening recently announced by the Department of Education is an admission of unresolved challenges of educating the learners during this crisis. The postponement of more than one month can at least give our teachers ample time to address the problems of educating the youth using various alternative modalities under the new normal.
The different learning modalities packaged as online distance learning, blended learning, modular distance learning, or any other modality described in hifalutin terminologies may be suitable to different types of learners. There is no question that these modes of delivery are all aimed at ensuring that the teaching-learning experience is worthwhile for every teacher and student in different situations.
Our educational institutions have mastered the art of crafting the learning outcomes and competencies that the students must attain, some of them are learner-centered while others are driven by the demands of accreditation and the market that these institutions serve. The learning outcomes, mostly set under the old normal where face-to-face classes were the standard mode of learning, still find their way in the learning continuity plans adopted by many schools during this pandemic. There is nothing wrong with maintaining the educational standards of the old normal. However, applying these standards with the same rigidity as the face-to-face classes will only result in increasing the gap between the rich and the poor in terms of access to education.
The current demands of education under the new normal may be too expensive to bear for the poor parents and even for parents in the middle class. While online learning can possibly replicate the experience in the classroom albeit in the virtual space and most teachers find this as the most convenient way of continuing the business as usual in teaching, the lack of access to the internet, the need for expensive gadgets, laptops or computers, and other requirements, stand in the way for our poor students in accessing the education of the future, while not so many learners whose parents are financially endowed can easily meet the demands of the new way of learning.
The class of 2020 continues to suffer from a dichotomy of affluence and poverty. The difference that this pandemic brings is the increase in the number of students who barely have the necessary wherewithal due to the loss of jobs and closure of the businesses of their parents.
As the school year opens, schools must rise to the challenge of bridging the gap that has been plaguing our educational system since time immemorial. But given the scarce resources of our educational institutions, the government must take up the cudgels of leveling the playing field and making education during this crisis accessible to all. Unfortunately, enrollment statistics show that a significant number of learners choose to postpone their studies. This is happening especially in the private educational institutions which see a big drop in enrollment. The government needs to step in and invest a substantial amount in our schools, colleges, and universities, both public and private, in a manner allowable under our laws. The mantra in education that no student must be left behind will continue to be a wishful incantation if the government fails in its duty to educate the youth. By Atty. Greg Borja Austral, CPA