CLASSES in public schools resume next week. One thing must be emphasized first and foremost – install COVID-19 preventive measures. The priority should be ensuring that the welfare of students and school staff are ensured amid the pandemic as they attempt to adapt to the “new normal” and continue their formal education. There is a need for the government to deal with the “how” and concrete measures to prevent further COVID-19 outbreak while ensuring everyone’s access to quality education.
The World Health Organization (WHO) itself stressed the need to establish preventive measures in schools and workplaces as countries work to return to socioeconomic activities.
Sadly in our country, the dismal state of the education system is a major factor that makes students, teachers and non-teaching staff vulnerable to the disease. There is the perennial problem of cramped classrooms, faulty facilities such as restrooms without water, and the direly lacking health and utility personnel at the school level – these merit immediate and long overdue resolution.
Physical distancing will not be possible in many of our schools, especially in urban areas where one classroom is cut in half to accommodate two classes with 50 students each. This remains to be the case even as DepEd has introduced decongestion measures such as the Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM) of education, two-to-three shifts of classes, etc.
Frequent handwashing will be especially challenging in schools that do not have or have limited access to clean running water. Infections will likely go unchecked due to the lack of nurses in schools, too.
The past two years showed us that “distance learning” or “blended learning” hardly seem viable in some schools, most especially in rural areas due to wanting technological infrastructure at both the school level and in the homes of teachers and students. Many teachers and students have limited access to the internet.
Clearly, distance learning cannot replace in-person classroom learning as the latter provides a more conducive set up for giving students a chance at a holistic development.
This, therefore, brings us to face the sad reality of how weak our education system is as a result of decades of neglect. And as we resolve the health crisis, so should the government address the many, deep-seated issues not just in education but in other social institutions. Not only are we presented with an opportunity to finally overhaul the all problematic systems in place, but more importantly, our situation demands it if we are ever to overcome this pandemic and future crises that may arise.
