GUIMARAS – A 90-year-old Guimarasnon set the record for being the oldest passer of the Alternative Learning System (ALS) of the Department of Education (DepEd).
Jose Gandecela of Barangay Dolores, Nueva Valencia finished a 10-month ALS curriculum in October 2017 and passed the examination given on March 11, 2018.
However, it was only this month that DepEd issued a confirmation that Gandecela passed the ALS.
DepEd-Guimaras ALS coordinator Jessie Gamalanga said they needed to send Gandecela’s birth certificate to DepEd’s central office before he was declared an ALS passer.
WHAT IS ALS?
ALS is a parallel learning system that provides a practical option to the existing formal instruction.
DepEd says if one does not have or cannot access formal education in schools, ALS is an alternate or substitute.
It includes both the non-formal and informal sources of knowledge and skills.
FROM CRADLE TO GRAVE
Sitting comfortably in his living room, the nonagenarian felt he achieved what he had not done during his younger years, and that was to finish his high school studies. He would like to continue to have a bachelor’s degree if only he has the physical strength.
Gandecela said it was his children, grandchildren and now deceased wife Francesca Gandecela that encouraged him to study under the alternative learning system.
He took this as an opportunity to learn more because for him, there was no age limit in gaining more knowledge.
“Challenge man to. Siling bala nila nga ang edukasyon wala sang limit. Ang limit lang kun patay na ang isa ka tawo. Amo na ang ginasiling nila nga ‘education begins in the cradle and ends in the grave’. Kun patay na ang isa ka tawo wala na. Pero mientras buhi, wala naga-untat ang kinaalam nga mahibaluan,” Gandecela said.
Engulfed with emotions, Tatay Jose as he is fondly called shared that while he was preparing to take the exam, his wife who died of colon cancer was being laid in state.
But this did not stop him from taking the ALS exam, according to Gandecela, and even deferred the burial of his loved one.
One thing he was sure of, according to Tatay Jose, was that his wife was proud of what he had achieved.
Beaming with pride, Gandecela said he would frame his certificate and hang it on the wall as a testament of his hardships.
The golden ager shared that no matter how he wanted to study when he was young, his parents could not afford to send him to school.
World War II and the absence of secondary institutions in the province of Guimaras were some of the factors that prevented him in reaching his dream of finish his education.
BORN LEADER
The former barangay captain hopes this accomplishment would inspire today’s youth and challenge his fellow ALS leaners to strive hard.
Meeting everyday needs is a struggle even for professionals with stable sources of income, and more arduous for those who have no education, said Gandecela.
“Tinguha-on man nila (the out-of-school youth) tani nga mag-eskwela. Kun pwede nga asta college makalambot sila. Budlay man kun wala nahibaluan. Syempre mag-apply sila ubra, ila abaga ang gamiton imbes nga ulo. Kinahanglan magtuon sila maayo,” he added.
Gandecela also devoted his life serving his constituents in the village of Dolores.
He was appointed Teniente del Barrio during the administration of then President Diosdado Macapagal and served as village chief for 29 years without salary.
However, Gandecela recalled that Congress passed Republic At 2370 granting autonomy to the barrios, thus the head of the village should be elected.
Republic Act 3590, otherwise known as the Revised Barrio Charter, was then enacted, changing the title of the village chief to Barangay Captain from Teniente del Barrio.
Tatay Jose was the first elected barangay captain of Dolores, Nueva Valencia.
Gandecela will serve as inspirational speaker during his graduation from Alternative Learning System in November and will also speak in front of his fellow elders during the Senior Citizens Week celebration of the province on Oct. 31, 2018. (Guimaras PIO/PN)
