The document discusses education in the Philippines during the COVID-19 pandemic. It notes that the pandemic has greatly impacted the education sector, forcing changes to the traditional system. While there was initial uncertainty around reopening schools, the President and Department of Education announced blended learning would be implemented, combining modular learning, online classes, and television/radio broadcasts depending on access. This new approach places burdens on parents to retrieve modules and relies on access to technology, presenting challenges to holistic learning. Cooperation across all sectors is needed to overcome hurdles in the "new normal" of education.

1. New Normal of Education
July 7, 2020
Is the Philippines ready for education during this
pandemic?
The entire world struck with devastating
phenomena that threatened and ended millions of lives in
the world; it greatly affects not just only the economic,
social, and health sectors of the world but also in the
education sector. In the Philippine setting, it is very
obvious that COVID-19 hampers the day-to-day living of
the Filipinos, parents and students were greatly affected
by it. The big question is; is the Educational System in the Philippines ready to face and step on
the new portals of this New Normal education aided with different teaching modalities?
Many concerns were brought up to the congress, many gave their suggestions even
parents were also asking if the opening of classes will continue, these concerns were given
attention to the country when our beloved President of the Philippines announced that if there will
be No vaccine, classes will still be suspended, however, later on, the president supported the
platform and solutions presented by the secretary of the department of education about the new
mode of teaching in education, there they announce that there will be no face to face classes on
August 24, 2020, but the opening of classes will continue through a blended type of teaching.
Blended learning is a type of teaching modalities where parents or students have the
privileged to choose on the type of modalities they wanted to learn based on their accessibilities,
these modalities were in the form of modular learning where parents are tasked to come on a
certain institution where their child was enrolled on to get the different modules with specified
schedule, this module will be provided by the department of education, it will then be reproduced
by the teachers, the sad note for this type of teaching is that it is a great burden to the parents for
they need to come on the school particularly to those parents with a hectic schedule. They can
also choose online learning, where students need to sign in an online platform created by the
adviser or subject teacher where they can communicate, discuss, and learn. One example of this
is the Google Classroom. However, many instances could hinder the students to use this; the
availability of gadgets, location, and data or Wi-Fi are just a few. Students can also choose tv and
radio broadcasting depending on the availability of resources. Thus, it is the supreme role of the
teacher to be flexible and resilient enough to cope up with the needs of the students for holistic
learning to happen.
The great challenge is in the hand of everybody, what we can do is to stand as one, help
each other, cooperate with the laws implemented and cope up with the different hurdles we
experienced in the new normal.
MANUEL D. DINLAYAN II, ReB, DPA
Project Development Officer II