AFTER the series of webinars conducted nationwide that aimed at training teachers to adopt the changes in the delivery of lessons in the class, another aspect of supporting the stakeholders are now in the piping for the incoming roll out.
The Department of Education (DepEd) is conducting a series of Psychosocial Support and Training for parents, teachers, school heads and identified DepEd region and division non-teaching personnel as the opening of the School Year 2020-2021 approaches to further strengthen the role of parents and teachers as the education frontline amid Covid-19 pandemic.
DepEd launched the "Gabay Bahay: An Online Parenting Series," which is a weekly online learning activity that aims to engage with parents in protecting the health, safety and well-being of their children.
The said parenting series is in line with the department’s goal in protecting and fulfilling the rights of a child anchored on the Convention on the Rights of Children, especially in times where community quarantine is currently imposed in the country.
DepEd engaged in such endeavor because, in the emergence of the pandemic, the task to educate students has become more challenging the fact that schools are temporarily not being allowed to be used and the DepEd saw that parents could be vital in fulfilling the learning continuity.
Save the Children, as implementing partners of the online parenting series, prepared the modules being discussed in the sessions while Globe Telecom Inc. provides resource persons. The said online activity which is streaming live every Wednesday, 4 p.m. in DepEd Philippines Facebook Page started last July 15 and will air its last episode on August 19.
Online training on the provision of remote Psychological First Aid (PFA) for learners using the Supporting, Enabling and Empowering Students (SEES) Manual, supplemental online and self-guided PFA modules, and guidance notes have been launched on July 21, 2020, and are set to culminate on July 30, 2020, for secondary teachers, school heads and identified DepEd region and division non-teaching personnel.
Consequently, a training on Remote Psychosocial Support (PSS) through Play for Elementary Learners will also be conducted for elementary school teachers, school heads, and identified DepEd division non-teaching personnel on August 3 to 6, 2020.
DepEd DRRMS team headed by Director Ronila Co said that the training will revolve on how to utilize the Teacher’s Activity Guide on Psychosocial Support through Play developed by Unilab Foundation Inc through their Heads Up Project. Unilab Foundation Inc has been one of DepEd’s partner in providing PSS intervention to elementary learners affected by disasters since 2017.
Moreover, the Bureau of Human Resource and Organizational Development (BHROD) Employee Welfare Division (EWD) and DRRMS with the assistance of the National Education Academy of the Philippines (NEAP) also provides psychosocial support and training on wellness to teachers and non-teaching personnel.
Wellness training consists of introductory course videos, livestreamed videos from Stronger from Home and Wellness Check and discussion questions are delivered asynchronously online through learning playlists.
It is now all systems go for all aspects of confronting the effect of the pandemic to teachers, non-teaching personnel, learners and parents.
This Corner hopes that education will still thrive amidst these challenges for the good of the learners and the country.