AS THE country prepares for the opening of classes in October, teachers, whether in the private or public sector, are facing challenges on how to ensure that education progresses in the new normal through various modes of learning.
To assist teachers, the City Savings Bank (CitySavings) recently launched Project Agile, a learning series for teachers to build the capability of educators and to support the Learning Continuity Plan (LCP) of the Department of Education (DepEd).
Composed of virtual training modules, Project Agile is CitySavings’ newest corporate social responsibility initiative that aims to equip teachers with tools and skills to efficiently collaborate and conduct classes online.
CitySavings tapped Vilma Clerigo, MAed, of Integrated Basic Education Department Principal of San Beda College Alabang to conduct the first module—Managing Virtual Classes.
Since its pilot run, CitySavings has been able to reach more than 1,000 participants from various schools nationwide.
Active particiption
The first module taught methods to elicit active participation from students and manage virtual classrooms while conducting an online class.
“It is indeed a novel and innovative endeavor of CitySavings in sharing resources to capacitate teachers in the new normal come the opening of classes,” shared Dr. Reymond A. Mosquito, Master Teacher 1 of Caraga Regional Science High School in San Juan, Surigao City.
Jovelyn Piring, a teacher at San Vicente Integrated High School in San Pablo City, Laguna, said: “I attended several webinars about online teaching but Project Agile was different thanks to our commendable speaker and the relevance of the module to the new normal. It made me realize that the interaction of teachers and learners is possible. Even the authenticity of learning can be manifested and reflected to our learners during an online class.”
CitySavings assistant vice president-reputation and brand management head Paula Ruelan said: “As the DepEd community adapts to the new normal of teaching and learning, CitySavings will continue to actively support this through Project Agile. We envision that this will help teachers find new ways to extend their classrooms beyond the constraints of traditional walls.”
CitySavings hopes to launch the second module soon; it will train teachers to use and maximize G-Suite, the productivity and collaboration tool of Google, as the demand for virtual communication and teaching rises.