THIS year's celebration of the World Teachers' Day posed a different challenge for teachers, as they are tasked to ensure that no students are left behind amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
October 5 is celebrated every year as World Teachers' Day. For the Philippines, this year, it coincided with the start of the academic year 2020 to 2021, where more than 24 million learners in the country continue their education within the comfort of their homes.
For Davao Region, more than one million students from preschool to secondary levels in both public and private schools will be resuming their classes for the academic year.
This year, however, teachers continue to play a significant role in bridging the learning gap that the students are facing brought about the suspension of face-to-face classes due to the continuing threat of the Covid-19.
For this year, the Department of Education (DepEd) rolled out different modalities for students, the online distance modality, the module-based, and TV and radio.
Christine Joy Cabahug, a teacher of the Davao City National High School (DCNHS), said that just like their students, they are also adjusting to the online classroom setup.
Before, teachers report to their students to discuss the lessons for the day. But because of Covid-19, she said they are only confined to their respective desks at the faculty office.
Cabahug said that overall the first day of classes was smooth in general. Only that, the internet connection was a huge challenge on their part.
"For us teachers, the challenge is in the internet connection. Kay kung magsabay-sabay mi og online, magbaba ang bandwidth sa among internet connectivity (If we would be going online together, the bandwidth of the internet connection would turn low)," she said.
With that, Cabahug said she had set up a backup for her students who will lose their internet connection during the classroom discussion. All of the PowerPoint presentations and other lessons for the day are uploaded on the Google Classroom and YouTube account she personally created for her students.
Aside from the internet connectivity, Cabahug shared that the noise adds up to the challenges, as her fellow teachers in the faculty room are also conducting their online classes.
Cabahug admitted that the "new normal" classroom setup is an additional task at hand. Aside from preparing the lessons, she said teachers are also tasked to assist their students and parents who have difficulty in adjusting with the online learning and preparing for the distribution of modules in the next batch of lessons.
She said teachers are also assisting their fellow teachers, especially the older ones who are not tech-savvy.
"It is a very challenging time for education. Aside from helping our students, we are also helping each other," Cabahug said, saying that no one should be left behind since all teachers share the goal of ensuring their students will be able to learn despite the hardships.
While some schools in the region are now starting with the online classes, some schools, however, resulted in a modular learning system.
Kian Mae Balansag, teacher of the Baltazar Nicor Valenzuela National High School in Kapalong, Davao del Norte, said they opted with the modular learning since online classes for their students are not viable considering their area is geographically-isolated.
Balansag said they only started the distribution on Monday, where parents went to the school to personally get the modules for their children. Physical distancing was strictly observed, she guaranteed.
She admitted that the modular learning entails additional effort on the part of the teachers since they won't be able to guide their students in the lessons.
She said they are in constant coordination with the parents, whom they consider as partners in educating their students. However, she admitted that they would have to orient them in how they would impart the lessons to their children, especially those parents who did not finish their studies.
"We, teachers, will have to keep our phone lines open even beyond work schedule since there will be parents and students who will be seeking their assistance," Balansag said.
Despite being new in the teaching profession, Balansag realized how teachers played a huge role especially in the time of the pandemic.
Leah Gozon, a mother of a seven-year-old student, is also adjusting to the new normal setup. Despite her busy schedule, she made sure to monitor her child's performance in the online class.
She admitted that even if her child is attending online classes, she said she, herself, is also studying the modules so that she could facilitate in her child's learning.
"Medyo additional task siya sako, pero medyo fulfilling man sab in the sense nga I would be able to guide my child sa iyang pag eskwela. Pero kana lang, medyo from time to time, kinahanglan nako siya tutukan considering nga dili pa siya ana ka knowledgeable sa paggamit sa laptop (It's an additional task on my part, but it is quite fulfilling since I would be able to guide my child in his studies. It's just that I have to monitor him from time-to-time since he is still not that knowledgeable in using the laptop)," Gozon said.
DepEd-Davao Director Evelyn Fetalvero, during the World Teachers' Day and Regional Kickoff Program at DCNHS, said she also shared sentiments on the hardships teachers and students are experiencing in the "new normal" classroom setup.
"I know that we are still excited to go back again even if the challenges of the pandemic aren't over yet," Fetalvero said, lauding the teachers for adapting to the changes.