Parents struggle with kids’ lessons; DepEd launches bridging program

A MONTH since the resumption of classes under the "new normal" setup, an official from the Department of Education-Davao Region (DepEd-Davao) said some parents are still struggling to facilitate their children in their daily classes.

DepEd-Davao Spokesperson Jenielito Atillo said during a virtual presser that they had received various reports and concerns from parents, which the department is relying on as "home partners," on the modular learning setup.

He said some parents admitted they are having a hard time understanding the lessons of their children since they did not finish their studies.

In response, he said the DepEd launched the Learning Supports Aide (LSA) Program. The program will bridge parents to individuals who can help them with their children’s lessons.

LSAs will assist teachers and parents in the delivery of basic education services in the distance learning set-up.

Atillo said they would be helping those parents who have difficulty in understanding the module.

"Sila tong mamahimong tulay sa atong magtutudlo padulong sa mga ginikanan (They will serve as a bridge to our teachers and parents). They can also be utilized in providing educational assistance kon naglisod ang mga bata (if the student is having difficulty with his or her lessons)," he said during the One Davao on Covid-19 virtual presser.

He said LSAs will not replace nor duplicate the functions of teachers, who are still the main facilitator of learning instruction in public school. They would only assist teachers because the means of communication by which learning is conveyed to learners has become more complex.

Atillo said DepEd-Davao is currently hiring LSAs, where private school teachers, especially those who were displaced and have lost their livelihood due to the pandemic, and provisional teachers whose contracts were not renewed, can apply.

Meanwhile, DepEd recently launched the “Error Watch” program, which aims to correct errors in students’ learning materials.

Atillo said this is in response to the series of social media posts on spotted errors particularly on factual errors, computational errors, format (font and illustration), printing errors (colors) and sorting of pages, spelling and punctuation, typographical errors, and grammars and syntax.

With several discrepancies and other technical difficulties seen in the first month of the "new normal" setup, the DepEd official said several adjustments must be done, considering this will be the first time the entire country adopted the learning setup.

Jinky Firman, DepEd-Davao Assistant Schools Division superintendent, said teachers are adjusting to the current learning distance modality implemented by the department in response to the current threat of Covid-19.

Firman said teachers, in particular, are adjusting to the learning distance modalities, especially online classes, radio and TV-based instructions and modular learning setup.

"The setup that we cannot have face-to-face [classes] is difficult. Our teachers are trained to be classroom-instructional leaders. Now that they are faced with this one nga dili nila maatubang ilang mga learners, kana pa lang daan, naglisod gyud atong mga maestra," Firman said.

All public schools in the country started the academic year 2020 to 2021 on October 5.