By Nanette Guadalquiver
BACOLOD CITY – The 46 farm schools in Negros Island Region (NIR) will showcase their best practices and products in the first Farm School Fiesta organized by the Department of Education (DepEd) set at the Ayala Malls in this city on Nov. 7 to 8.
On Tuesday, the DepEd-NIR said the event is a chance to build partnerships that sustain the program as farm schools grow stronger with the support of local governments, partners, families, and communities.
“Come see what our farm schools have grown, made, and innovated. The fiesta showcases the products and best practices of farm schools across the region,” it said in a Facebook post.
With the Farm School Fiesta, the DepEd-NIR, through the Curriculum and Learning Management Division, also aims to promote farm school education as a driver of agricultural productivity, entrepreneurship, livelihood generation, and sustainable community development.
It also seeks to strengthen partnerships and resource mobilization among stakeholders to support program sustainability and market linkages.
Among those participating are the Alangilan Farm School and Sum-ag Farm School in Bacolod City, Ramon Torres Malingin Farm School in Bago City, Lonoy National High School in Bais City, Remedios Gargantiel Gaudiel Rural Farm School in Bayawan City, Magsaysay Memorial Integrated Farm School in Dumaguete City, Colonia Divina Integrated Farm School in Sagay City, Esteban Jalandoni Farm School in Hinigaran, Andres Gumban Memorial Farm School in Toboso, Payao Farm School in Binalbagan, and Dr. Ismael M. Reinoso Memorial Farm School in Manapla.
Under Republic Act 10618, or the Rural Farm Schools Act, a rural farm school refers to a parallel learning system and an alternative delivery mode of secondary education.
It provides facilitative and experiential learning on the core subjects of the secondary education curriculum, focusing on agri-fisheries, designed to address the needs of children in rural, agricultural, or fishing communities. (PNA) (Image courtesy of DepEd-NIR)
