LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The Department of Education in the Cordillera Administrative Region is strengthening its learning continuity measures to help students keep pace with lessons when face-to-face classes are suspended due to calamities.
DepEd-CAR Regional Director Nicolas Capulong said the region is developing policy guidelines to improve the implementation of alternative learning modalities during disasters.
Capulong said prolonged rains from Aug. 1 to the first week of September led to repeated class suspensions across the Cordillera, disrupting learning from kindergarten to senior high school.
To address missed class days, DepEd-CAR is considering extending the school calendar, lengthening class hours and improving alternative delivery modes.
Capulong said each day of class suspension could translate to about 1.5 days of lost learning time.
In Benguet, face-to-face classes were suspended for three days, while alternative learning modalities were implemented for 18 days. The disruptions accounted for about 10 percent of the 201 required school days for the academic year.
DepEd-CAR is also looking at adapting practices used during the Covid-19 pandemic, including setting specific schedules and locations for the distribution and collection of learning materials.
Printed modules and learning activity sheets have been prepositioned because some schools and learners lack access to gadgets, stable internet connections and reliable electricity during heavy rains.
In Baguio City, education officials have also established a monitoring system to track learner participation and compliance with school requirements during class disruptions.
Samuel Egsaen Jr., assistant schools division superintendent of DepEd Baguio City, said examinations were adjusted to cover only lessons already discussed through face-to-face classes or alternative learning modalities.
The division will also conduct homeroom discussions and other interventions to help address learning gaps caused by repeated class suspensions.
