erstwhilegrimoire

[erstwhilegrimoire]

Claim of Fact

The Faulty Intricacies of Flexible Learning

Caryl Mae G. Abante, Althea Noelle B. Sarmiento

As soon as COVID-19 appeared in the countries, a 'new normal' has been implemented. Not only in the daily lives of the people but also in the education system. In the Philippines, the Commission of Higher Education proposed a more flexible way of learning in school.¹

Flexible learning is a pedagogical method that allows for time, location, and audience flexibility, including but not limited to the use of technology. Although it frequently employs remote education delivery techniques and educational technology, this might vary based on technological levels, device availability, internet access, digital literacy, and approaches.²

Learners' individual requirements in terms of place, speed, method, and products of learning are addressed in the design and implementation of programs, courses, and learning interventions. It entails the use of both digital and non-digital technologies, and it encompasses both face-to-face or in-person learning as well as out-of-classroom learning modes of delivery, or a mix of both. It ensures the continuation of inclusive and accessible education when standard teaching methods are unavailable, such as in the event of national emergencies.²

However having flexible learning as the new norms have more cons than pros. A survey was made by Movement for Safe, Equitable, Quality, and Relevant Education (SEQuRe Education Movement) where it showed that 70% of the teachers felt incompetent about the flexible learning. 53% of the students felt that they cannot learn anything from online classes while only 42% of the student respondents felt confident about learning in the new normal. In ratios, 7 out of 10 students feel confident that they could pass their online classes. ³

Not only the uncertainty of the people involved with the flexible learning were affected, but also the modules. According to the survey, 4 in every 10 students found errors in their modules. ³

The way of communication is one of the biggest problems in today's flexible learning. 57% of the students were experiencing a lack of connection with their teachers since 9 out of 10 students are experiencing faulty internet connections.³

Nevertheless, flexible learning will be continued in school year 2021 and beyond, according to the commission. As the digital divide exacerbates the problems of adapting to flexible learning, new innovations and adaptations are developing.

[erstwhilegrimoire]

Claim of Value

The "Norm" That Would Do More Harm

Karyll Shantal H. Bonos

It is no secret that for the past year, we have been stuck in a health pandemic. One that forced us to stay within the confines of our homes, and limited our interaction with the outside world for our safety and for others'. And for this reason as well, we were forced to adapt to this kind of lifestyle where we begin to do everything from home, such as work and school, and this kind of lifestyle has became the "new normal" for us.

In response to the new normal, the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) implemented "flexible learning" where students are to simply stay at home, and attend their classes online, either it be through zoom or google meet, and for them to accomplish their modules, or tasks given to them by their teachers/professors.² And that was fine, it wasn't like we nor they had any choice, given that we really can't implement face to face classes without risking the health of students and teachers alike.

However...

Just a month ago, 21st of May 2021, CHED Chairman Prospero de Vera announced in a webinar that CHED is implementing a policy of flexible learning being the new normal, stating that we will no longer go back to face to face classes even after this health pandemic, for the reason that educational stakeholders might be put at risk if we were to go back to face to face classes and another health pandemic hits us.¹

And, of course, This announcement of his hit a lot of criticisms, as expected, because that idea of theirs obviously isn't the brightest.

It is already obvious that this new normal isn't something our country can keep on doing, especially with the slow internet connection, the fact that we aren't as digitally ready as DepEd and CHED claim us to be (our country only ranked 83rd out 138 countries in terms of digital readiness)⁴ and the fact that we are a 3rd World Country and poverty is one of the biggest problems in our country, a lot of students cannot afford to buy gadgets, pay for internet and electric bill or buy data just to afford online classes.⁵

The fact that we aren't digitally ready and that numerous students are being left behind from this set-up isn't the only reason why this flexible learning is something that isn't meant to be our "norm". Another reason is because of the pile of works being given to the students, which in turn also gives teachers pile of paper works to work through is emotionally and physically draining for both students and teachers. There is a reason why even after just a month of being in flexible learning, students already take to the social media to call for an Academic Break due to how mentally tired they are from their work load.⁶

Another reason why I believe this wouldn't work out is that we don't have enough funding for the education sector. It is a question also if schools have enough resources to offer online libraries? whether or not they can support distance education? While flexible learning isn't only going to be online, it is still believed that it will take up even more resources that some public schools may already not have.

For the reasons I stated above, I believe that the flexible learning may do more harm than good. While it is understandable for us to implement flexible learning as of the moment, given that we are in a pandemic, I still believe that as soon as we are no longer in this health pandemic, and we can finally go out without having to worry about our health, the traditional face to face classes are still the best option we have in terms of delivering education.

[erstwhilegrimoire]

Claim of Policy

Above Flimsy Foundation: CHED's adoption of flexible learning

Aaron Louis B. Eugenio, Mary Gabrielle P. Castillo

Flexible learning encompasses a wide variety of options a particular student may choose to consume educational materials. In general, the students choose whether to take their learning on- or off-campus, which created the dichotomous terms such as “face-to-face (synchronous) classes” and “online (asynchronous) classes,” respectively. In the Philippine setting, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) pushed for the adoption of flexible learning to tertiary schools for the years to come with hopes.⁷ However, several issues have arisen since the dawn of flexible learning in the pandemic. On the other hand, face-to-face classes already have their own shortcomings in regards to the delivery of education. Nonetheless, it begs the question whether or not the Philippines is ready for such a big step.

Evidently, online classes require students to at least have a decent gadget such as a cellphone or laptop, and a stable internet connection. However, the Philippines ranked 110th worldwide based on internet speed, indicating that the country has one of the slowest internet speeds.⁸ Furthermore, in the discussion of flexible learning, smart campuses are becoming a trend worldwide as it caters to the needs of each student thus improving the quality of education.⁹ This indicates that in order for flexible learning to be effective, the inculcation of smart campuses to every institution should be adopted. Despite this fact, CHED has proclaimed that they don’t have the allocated budget for the adoption of smart campuses in 2021, citing that it cannot go further due to the Philippines being technologically challenged.¹⁰ With this in mind, the Philippines is backed to the corner in sticking to the traditional way of online learning, which jeopardizes the quality of learning the students will receive. Furthermore, it can be argued that the Philippines have no choice but to go back to face-to-face learning, but even that has its own downsides.

The constant proliferation of universities and colleges, many of doubtful quality, and the authorities' incapacity to enforce even the most basic requirements have harmed Philippine higher education, which was once the envy of many regions. In ASEAN Talent Rankings of 2019, Philippines was placed as one of the lowest, with a rank of 49 out of 63 countries. The Philippines's ability to equip the economy with the skills it requires has deteriorated, pointing to a mismatch between curriculums and business expectations.¹¹

While the state of education in the Philippines has progressed in terms of accessibility, local media reported in June of 2018 that the Philippine Business for Education (PBEd) stated that while the state of education in the Philippines has progressed in terms of accessibility, it still has a long way to go when it comes to delivering quality learning for the success of every learner.¹¹ The National Achievement Test (NAT) and National Career Assessment Examination (NCAE) scores from 2014 reveal that the quality of Philippine education at the elementary and secondary levels has deteriorated. In both the 2014 NAT and NCAE, the students' performance was much below the goal mean score. The country's main shortcomings, according to the World Talent Ranking 2018, are total public education spending, pupil-teacher ratios in primary and secondary schools, compensation in service professions, and labor force growth.¹²

Thus said, continuous assessment of the Philippine Education System must be done to aid both staff and students. A fitting solution is to decrease or cut funding in departments that need not much of what they receive and hold education as a priority for country funding.¹² “Our recommendation is we focus on learning by starting early, monitoring learning, raising accountability and aligning actors,” she said, also suggesting that the country participate consistently in international learning assessments to make Filipino learners and graduates globally competitive.¹¹ Because our education is about five years behind, the government should make an initial contribution, primarily for all political servicemen, because it is not a joke that our education is set back so much. Government agencies should take charge immediately, before our education deteriorates any further.

[erstwhilegrimoire]

Members

▷ Abante, Caryl Mae G.

▷ Bonos, Karyll Shantal H.

▷ Castillo, Mary Gabrielle P.

▷ Eugenio, Aaron Louis B.

▷ Sarmiento, Althea Noelle B.