ACT: Visayas Schools ‘Miserable’

MANILA, Philippines – Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT)–Philippines said Monday that public schools from Region 7 remain in a “miserable state” a week after the Department of Education (DepEd) fully implemented face-to-face classes.

“Hanggang ngayon, wala pa ring inilalatag na malinaw at komprehensibong plano ang pamahalaan kung paano sosolusyunan ang mga problema na balakid sa 100% face-to-face classes,” said ACT Chairperson Vladimer Quetua.

“Hanggang kailan pagtitiisin ng pamahalaan ang mga guro at estudyante?” he said.

According to Quetua, Region 7 is one of the regions that keenly feels the national government’s delayed and inadequate response to the consequences of disasters on education.

Unconducive learning environment

Currently, some  3,000 of the 5,000 damaged classrooms due to typhoon Odette have been repaired with the assistance of local government agencies and private institutions. Meanwhile, 2,000 have not been fixed, the ACT-Philippines said.

Class sizes at Babag National High School were kept at 45 students or more per class, while classrooms were divided in half to accommodate two classes rather than one. 

Similar circumstances exist at Suba Elementary School in Liloan Cebu Province, where students are squeezed into tiny classrooms with no ventilation.

Makeshift classrooms

In Ireneo Diamante National High School in Tuburan Cebu and Daanbantayan Central Elementary School, tents were used as makeshift classrooms, which provide little protection against heat and rain, and are not conducive to learning.

Additionally, tents, which offer minimal shelter from heat and rain, were installed as temporary classrooms in Daanbantayan Central Elementary School and Ireneo Diamante National High School in Tuburan, Cebu.

Quetua said that even though they consulted the education department before the class opening last August, they still await the response of the central office to fix the damaged classrooms.