Written By : Gener V. Orencia
Listen to the Earth breathing and hear a whisper—maybe this pandemic is not that bad. Perhaps, CoViD-19 is a blessing in disguise.
Ever since the world has implemented quarantine protocols to cage the CoViD-19 onslaught, lives and living became a bit better. We have stomped the brakes of carbon emissions because of the limited commuting vehicles. The strict social distancing guidelines tamed crimes. We, introverts, perceive lockdowns as our golden ticket to the chocolate factory of staying indoors and avoiding tedious socializations.
But when these fault lines converge terrible quakes from countries lagging in their infrastructure, economic and social development, and healthcare conditions, many would tremble in the tremor of realization that the CoViD-19 pandemic is not a blessing in disguise— the “blessings” are the disguise.
Quickly adapting to the CoViD-19 countermeasures, education sectors from all across the globe enforced a new learning modality, flexible learning. Gone are the traditional classrooms since students and teachers conduct their classes using blended learning modalities such as online synchronous meetings and self-study modular lessons. However, this temporary solution is exactly what it is—temporary. Flexible learning is nothing more than a band-aid solution.
Filipinos are bamboos—pliant and supple against any atrocious adversaries. We flex our flexibility, but amidst the flexible learning, students have been ‘bending’ themselves to the point of being broken.
Last July, the Philippine Business for Education reported that over a million Filipinos chose to drop out of school last academic year. 1,179 private schools were closed due to insufficient funding, while 75% of public schools still do not have internet access. With the abrupt shift in the system, 1 out of 4 parents articulated how their children are not learning and as salt in their wounds, they even have to spend more compared to the traditional face-to-face set-up.
We cannot win this war by ourselves. With our multiplied efforts added with our undivided attention to combat the aftermath of the pandemic, we could all make a difference.
Anchored on the ASEAN visions to empower the youth, I should model excellence both in academics and assisting my community. As a future educator, I would acknowledge the financial troubles, internet issues, and learning difficulties of my students. From there, we would pattern how to mitigate such discrepancies. Additionally, our university encourages students to use our school facilities such as printers, libraries, and the free internet to help us in our studies. Our student leaders conduct mental health webinars and student amelioration programs. Lastly, our university eases our academic workloads by allotting an academic break week for us to rest and plan how to better accommodate our studies.
This pandemic may not be a blessing in disguise, but it has its silver linings. It reminds us that, although our situation prohibits us from doing so, we should all hold hands and stay positive.
Listen to your heartbeat: We will live. We will survive. We will continue to hold the emblem of educational excellence for the future to have a brighter tomorrow.
The author is a student at the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, Philippines.
