By Dr. Rex Casiple
In June 2020, the government placed some cities and provinces in Western Visayas under the modified general community quarantine (MGCQ). Higher education institutions (HEIs) were advised to adopt measures to safeguard the health and safety of their returning students, faculty and staff in the opening of classes for academic year (AY) 2020-2021. Higher education enrolment in the region declined. Some small private colleges closed their programs or the institutions themselves.
In 2020 in-person graduation ceremonies were discouraged given the continuing need for social distancing and the restrictions on mass gathering. However virtual graduation ceremonies were conducted by some public and private colleges and universities in the region. There were few graduates in this year as there were no or few enrollees in the fourth year level.
The opening of classes for AY 2020-2021 was based on the HEI’s delivery mode subject to compliance with minimum health standards and the situation on the ground. HEIs with full online learning or with flexible learning opened in August 2020. Flexible enrolment procedures were implemented. Flexible learning strategy or mode in delivering instruction adopted by some qualified HEIs ensured appropriate facility delivery system, faculty complement, and student support. HEIs respected the decision of families not to send their children to school due to concerns about their safety. Health was their primary concern.
Generally, the traditional in-person or face-to-face mode of learning was not allowed. Hence innovative learning modalities were implemented to continue the schooling of students in basic and tertiary education who were differently situated in terms of time, pace and place. The quality of education declined because of so many factors that affect the teaching-learning process, such as, the preparation of teachers capable to handle online and offline classes; the availability of information technology (IT) resources in schools, teachers and students; the curriculum; the syllabi to be used; the internet connectivity of the schools and the learners; among others.
Hence patience and cooperation of everyone were called in this transition or transformation towards the new normal or new modalities of teaching-learning process.
Flexible Learning was found out to be the appropriate design and delivery of programs, courses, and learning interventions that addressed the situation in the new normal. Flexible learning allowed time flexibility. It commonly used the delivery methods of distance education. The main objective of flexible learning is to provide learners with most flexibility on the learning content, schedules, access, and innovative assessment, making use of digital and non-digital tools.
Flexible learning aimed to decongest classrooms or to reduce the number of students who go to classroom at one time. This is to promote physical distancing and to protect the health of the students. Schools have the discretion to decide what most viable form of flexible learning and teaching they utilized. They based on their capability and on their existing situation. They utilized in teacher-learner engagement or communication short message service (SMS), electronic mail (email), chat, instant messaging, and other means of communication convenient, appropriate, and available to ensure personalized, effective, efficient, and timely mentoring and feedback mechanisms.
Schools used various learning modalities in implementing flexible learning strategies, such as, printed modules, audio tapes, video tapes, CDs, storage devices, etc. They also utilized television or radio broadcasting networks in areas with poor or no internet connectivity. In the assessment of student performance schools used non-conventional assessment system, such as, research papers, video recorded student reports or laboratory experiment, project-based or task based assessment, use of assessment rubrics, among others.
To be continued
