Since there is a menu of alternative learning delivery modalities to choose from, an official of the Department of Education (DepEd) on Tuesday confirmed that not all students in public schools will be receiving printed modules this upcoming school year.
DepEd Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instruction Diosdado San Antonio, during the House of Representatives’ (HOR) Committee on Appropriations deliberation on the budget allocation for the DepEd as part of the proposed PhP4.506 trillion national budget for 2021, cited that the 1:1 student-module ratio will not be possible in all regions and schools division offices (SDOs).
“It’s not going to be for all,” San Antonio said when pressed how many Self Learning Modules (SLMs) will DepEd produce this school year. “Not all learners will be given the printed modules,” he added, noting that there are various learning delivery modalities depending on the choice and capability of the students.
Citing latest DepEd data on enrollment, San Antonio said that there are currently more than 22 million students enrolled in public schools wherein “59 percent of the learners will be provided with the printed SLMs.”
San Antonio told the Manila Bulletin that there are some regions which will be distributing 1:1 SLMs. The National Capital Region (NCR), for instance “will provide 1:1 and blended with online learning in some areas and grade levels.”
However, San Antonio it will be a case-to-case basis when it comes to other regions and their respective SDOs. In Region 7, for instance, “16 out of 19 divisions” signified 1:1 for the first four weeks and then, 10 out of 19 divisions signified 1:1 for the other weeks of the first quarter.
In Region 2, eight out of nine SDOs will provide 1:1 while in Region 3, there are five SDOs that will provide 1:1 SLMs for the first quarter including Angeles City, Malolos City, Tarlac City, Meycauayan City, and Balanga City (Kinder to Grade 4 only).
In Region 1, the SDOs that will distribute SLMs on 1:1 ratio include Urdaneta, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sir, Bayan, Laoag, and Candon while the others will be on 1:2 ratio or 1 module shared by two students.
In Region 5, San Antonio said a total of three divisions will have 1:1 while the remaining 10 will be on 1:2 for the first quarter. In Region 12, nine divisions will distribute 1:1 module. “Gensan Division is distributing beginning this week with the assistance of men in uniform,” he added.
In Region 11, San Antonio noted that only Tagum City “signified sharing of modules by set” while the other SDOs “planned to have a 1:1 ratio if they can afford.” Caraga, on the other hand, “will not provide 1:1 SLM per learner.”
San Antonio said that SDOs that will not be able to provide 1:1 SLMs may implement “rotational” use of SLMs as long as these are “properly disinfected before being shared with the next user.”
Based on DepEd’s Learning Continuity Plan, schools must follow the required health standards for the distribution of SLMs. “We have been told that UV lamps can be used to do this,” San Antonio added.