The Department of Education (DepEd) on Oct. 14 confirmed the death of a Grade 6 pupil in a public school in Negros Oriental and urged parents as well as teachers to “connect” to their children and students as they navigate distance learning this school year.
In a phone interview, DepEd-Division of Guihulngan City Information Officer Rommel Victor Villahermosa confirmed the death of a 12-year-old girl in Barangay Mani-ak.
This tragedy comes less than a week after the reported suicide of a Grade 11 student in Tupi, South Cotabato allegedly due to difficulty in the modules, which the DepEd firmly denied.
Citing the results of the initial investigation by the DepEd SDO, Villahermosa told the Manila Bulletin that the victim was a student at the Mani-ak Elementary School. She was found dead on Oct. 12 in her house after her cousin discovered her body hanging from the ceiling.
“On the day of the incident, we learned that the victim’s mother was out to get the modules for her older sister who was in high school,” Villahermosa said in a mix of English and Filipino. “Her older sister was also out of the house because she will deliver the modules answered by the victim,” he added.
Villahermosa said that the victim has two older sisters, a mother who is a housewife, and a father who works as a carpenter. Contrary to the reports, he noted that there was no indication that the victim killed herself due to issues in answering the modules.
“We would like to emphasize that the victim was able to complete and accomplish her Week 1 modules without so much difficulty,” Villahermosa said, noting that based on the observation of her teacher, the victim was a “fairly average student and good in her class.”
Villahermosa said that the superintendent directed the school head to get more details on the incident. “We are waiting for the incident report and we have yet to find out what caused the death of the victim,” he added.
Earlier, Villahermosa said that one of the victim’s older sisters, who is based in Cebu, posted on social media about her younger sister’s demise. “She just assumed that her younger sister killed herself over the modules but she could not give other reasons so we believe na hindi ‘yun ang dahilan (that it isn’t the reason),” he explained.
Because of the incident, Villahermosa said that SDO emphasized the need to support students. “We instructed our teachers and encouraged the parents to connect with their students and children because the transition is really difficult even for adults, what more to them?” he said.
Following the incident, the SDO also instructed teachers to “communicate better” to their students by providing emotional support through home visitations. “We asked the teachers to really see personally the children and assess their situation,” Villahermosa said.
Likewise, Villahermosa asked parents to help their children adjust in the new normal. “For our students, just know that you are not alone in this world and we are willing to assist you in whatever you’re going through whether it’s academics or personal,” he ended.