Shedding light on the struggles of Filipinos in the education sector, GMA Public Affairs' “The Atom Araullo Specials: Batch 2020” was named Outstanding Video Feature Story on Youth and Education at the 16th Lasallian Scholarum Awards. The virtual awarding ceremony was held last March 26.

"Batch 2020" featured four stories of students, teachers, and members of the education sector who were forced to adjust to meet the demands of studying under the new normal due to the pandemic. These stories included a grade 7 student who collects and sells crabs to save money for his online schooling; a teacher juggling her responsibilities as a mother of three and as an educator; an overseas Filipino worker working as a tutor; and residents of the municipality of General Nakar, Quezon--considered as the most secluded place in the Philippines that does not have electricity for online classes.

Various GMA entries were also shortlisted in the same category.

One of these was 'iJuander's' Edukasyon episode, which also showed the struggles of Filipinos in this pandemic. The news magazine show is hosted by Susan Enriquez and Mark Salazar.

Select episodes of GMA News' #BetterNormalPH were also recognized as finalists. These were "Project WIFI: Ayudang free WIFI para sa estudyanteng Pilipino"; "National Teacher's month hindi ramdam ng mga guro ngayong new normal"; "Bayanihan para sa online class shed"; "Online classes ng mga anak, naka-enroll nga rin ba ang mga magulang?"; "Edukasyon sa 'New Normal"; and "Paano hihikayatin ang mga kabataang magbasa ngayong quarantine?" Hosted by veteran journalist Malou Mangahas, #BetterNormalPH explores how Filipinos are adjusting to the new normal brought by the pandemic.

Also making it to the list was the episode of the weekly online series 'RTx' entitled "Magkakapatid, naghihiraman sa isang cellphone makapag-aral lang sa online class!"

Meanwhile, GMA News Online's "Here's how schools can move forward amid COVID-19 threat, expert says" written by Kaela Malig, was also shortlisted under the Outstanding Online Feature Category.

De La Salle University’s Lasallian Scholarum Awards celebrates the outstanding professional and student media coverage of youth and education stories. The ceremony’s theme focused on “Adapt-ed: Youth and Education in the Time of Pandemic,” which highlighted the resilience of the country’s youth and education sectors in the face of the unprecedented challenges brought by COVID-19.

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'The Atom Araullo Specials: Batch 2020' wins at 16th Lasallian Scholarum Awards