City officials urged the Cordillera office of the education department and its accredited contractors to expedite the implementation of their campus renovation and building repair and construction while students are on home schooling.
Under Resolution No. 614, series of 2020, signed by Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong, city legislators stated since face-to-face learning delivery is not yet allowed, it is timely for the education department through its regional and division offices with all their project partners to start all approved infrastructure projects, as well as to expedite the said constructions without sacrificing the quality of all ongoing schoolbuilding projects in various public schools in the city.
Further, the council said that while learners are not physically in school, strategic preparations for the ensuing months or next schoolyear must be continuous and should not be unduly disrupted, halted or unnecessarily delayed for any reasons.
The council admitted that the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has drastically changed the conduct of schooling and delivery of learning from basic to higher education, thus, creating new normal education learning delivery modalities in the form of the so-called blended learning adopted by the education department.
Meanwhile, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) have both developed their own learning modality dubbed as flexible learning system.
According to the council, a perennial concern of the education department is the alleged lack of schoolbuildings to accommodate the ever growing number of learners, especially in public schools.
Aside from the annual need to construct new schoolbuildings, the body claimed the rehabilitation and repair of old school structures and refurbishment of classrooms for the safety of both learners and teachers is equally important.
Based on the most recent report by the Baguio City Schools Division, there are 65,065 enrolled students in public schools and more are expected since the deadline of admission has been moved until the latter part of the year.
The Baguio City Schools Division has its School Governance and Operations Division which is mandated to make sure that the school facilities are efficiently in place, safe, sound and conducive to both learners and teachers.
Likewise, the council stipulated the said division is in charge of infrastructure projects like refurbishing of classrooms and the rehabilitation to construction of schoolbuildings in close coordination with other local, regional and national offices like the public works department, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the City Buildings and Architecture Office (CBAO).
The council expressed optimism on the completion of all the projects in preparation for the possible resumption of face-to-face learning in the coming months. By Dexter A. See