Amid pandemic, schools find ‘smart’ ways to continue learning

The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted everyone’s regular routines, including school classes from kinder to college. Some educational institutions, however, are not letting the virus stop their students’ learning. Indeed, along the way, they are learning valuable life lessons.

One of these schools is St. Scholastica’s College (SSC) Manila, where teachers and students are using messaging apps, video conferences, personal computers, and mobile devices to hold their classes online. Classes at SSC for all levels are continuing until the end of its school year in May. With SSC ending their online classes on April 24, the students will spend the following weeks finishing their remaining school work with the guidance of their teachers.

We had to immediately shift to the online mode of instruction to ensure that learning is still taking place,” said St. Scholastica’s College Manila high school principal Dr. Jonna Marie A. Lim.

Self-paced learning

According to Dr. Lim, the teachers have had to change the way they teach and the way students learn. The teachers have shifted to self-paced instruction, where they encourage students to regulate their own learning. Subject area coordinators monitor the process to ensure clear instructional support is in place.

This new mode of learning is enabled by internet connectivity. Even if both teachers and students are at home, web tools enable them to interact online.

Apart from the limited face-to-face interactions, one of the challenges of doing online classes is the stability of the internet connection of both teachers and students. The school addresses this concern by limiting synchronous classes and letting students complete their lessons within a timeframe.

Online tools

So we opted for lower bandwidth solutions, like recording and uploading the video conference, as well as other teacher-made videos and learning materials, which students can access in their own time,” said Lim.

Those with limited connections have turned to use Smart Bro pocket Wi-Fi kits to get online. Through these devices, which run on Smart’s 4G/LTE wireless network, they can easily access SSC’s learning management system, where the lessons are uploaded.

We at PLDT and Smart are doing everything we can to help schools, teachers, and students by providing connectivity and solutions through our fixed and mobile networks,” said Smart president and chief executive officer Alfredo S. Panlilio.

Life lessons

“I am sad that our students are deprived of many of their high school memories, but I am also proud of them for doing their school work diligently while helping their parents at home, engaging in various advocacies to help different sectors and voicing out their opinions on matters of public interest.

“Our students’ parents tell us that they appreciate the fact that our Scholasticans are still doing something meaningful while they’re on quarantine,” said Dr. Lim. “The connection with our students that we continue to foster and protect, though virtual, is something that we greatly value as an institution,” she added.