By Khristian Ross P. Pimentel
While most students and teachers were not able to finish the previous school year the usual way, here comes the plan to begin the next one in August. Many of us are probing these questions: Why do we have to continue learning in this pandemic? How will students learn? Will it be safe? Will there be equality and equity? Some education officials are already offering answers that may help us only if we take time to understand them.
One thing that is common among us is fear of the unknown. It’s human nature to be afraid of the unknown or something uncertain, but it is also natural to find solutions where possible. American author Marianne Williamson said, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.”
Aristotle once stressed, “The more we know, the more we know we do not know.” This endless pursuit of knowledge should remind us that our youth need to continue learning for them to persist in this trying time and be able to live once this health crisis is over. Hence, we need to educate our youth not only with knowledge and skills, but also how to think, especially in this era of fake news and suppression of critical opinion.
We cannot walk the path when it is not safe for children, but we can walk on a route where it is possible. Face-to-face learning is not safe, so online learning is proposed, but some students do not have gadgets or Internet connection. Some local government agencies are offering to provide them. Those who won’t receive will be given modules, but if it is still not possible, the ranks of teachers will look for solutions for these problems the way that they always do. All we have to do is trust that they will. Critics complain that if education continues now, it will just multiply inequities, but this will happen only if our minds will allow it. Yes, we need to look for a vaccine first, but we also need nutrients that will fuel our youth, keep their batteries recharged, and fight the endless battles day by day.
Our education system is not perfect. Our perpetual problem in education is an open book. Before the pandemic, some students need to compress themselves in a single classroom. Some students have to walk for hours just to reach the school while teachers need to cross rivers or ride a boat to reach a remote area to teach. Parents work double just to provide allowance for their children. Meager pays, lack of resources, limited facilities, and more challenges that teachers, students, and parents similarly face every school year. Many of these scenarios are not uncommon to us. But many success stories serve as inspiration, and there is no challenge too hard for us to face just to get an education. We would not have our frontliners, engineers, lawyers, other professionals, and skilled workers had we not trusted the power of education to ignite hope.
There is no bigger challenge that educators won’t face for their students. Teaching is a calling that remains burning in our hearts. We are not certain if we will win, but we believe that we will, and we will do everything for us to win.
Besides, not resuming the school year this August means loss of jobs, especially for teachers under “no work no pay” contracts in private schools. These teachers play a major role in educating our youth; this is not the time to fail them. Should resumption of classes happen in August, all stakeholders need to be part of the preparation more than ever. Our communities, local government units, and the private sector need to work together to make learning possible.
Above all, many of us teachers will definitely miss seeing our students face-to-face. We will all miss the actual smell of the classroom, the taste of a new idea, and the sound of eureka moments. Teaching in the new normal is not something we are familiar with, but we will gladly commit because teaching is our passion and calling. When we made a decision to become a teacher some years ago, we know that the profession will never be easy, but we choose the difficult path, so our children will get the education they need. Amid the pandemic, our deepest fear will disappear when we begin to work on the things that we can do for the sake of our students, and the future of our nation.
The author is a master teacher in a public school in Antipolo City.
1 comment