JUST days after typhoon Mangkhut (local name: Ompong) ravaged classrooms in Cagayan province, teacher Cherrylyn Villanueva, 47, had already resumed classes for third graders in an open kiosk of Malabbac Elementary School in Iguig town.
Two of the school’s classrooms were heavily damaged, with roofs blown off, yet in one of them Cherrylyn holds classes for her 26 students.
“The only thing we did to prepare for the typhoon is to put the stuff in our classrooms away from the windows because they could get wet from the rain. So we put them aside, only to find out that the roof would get blown off. Everything got wet,” Cherrylyn said.
The Department of Education (DepEd) estimates that 15 million students were affected by typhoon Ompong which hit the remote town of Baggao in Cagayan and other parts of Northern Luzon on September 14, 2018.
Cherrylyn said she decided to hold classes in an open kiosk because her students are very eager to learn.
Save the Children Philippines sent humanitarian teams to Cagayan towns of Baggao, Gattaran, Iguig and Lasam to distribute emergency kits and back-to-school materials to affected schoolchildren.
Albert Muyot, CEO of the organization, said teachers spend the most number of hours with young people from preschool to college — considered the most crucial years of a child’s life.
Save the Children joined the celebration of World Teachers Day on October 5 to honor the most critical partners in shaping the minds of children to become responsible individuals.
He said teachers in typhoon-affected communities in Cagayan, like Cherrylyn, also suffer from loss of homes, damaged properties or farmlands, but still choose to conduct classes, rising beyond their personal hardships.
“Resuming classes for displaced children normalizes their routine, thus, helps them cope with the psychological stress. We are thankful to teachers, who, despite suffering from loss of homes and properties, helped our humanitarian teams in setting up alternative classes for children in evacuation centers,” said Muyot.
To help ease the problem of classroom shortage, Save the Children set up a Temporary Learning Space (TLS) for the students of Cherrylyn and other damaged classrooms in Cagayan towns.
“We really need classrooms. My students are still interested in learning but the thing about holding classes outdoors is that the students get distracted easily by what’s happening around them. Like when other students hold physical education classes outside, they look at them even if I’m in the middle of teaching. A temporary classroom would be a great help,” Cherrylyn added.
“Whenever I see some of my students losing interest in their studies, I tell them that I am doing this job so that none of them will turn out illiterate or ignorant. As long as I can, this is what I will do,” she said.
Jerome Balinton, humanitarian officer of Save the Children Philippines who led the early assessment team to Tuguegarao and Cagayan towns, said hundreds of classrooms have been totally destroyed.
The long-term impact of the typhoon includes children missing out on school.
“Sadly, we know that the longer children are out of school, the less likely it is that they’ll ever go back. This means that alongside the provision of life-saving food, shelter and medical support, it’s vital that there is a strong focus on getting children back to the classroom as quickly as possible,” he said.
Cherrylyn has been teaching the last 25 years, 15 years of that spent in Malabbac Elementary School.
By resuming classes under a makeshift classroom, Cherrylyn’s role is critical to healing the wounds of many children who suffer psychosocial problems during calamities.
“School provides a sense of routine and comfort in times of disaster. It’s a safe space for students, and somewhere they can be with their friends and forget about the frightening ordeal they have been through,” said Balinton.
Cherrylyn believes teaching is her calling. She recalled that lack of teachers was a lingering problem in Iguig when she was in grade school.
She took up Education in college and promised to herself she would impart knowledge to her students for as long as she can.
Save the Children partners with teachers in promoting Early Childhood Development programs that ensure children are physically and emotionally healthy and intellectually curious to prepare them for school success.
Muyot said teachers also influence young minds on the value of health and nutrition by eating the right kind of food in school—where they spend more than 6 hours a day, he said.
Adolescent girls also learn from their teachers the importance of reproductive health, self-respect and positive attitude toward sexuality.
“Even with the popularity of social media, teachers remain the biggest influencers to children because classroom lessons are taken as gospel truth,” Muyot added.
Muyot, who once served as undersecretary of the Department of Education, lauded the department’s initiative to integrate the principles of gender equality, equity, sensitivity and tolerance in the basic curricula.
He also cited the country’s 700,000 public-school teachers as the most trusted public servants.