CDO, Iligan schools to focus on stress debriefing, play therapy

Education Secretary Armin Luistro

Public elementary and high schools in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan will open alternative lessons Tuesday in lieu of holding regular classes, Education Secretary Armin Luistro announced on Monday.

By giving the lessons in areas hit by flash floods spawned by Tropical Storm “Sendong,” school heads hope to focus on stress debriefing and play therapy.

“We have to respond to the immediate needs of both teachers and students and for now, it is important that we introduce activities that will bring back normalcy in their lives,” Luistro said in an e-mailed statement.

Luistro said the Department of Education (DepEd) was ready for the opening of schools today despite the devastation wrought by Sendong in a big swath of Northern Mindanao.

DepEd is making the final list of schools  used as evacuation centers, he said.

“We have agreed with our counterparts in the Department of Social Welfare and Development that if our schools are still needed by evacuees we will hold classes in temporary learning spaces, including the use of tents provided by Unicef, Plan International and Save the Children, among others. While there are shortages in tents, donations are still coming in,” he said.

DepEd has expressed its gratitude to parents, military, police, students, nongovernment organizations and evacuees themselves for helping in the cleanup of schools.

“What we see here is an off-season Brigada Eskwela where every concerned citizen pitches in to bring back order in schools and in the community,” Luistro said. Niña Calleja