Gov’t pressed to make stable internet access a basic right as learning goes online

MANILA, Philippines — Access to a stable internet connection should be considered a basic human right by the government, as students grapple with intermittent connections and high fees during online classes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan (Spark) said Wednesday the government should opt for this solution if they insist on pushing through with School Year 2020-2021 amid the health crisis despite their calls for an academic freeze.

“It only stands to reason, then, that access to the Internet must also be considered a right in the same way that education is,” the group said in a statement.

Spark also said that President Rodrigo Duterte and his administration should focus on these issues, rather than picking up “petty fights” with Vice President Leni Robredo.

“Despite being neither equipped nor prepared, the Filipino people have been saddled with the Duterte administration’s insistence on online learning as a key avenue for education,” Spark said.

“But even as the calls for an academic freeze until January have grown wider and louder, Duterte himself has remained deaf to these calls, refusing to even speak on the topic of education, and focusing instead on picking petty fights with Vice-President Robredo,” the group added.

Spark claimed that some of the video conferencing apps that students use to attend online classes may consume around 2.4 gigabytes worth of data, and as many students are operating on limited funds — meaning they do not get to avail of more expensive internet plans that do not have any data cap — it may translate to additional expenses and penalties.

And while there are still ways to attend classes even without a stable internet connection — like modular learning modes which require students to obtain learning materials physically, it still requires an internet connection from time to time.

This is still aside from concerns that requiring students or parents to visit schools even once a week would make them exposed to possible coronavirus transmissions. Previously, Spark called on the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) to defer the opening of classes.

READ: DepEd, CHED asked to ‘initiate academic freeze’ until virus mass testing is conducted 

READ: Students tell CHEd’s De Vera: We already sent academic freeze proposals last July

“Video-conferencing programs like Zoom and Google Meet use an average of 2.4GB of data per hour, burdening students and teachers alike with exorbitant fees that can go as high as P220.60 a day for 8 hours of class. Despite the establishment of the ‘Free Wi-Fi for All’ program in 2016, internet access is still limited by realities on the ground,” Spark explained.

“The DepEd and the CHED’s alternative solution for online learning, this so-called modular learning, continues to be the only avenue for those without access to the internet. Yet even the suggested modular learning system isn’t entirely internet-free, as students still access the internet in order to fully understand the topics they need to learn, especially in the absence of a teacher,” it added.

Most schools in the country would still be using a distance learning mode to avoid possible coronavirus infections in face-to-face classes.  Limited face-to-face classes were only allowed in areas where there is low risk coronavirus transmission, based on Duterte’s orders.

However, groups like Spark and other student organizations prefer the cancellation of School Year 2020-2021, to allow families economically affected by the health crisis to recover first.

This would also give students who contracted the virus or whose relatives tested positive more time to focus on most pressing concerns.

DepEd has set aside funds for the purchase of laptops in the 2021 national budget. For now, although the government has initiated efforts to provide gadgets for distance learning, it seems insufficient to cover all students nationwide.

Spark warned that if the Duterte administration fails to consider internet access a basic human right, it could amplify frustrations among  the masses.