Mobile teachers help dropouts finish school
“If we don’t help them, who else will?”
This was the challenge raised by Roy Guarin, division coordinator of the Alternative Learning System (ALS) in Cebu City.
He, along with other mobile teachers, have been providing education to out-of-school individuals in Cebu City for almost 15 years.
The ALS program is designed to give out-of-school youth and adults the opportunity to finish elementary and high school through informal education.
“They are the ones whom society calls outcasts. They are the ones who dropped out of school and if we don’t give them a chance, what will happen to their future?” Guarin asked.
Compared to regular teachers, ALS mobile instructors visit moutnain and urban barangays around the city, to gather individuals whom they can teach.
“With the formal school system, children report to the classroom. With ALS, you are the one to find students to teach. You go to their houses, you visit their families, check their status and the kind of families they have. It is that challenging,” said Guarin.
The gathered ALS learners go through a year-long period of classes and training based on three programs depending on their needs.
The Literacy Program is designed for those who can’t read and write. The Functional Literacy Program is or elementary or high school drop outs with experience in basic education, while the Literacy Cum Livelihood Program combines academics with entrepreneurial and technical skills.
In October, they will ake the Accreditation and Equivalency Exam that would determine if they could be granted an elementary or high school diploma.
John Louis Media, 21, who works as a maintenance worker, stopped studying when he was in second year high school to look for a job.
When he heard about ALS, he immediately signed up hoping to fulfill his dream to get a college diploma. He attends ALS classes during his day offs and break time.
“I dream of getting to college so that I can find a good job after and help my father and five other siblings,” he said in Cebuano.
Leslie Baranggan, 15, became a mother at 12 and had to quit first year high school. As a a student, she skipped classes to go out with friends and got involved in vices such as drinking.
Now, she wants to rebuild a life for herself and her daughter through ALS.
“I am inspired by those who are able to finish colleg,” she said in Cebuano.
She said she wants her daughter to value education when she grows up and not repeat her mother’s errors.
Amor Pangan, Leslie and John’s mobile teacher said that dealing with out-of-school individuals is more challenging compared to regular class students because of how she handles learners of different occupations, backgrounds and ages.
Most of her learners are in their mid-twenties and thirties. Some students are over 50 years old.
“My learners are varied. There are those who were victims of abuse. There are those who work as waiters, construction workers, and household helpers. So I always have to adjust in handling them,” she said.
What frustrates her most is when learners suddenly quit from the program usually due to work and family responsibilities.
She was advised by her doctor to stop handling classes in the mountain barangay of Budlaan because of her pregnancy but she refused to do so.
“I can’t afford to leave them because it would all go to waste. I already started teaching them,” she said.
She said her most fulfilling moment was when a student wrote her a note saying “Thank you for inspiring me to finish my education.”
According to Department of Education Cebu City Schools Division Superintendent Rhea Mar Angtud, ALS is very helpful because it gives out-of-school individuals the chance to learn in a place where they feel accepted.
They need five more mobile teachers to serve all 16 districts in Cebu City.
They also are planning to revive their media education, by tapping radio stations in Cebu to air their ALS modules.
Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the city will support the program and is just waiting for the tape samples of the ALS modules.
