PUNTO DE VISTA: Prof. Antonio Contreras, tinalakay ang usapin sa panawagang pagbabalik ng pagbubukas ng klase sa buwan ng Hunyo
PUNTO DE VISTA: Prof. Antonio Contreras, tinalakay ang usapin sa panawagang pagbabalik ng pagbubukas ng klase sa buwan ng Hunyo
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 The discussion on the change of school calendar,
00:03 that is what Professor Antonio Contreras will share from his point of view.
00:09 Thank you very much, Diane.
00:18 You know, it's getting hotter and hotter to talk about this in our country.
00:23 There's the West Philippine Sea, there's the PDL leakage,
00:29 but the hottest thing is the weather.
00:34 We received good news today,
00:37 from Pag-asa,
00:40 I read that our Calvary will be over soon,
00:43 and it looks like it's going to rain.
00:46 I'm saying this because the hot weather has strengthened
00:52 the call for the reopening of classes in June,
00:57 and not in August, because in August, it will end in May,
01:02 so it's right to say that it's the hot weather.
01:05 This is supported by the DepEd and our President.
01:11 It's right to say that we should go back to June for the reopening of classes,
01:15 if our goal is to avoid children in the hot weather of April and May.
01:21 If we experience this,
01:24 even though there are people working,
01:27 the adults will not be exposed to the heat.
01:30 Anyway, we will look at the youth.
01:34 It's also important to look at the solution to this problem,
01:39 which is holistic.
01:42 We should already climate-proof the education system.
01:47 What does climate-proofing mean?
01:49 The transfer of the reopening of classes in June,
01:53 the only solution is to avoid children in the hot weather of April and May.
02:00 We will also slow down the time of storms and heavy rains and floods,
02:09 which will also lead to the cancellation of classes.
02:13 This is very difficult.
02:15 Our climate has changed.
02:17 We have climate change.
02:19 The weather is getting hotter and hotter, and when it rains, it rains and rains,
02:23 and floods.
02:24 In fact, it is anticipated that after the Ilino,
02:28 the next one will be the Laniña, where a lot of water will come.
02:34 So where are we?
02:36 Our response to climate change cannot be just the transfer of the reopening of classes.
02:43 We need to climate-proof the education system,
02:47 and we need to climate-proof the infrastructure.
02:50 It is sad to think that our classrooms are in short supply.
02:53 In fact, in March and August last year,
02:56 they said that the lack of classrooms was 159,000.
03:00 This increased even more this March, to 165,000.
03:04 According to the data provided by DEPED.
03:07 And it's not just the construction of classrooms,
03:10 but the ensuring of our classrooms is climate-resistant, climate-proof.
03:16 When it's hot, it needs to be cold.
03:18 It needs to be water-proof.
03:21 If we just transfer it, it's just a temporary solution.
03:27 The solution should be more structural.
03:31 You know, we are not the only ones who are hot.
03:35 Thailand is getting hotter,
03:37 Laos, other countries, and India are also getting hotter.
03:40 But it seems like we are the only ones who are talking about the solution
03:43 that is being thought of right away, which is to transfer the opening of the classes.
03:46 We need to use the infrastructure solution,
03:49 and at the same time, we need to change our thinking on the education system.
03:54 We can no longer think of an education system that is only inside the classroom.
04:00 We can do it now, the online classes are popular,
04:04 we know that there are problems here,
04:05 but there is a solution to fill the gaps.
04:09 This is the problem when we open the classes in June.
04:13 We will face the storms, we know that there will be no electricity when there are storms.
04:18 How can the children go online?
04:21 But when it's hot, and there are no students,
04:24 the children can go online because there is no power when it's hot.
04:28 So that is one of the possible problems.
04:31 So I repeat, in order to make our education climate-proof,
04:37 it is not enough to think of a solution that will only transfer the opening of the classes.
04:43 That is not the long-term solution.
04:45 There is an infrastructure solution, there is a pedagogical solution.
04:50 Our buildings are infrastructural.
04:52 Let's put air-conditioning, let's make it so that it doesn't get wet because of the rain.
04:57 When it comes to pedagogical and teaching design, we need to adjust.
05:01 Let's use technology so that the education of children is not only inside the classroom.
05:07 And we have proven that.
05:08 So that is my point of view for today.
05:10 Back to you, Dian, in the studio.
05:12 Thank you very much, Professor Contreras.