SEAMEO want learners not left behind amid pandemic

Philippines’ Education Secretary Leonor Briones shared blended and distance learning modalities where lessons will be delivered to Filipino learners in the comfort and safety of their homes which include the use of online learning resources through the DepEd Commons. (File photo: DepEd Philippines/Facebook)

MANILA – To ensure that learners in Southeast Asia are not left behind amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, the region’s ministers of education on Thursday reaffirmed their commitment to providing non-conventional platforms and technological options for learning in their respective countries.

The education ministers expressed their commitment during the first Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Ministerial Police e-Forum on Covid-19 response.

The virtual forum was attended by education ministers from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Timor-Leste, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The ministers share innovations in the delivery of education and discussed policies that will ensure continuity of learning amid disruptions in the traditional learning set-up brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Philippines’ Education Secretary Leonor Briones shared blended and distance learning modalities where lessons will be delivered to Filipino learners in the comfort and safety of their homes which include the use of online learning resources through the DepEd Commons.

“If there’s problem with connectivity, we go to the traditional television as we have a law which says that 15 percent of the television programs must be devoted to children. If there’s no television, we move on to radio-based instruction,” Briones said.

In a joint statement, the education ministers urged member and associate member countries of SEAMEO to focus on the enhancement of teachers’ capacities, promotion of a disruption-free learning environment, sustained development and advancement of knowledge through online and open educational resources and development of strategic partnerships and alliances to ensure investment in education during Covid-19 recovery phase.