ALS gives hope to out-of-school youth

ALS gives hope to out-of-school youth, adults
MINERVA BC NEWMAN

 
CEBU CITY – Shaihana Bonso from Concepcion, Iloilo City married and became a mother at 17 and had to forego further studies to take care of her child.  At that early age, Shaihana and her husband, a motorcycle driver knew the challenges they would face to raise a child. 

Now at 19, she believed though that completing her studies would be her ticket to get employed to augment the family income and to provide their child a brighter future.

“Going back to school today is close to impossible. With the advancement in technology, almost all our output is done using a computer and I can’t afford to pay for school fees,” she shared.

In December 2017, with the help of a friend, she enlisted for the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Alternative Learning System (ALS).

Shaihana was pleasantly surprised to know that there is such an alternative schooling for people like her and those young adults who are out-of-school and just looking for chances to go back to study at their own specific qualifications and pace.

According to DepEd-7 regional information officer Amaryllis Villarmia ALS has helped 59,009 out-of-school youths and adults’ enrollees in Central Visayas.  ALS has opened numerous opportunities to people like Shaihana who have limited or no access to formal basic education.

Villarmia said ALS teachers are called learning facilitators or mobile teachers including volunteers.  They bring literacy, basic education and useful knowledge to the deprived and underprivileged Filipinos at the grassroots level who were not given the opportunity to join formal education.

“We are always grateful to individuals and institutions that donate equipment, materials and services specifically for the use of the ALS because these are more “personalized” kind of teaching and learning,” Villarmia added.

City Savings Bank (CSB) is one institution whose advocacy had seen the gaps in ALS implementation among its mobile teachers and some volunteers and for the ALS students too.  The bank has donated IT equipment to the various DepEd divisions nationwide. 

CSB Reputation Management Head, Paula Ruelan told Manila Bulletin that the bank’s advocacy started in 2016 when ALS teachers were included in the rooster of “Outstanding Educators” recognized by CSB during its 50th year anniversary.

Ruelan said their stories were heartwarming.  “They often brave rough roads, hike mountains or cross rivers to reach far-flung communities where they teach. They dedicate their time to fulfill their mission and help their students achieve their dreams in life,” Ruelan shared.

Ruelan said that since 2016, City Savings Bank had donated P10.6 million worth of IT equipment composed of 259 laptops and 243 LCD projectors to 128 DepEd division from regions 1 to 13 excluding NCR.

 In 2017, Ruelan bared that CSB donated laptops and projectors for the use of 900 ALS mobile teachers in the Mindanao area and in 2018, it gave 5 laptops and 5 LCD projectors each for Cebu and Dumaguete areas.

The tools hope to provide assistance to over 4,500 mobile teachers and their students across the Philippines.  The donations are given to DepEd at the division level because ALS mobile teachers don’t have schools, they only have classes wherever there are out-of-school youth and adults in communities, Ruelan noted.

“On its third year of advocating for literacy, the bank has moved past inspiration into actively helping build communities where every child, parent, out of school youth has access to opportunities to elevate their lives and fulfill their dreams through education,” Ruelan added.

Shajhana is now thrilled more than ever to visit their local ALS center to learn more. She has set her mind towards getting her diploma soon and most importantly become a good role model for her child and her family.

Her story is just one of the several stories of hope and City Savings Bank continues to focus on driving change for a better world through education as its corporate social responsibility (CSR) advocacy to benefit the less privileged lot in the communities nationwide, Ruelan said. (Minerva BC Newman)