Bohol establishes four more e-learning hubs in towns

MINERVA BC NEWMAN

TAGBILARAN CITY – The province of Bohol has now four electronic learning hubs with the opening of E-skwela hubs in Talibon and Ubay on April 22 and in Carmen and Jagna on April 23 in partnership and memorandum of agreement signed between Rep. Ronnie Ong of party-list Ang Probinsiyano and Gov. Arthur Yap of the provincial government of Bohol.

The project is a national initiative of Ong to provide e-learning centers through computers with installed software necessary for online classes, strong wi-fi connection and printers.  These e-learning hubs are for access of students and teachers to the essentials of blended learning amid the pandemic, according to Ven Arigo of the Provincial Information and Media Relations (PRIMER).

Arigo bared that there are 22 E-skwela hubs have so far been established in the country since August 2020 and Bohol has managed to secure four as lobbied for by the governor.

At the hubs, the students and teachers can use wifi-connected computers for free and even have free printing services for their assignments or researches.  "This will greatly help the Boholanos with the sudden demand for e-learning facilities.  We hope more accessible projects like this will be offered to the learners and teachers in Bohol," Yap said.

According to Ong that this is his way of helping the teachers continue their job and to avoid a high dropout rate among students.

The E-skwela hubs in Talibon and Ubay are located inside the municipal buildings.  The two other e-learning centers are respectively beside the Cong. Simeon Toribio Memorial Hospital in Carmen and Cong. Teodoro Galagar Memorial Hospital in Jagna, Arigo revealed.

The project was piloted in Luzon in August last year in time for the resumption of classes under the new normal of learning.  Ong already opened hubs in Baguio, Metro Manila, Cebu, including Camotes island, Batangas and Cagayan.

More are set for launching in the country within the year, Ong said.  The hub set-up is adept to social distancing and those who like to use the facility are required to sign up prior to usage to avoid overcrowding.

The local government units (LGUs) that host the project shall provide staff to man the hubs.  Strict health protocols are followed inside each hub with the help of the LGU partner and all equipment are properly sanitized before and after use, Arigo said.

He added that no games are allowed since the hub is strictly for educational purposes.  Under the blended learning system, classes are done online and via printed module delivery.  Not all students have access to fast and reliable internet connection or printers at homes for their modules.

The E-skwela hub essentially serves as the community’s supplementary e-learning center for those having no access to internet or printer and it is like a free internet café in the barangay but for studying. (Photos: Ven Arigo/Google images)