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104Moving beyond the new normal: Understanding Flexible Learning Options (FLOs) on the parameters of Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP)
Osias Kit T. Kilag https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0845-3373 okkilag12@gmail. com
ECT Excellencia Global Academy Foundation, Inc., Cebu, Philippines
Verna Mae B. Lechadores https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8200-7825 vernamae.lechadores@deped.gov.ph
Juvilyn E. Tolin https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4035-5378 juvilyn.tolin002@deped.gov.ph Department of Education, Schools Division of Toledo City, Philippines
Dominique Q. Pahayahay https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7692-1848 pahayahay.pegafi@gmail.com PAU Excellencia Global Academy Foundation, Inc., Toledo City, Cebu, Philippines
Analou P. Torrefiel https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1336-4543 analou.torrefiel01@deped.gov.ph Department of Education, Schools Division of Cebu Province, Philippines
Jeffrey R. Dela Calzada https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2815-2562 delacalzadajeffrey1@gmail.com University of the Visayas, Toledo City Campus, Philippines
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to understand Flexible Learning Options (FLOs) and how they are used with Grade 12 Senior High School students at PAU Excellencia Global Academy Foundation, Inc. after the pandemic. In order to collect data for this study, modified adapted questionnaires were used in conjunction with the descriptive-survey methodology. The data were then processed using simple percentages, the weighted mean, and the t-test. These conclusions based on the provided data are as follows: The student's status of the implementation of the school's policies on alternative learning modality and learning continuity plan has an average weighted mean of 4.12 interpreted as Agree, with the alternative learning modality on modules distribution receiving the lowest mean and being interpreted as
Agree. The teacher's perception is interpreted as Agree by the average weighted mean of 4.20. Students and teachers have very different perspectives on how the school's regulations regarding alternate learning modalities are implemented, whereas they have quite similar perspectives on how well students are following the basic education learning continuity plan. Following that, a plan of action should be created and put into effect using the school's alternate delivery modality and basic education learning continuity policies.
Keywords: Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan, Policy, Post-Pandemic, Understanding Flexible Learning Options
Introduction
The Philippines has a strong and diverse educational system, with the government, backed by the private sector, offering a wide spectrum of education across the archipelago, from early years up to college and university (Sasan & Rabillas, 2022). The distribution of basic education is supervised by the Department of Education (DepEd). The private neighborhood has kindergartens, international schools, and religious institutions. The Philippines has finally launched the K-12 reform program, the country's most innovative overhaul to the educational system in decades, four years after the Enhanced Basic Education Act (EBEA, often known as the K-12 law) was put into effect.
One of the most crucial factors that affects a person's and a country's progress is education. The new coronavirus outbreak, also known as COVID-19, had a significant impact on a large number of people's lives. The necessity to maintain tight social or physical distance in order to prevent or limit the spread of Covid-19 presently has the largest impact on the disease. The COVID-19 is affecting all facets of life, including education, in addition to contributing to difficulties with global health (Sasan & Baritua, 2022). For DepEd, this meant canceling all classes and extracurricular activities for the remaining weeks of SY 2019-2020, SY 2020-21, and SY 2021-2022 in order to protect the health, safety, and security of all students, teachers, and department employees. This was done through the Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan in the Time of COVID-19, which required schools to find ways for learning to continue despite the threat and precariousness caused by the coronavirus.
Define remote learning as an educational setting where a teacher and his or her pupils are not in the same physical environment in the case of a global pandemic. In order to succeed as a teacher, you must not only be able to handle change on your own, but also be able to impart that knowledge to others (Kilag, et al., 2022). Teachers must continue to grow professionally to develop these skills, but maybe
more crucially, they must be aware of and ready for the involuntary induced by a coronavirus outbreak, which caused us to transition to distant learning. During the COVID-19 period, DepEd oversaw the administration of the Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP) rules. By stopping the spread of COVID-19, this could contribute to the health, safety, and welfare of students, teachers, and other staff members. Achieved learning continuity through modifications to K-12 timetables, the pairing of learning resources, the use of numerous learning delivery modalities, the provision of corresponding training for teachers and school administrators, and with the proper orientation of parents or guardians of learners (Sasan, et al., 2022).
To meet the New Normal, the distinct areas of government, including education, were straightened. The process had undergone many changes in a short period of time and had made significant progress in maintaining its purpose. Despite being the center of the government, education, and economy, Metro Manila was unprepared for it. Lack of technology and a poor internet connection were only two of the issues that prevented it from fulfilling its mandate to provide the students with a high-quality education. In order to assure safety among the various stakeholders, the DepEd created the BE-LCP, which included various learning modalities. The Central Office gave field offices and schools around the nation the policy direction they needed to start implementing remote learning in their specific jurisdictions before the start of classes officially in October 2020.
Since most students, particularly those in the Senior High School are finding it difficult to adjust to the new normal set-up; the researcher chose the topic of school policies on alternative delivery modes and basic education learning continuity for senior high to be studied. The goal of this study is to evaluate how well senior high schools' policies on alternative delivery methods and basic education learning continuity plans affect perceived academic performance. To provide educators with a solid plan for enhancing the teaching-learning process even after the pandemic has passed, together with instructions on how to apply it successfully, in order for the teachers to embrace its use.
Methodology
Design
The descriptive-survey method of research design was used in this study to present and discuss the profile, status of the implementation of the school policies on alternative learning modality and learning continuity plan, significant relationship between teachers and students on the status of the implementation of alternative delivery modes and the student's performance of the basic education learning continuity plan, and issues and concerns experienced by the respondents. In order to
convey the findings, conclusions, and suggestions, the data collected were presented, evaluated, and interpreted.
Respondents
The sampling size for this study was determined using Slovin's Formula, and the respondents were chosen using a stratified random sampling method for students. Additionally, a complete enumeration of all senior high school teachers was taken into consideration. The study's participants were Senior High School of Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) Students and Senior High School Teachers from PAU Excellencia Global Academy Foundation, Inc. Each segment had 50 students registered, and 20 senior high school teachers were chosen to participate as responses.
Instrument
A modified and adapted questionnaire from Cabael, B. was used in this investigation (2021). which evaluated the students' performance on the basic education learning continuity plan as well as the status of the school's alternative delivery mode policies. The questionnaire was broken down into three sections (I-III); Section I was used to collect information on respondents' personal information; Section II included questions about students' performance with response options of Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Partially Agree (PA), Disagree (D), and Strongly Disagree (SD); and Section III will concentrate on issues and concerns raised by respondents in relation to school policies.
Data-Gathering Procedure
To conduct the study, a Transmittal Letter was sent to the relevant authorities. Following the approval, a letter asking the school president's permission to conduct the study at PAU Excellencia Global Academy Foundation, Inc. was delivered to her. After receiving permission, the researcher used Google Forms to send the questionnaire to the respondents. The techniques for collecting data and the goal of the study were properly explained during the consent processes for the respondents' parents and for the respondents themselves. Respondents were given the option to either participate in the study or not; they were not coerced into doing so.
Treatment of Data
After the retrieval of the questionnaires, the frequency of the responses was tailed, collated, tabulated, and subjected to the following statistical procedures and analysis.
1. Simple Percentage. This was used to determine the profile of the respondents involved in the study in terms of age and gender, year level and section, and Track and strand.
2. Weighted Mean. This statistical tool was utilized to determine the status on the implementation of the school policies on alternative learning modality and learning continuity plan.
3. Simple Ranking. This was used to determine the rank of the issues and concerns met by the respondents related to school policies.
4. T-Test. This was assessed whether the students and teachers had a significant relationship.
Scoring Procedure
This study employed the following procedures:
For the respondents' status on the implementation of the school policies on alternative learning modality and learning continuity plan, the weighted mean for each competency as well as the over-all weighted mean of the five competencies was interpreted using the Likert five- point scale of ratings as follows: Weight Range Category Verbal Description
5 4.21 - 5.00 Strongly Agree When the respondents' involvement is
100%
4 3.41 - 4.20 Agree When the respondents' involvement is
75%
3 2.61 - 3.40 Partially Agree When the respondents' involvement is
50%
2 1.81 - 2.60 Disagree When the respondents' involvement is
25%
1 1.00 - 1.80 Strongly Disagree When the respondents' involvement is
0%
Result and discussion
The basic education learning continuity plan on performance tasks received the lowest average weighted mean of all the policy dimensions, which is Agree, when the ratings are added together to determine the student's status of the implementation of the school policies. The basic education learning continuity plan on performance is the policy dimension that received the lowest mean and was understood as Agree, while the teacher's perception has an average weighted mean interpreted as Strongly Agree. This suggests that students today have acquired fundamental knowledge, skills, and basic apprehension and are capable of transferring this knowledge through performance challenges with little assistance from their parents, instructors, or classmates.
Sakirudeen and Sanni (2017) asserts that factors influencing the quality of education and students' academic achievement in various fields of study include their study habits. It is unrealistic to expect students to acquire everything they need to know about a subject from their lecturers during a modular course; rather, students'
study habits are the result of a combination of in-class and outside-of-class learning. It is impossible to overstate the importance of providing students with effective guidance services in order to achieve high academic standards. The necessity for excellent study habits that would enhance good academic achievement must be stressed to the students. Students who had structured and organized study habits did better on assessments, it was found. He continued by urging parents, teachers, stakeholders, and guardians to give classroom supplies and an environment that is conducive to learning (Owan, et al., 2020)
Test of Significant Relationship between Teachers and Students on the Status of the School's Alternative Delivery Modes Policy Implementation and the Students' Performance of Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan
The respondents' opinions on how well the policies of the schools regarding alternative delivery methods are being put into practice. The weighted mean for students was 4.11 with a standard deviation of 0.357, while the weighted mean for teachers' perception was 4.10 with a standard deviation of 0.434. It was found that the p-value was 0.912 and the computed t-value was -0.112. Since the p-value was higher than 0.05 level and the t-value was lower than the critical value of t-table (1.7291). As a result, the null hypothesis is accepted, and it can be concluded that there was no meaningful association between the status of the execution of the school's policies on alternative delivery modalities and the status of students and teachers. The weighted mean results for the students and teachers, along with the computed t-value, are shown in the table and clearly demonstrate and verify the validity of the concluding hypothesis. This shows that the perceptions of students and teachers regarding the status of the application of the school's rules on alternative delivery methods varies. This clearly indicates that the school is the model for its policies and the key to creating a supportive atmosphere for learning.
A Similar research by Wulansari, et al. (2020) found a link between teachers' empathy and opinions of their school's policies, suggesting that teachers' ability to change those policies may be constrained by their failure to recognize and correctly respond to student conduct. Studies suggest that student variables, such as gender, have a substantial impact on academic success, but no research demonstrates that male and female performance is a major influence in the effectiveness of modular learning. It has been emphasized that parental experience and student applications are crucial for the success of modular distant learning (Trecene, 2022).
The respondents' opinions regarding how well students are performing in their basic education learning continuity plan. The weighted mean for students was 4.08 with a standard deviation of 0.393; the weighted mean for teachers' perception was 4.29 with a standard deviation of 0.387. The p-value and t-value were discovered to be.021 and 2.284, respectively. Since the t-value exceeded the t-crucial table's value
and the p-value fell below the threshold of 0.05, (1.7291). As a result, it can be said that there was a substantial association between the students' and teachers' performance in the student's basic education learning continuity plan, rejecting the null hypothesis. The weighted mean results for the students and teachers, along with the computed t-value, are shown in the table and clearly demonstrate and verify the validity of the concluding hypothesis. This shows that the teachers' and students' perceptions of how well kids are performing according to the basic education learning continuity plan are consistent. This clearly demonstrates that school rules are in place with the intention of reliably, fairly, and safely assisting children in accordance with the regulatory norm.
According to a related study by Wulansari, et al. (2020), students' academic performance was highly influenced by the teachers' training, experience, and teacher-to-student ratio. The research's conclusions can be utilized to inform planners about the importance of hiring qualified educators to support efficient teaching and learning. It is frequently asserted that educational standards can never rise above those of the professors. Through classroom modifications and academic incentive, the student-teacher connection of trust made a distinctive contribution to students' performance. The institutions must be able to maintain some level of accountability in the eyes of both internal and external stakeholders thanks to school policies. Schools are committed to upholding the law (Walsh, et al., 2014).
Conclusion and recommendation
The adoption of the school's alternative delivery mode and learning continuity plans would boost students' academic performance and learning capacity. According to the results, respondents concur on the status of the application of the school's policies on alternative delivery modalities and learning continuity plans. As a result, it is necessary to enhance the policy and fully comprehend how to implement the students' proficiency level in order to prepare them by adapting produced action plans that would aid the students in adopting the implementation requirements. It is advised to implement an action plan and interaction tasks, particularly in the lowest policy dimension, to elevate their skills, abilities, and proficiency to ensure the maximum development of their capacity in relation to the current school policies on Alternative Learning Modality and Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan.
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