RADIO AS MODE OF LEARNING. Department of Education Laoag City Schools Division Superintendent Vilma Eda, City Councilor Roque Benjamin Ablan, and education consultant Isabel Sandi (from right to left), turn on the switch of the first school-based FM broadcast station as a tool for radio-based instruction in the region, on Monday (June 15, 2020). With the help of various stakeholders, the FM station will be upgraded to address the needs of learners in the province who have no access to online learning. (Photo by Leilanie G. Adriano)
LAOAG CITY – The Department of Education (DepEd) in Laoag City continues to look for ways to reach out to learners amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) health crisis.
As face-to-face and online instruction is not possible for all students, teachers are now exploring radio broadcast as an alternative mode of learning, Laoag City Schools Division Superintendent Vilma Eda said Monday.
In partnership with the Ilocos Norte College of Arts and Trades, the school-based FM Broadcast Station, DWAT-FM 93.9 Mhz went live on Monday after a switch-on ceremony to test its effectiveness to young learners.
Eda said once everything is put in place and after the station's equipment is upgraded, Ilocos Norte learners will be the first to utilize radio-based instruction in the region.
The station will also serve as a training venue for campus journalists in radio broadcasting as well as a laboratory for students enrolled in Electronics Products Assembly and Services.
“At this point in time when life is really hard due to global pandemic, learning should continue no matter what,” Eda said.
She said various learning modalities such as online education, video-mediated instruction, blended learning including radio-based instruction, are explored to address the different needs of students.
Eda announced that by next week, simulation classes will be done to facilitate learning continuity plan and all of these should be ready before the expected August 24 opening of classes.
“Education is everybody’s concern because that will determine the survival of our people. In pandemic like this, what may come in the future may even be worse than the Covid-19. The only way to survive this is to create the future now by educating our children well,” she said.
Shirley Agsunod, school principal of INCAT, said the school has been operating the FM broadcast station since May 2017 and they are hoping to upgrade the facility to cater to a wider audience particularly among young learners who have no internet access in Laoag, Batac City and the rest of the province. (PNA)
