Public school registration has started at the beginning of the month, but teachers, students and parents alike are grappling with how to adjust in the new classroom—may that be online, at home or face-to-face, soon.

To help ease these worries, many volunteers are uploading learning guides on social media with some even offering to print them for free for those who can’t afford it.

[READ: Don’t throw away old gadgets yet! OVP needs them for online classes donation drive]

The Department of Education (DepEd), for its part, has not just made its DepEd Commons website free to access through mobile (without data charges) but has also uploaded its Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELCs). MELCs is an outline of the topics under each subject that students in various grade levels need to have mastered by a given period. It currently covers Kinder until Grade 12 curriculum.

*Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELCs) lists down the skills and knowledge students in specific grade level needs to learn within specific time frames*

To access the MELCs, just go to commons.deped.gov.ph/melc. Just like the rest of the Commons website, these modules can be accessed and downloaded for free. It is accompanied by corresponding guidelines, prepared by the Bureau of Curriculum Development (BCD), under Director Jocelyn Andaya, and approved by Undersecretary Diosdado San Antonio (Curriculum and Instruction).

According to DepEd Undersecretary Alain Pascua, who shared the news on his Facebook page, MELCs is part of the Department’s response to develop resilient education systems, especially during emergencies. “It will enable DepEd to focus instruction on the most essential and indispensable competencies,” his statement read.

“We are trying to make everything as accessible as we can, through DepEd Commons and our other available channels. It is upon us to make sure our teachers and learners have everything they need in order to continue learning” Pascua said.

To understand how MELCs work, each page for a subject specific to a grade level is divided into four quarters lasting from eight to nine weeks. There’s a goal for every week, for example for Math for Grade 1, by the end of Q1, the student should demonstrate an understanding of whole numbers up to 100, ordinal numbers up to 10th, money up to P100.

Along with this news, DepEd also reiterated its warning against groups and individuals selling printed learning materials and modules online.

For households who are without the necessary electronic devices to access the learning portal and its resources, DepEd also announced that printouts will also be provided for those enrolled in public schools. DepEd is also ironing out the means to make radio and television alternative learning channels.

Header photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

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