Alternative Education in Emergencies – Supplementary Module on Education in the time of COVID-19

The Philippine Department of Education (DepEd) recognizes several alternative programs or strategies to provide education to students for whom the traditional mode of delivery is not possible, available, or effective.

Alternative education options are implemented in response to a variety of challenges, such as overcrowding, teacher shortages, lack of instructional materials, and remoteness or inaccessibility of schools. In the aftermath of a calamity, communities may suffer from any or all the above, which points to the potential of such programs to sustain learning. Indeed, teachers are often forced to innovate the way they organize learning after a calamity, even if they are not formally trained in using a particular alternative education program.

In the time of the COVID-19 health crisis, thousands of schools around the world have physically shut down to prevent the spread of the virus. Education sectors globally have resorted to different alternative education options to ensure that education will continue amidst the pandemic.

The Alternative Education in Emergencies Resource Kit is an 11-module knowledge product that provides guidance for teachers and school administrators on how alternative and flexible learning options can help sustain quality learning after a disaster, and how they can be adapted to suit a range of contexts and evolving needs as communities gradually recover to normalcy.

This supplementary module presents how the education sector is responding to the global COVID-19 health crisis using the INEE Minimum Standards for Education framework for delivering quality education in emergencies. This includes a guide to safe back-to school for practitioners, and outlines the key steps needed for a coordinated, inclusive, all-hazards approach to school reopening. The module also consolidates various guidelines and policies enacted by the Department of Education to respond to the pandemic.