Background: As part of the Education and Social Justice Project, in the summer of 2023, undergraduate student Pragyan Acharya (SFS'24) interviewed Dr. Butch Mahinay, education program supervisor for the Alternative Learning System (ALS) in Region X (10) of the Philippine Department of Education (DepEd) and former faculty member at Xavier University. As the regional coordinator overseeing ALS implementation, including the Xavier University Night School Program, Dr. Mahinay discusses the structure and purpose of the Alternative Learning System, the Night School Program's role within the broader ALS ecosystem, and the opportunities and challenges of providing second-chance education to out-of-school youth and adults.
Sir Butch, maybe we could start with a short introduction, a few of what you do right now and what you have been doing. Sir Maeng told me a little bit, and I also went through your LinkedIn account, but it would be a lot better to hear it from you.
Yes. Thank you. I am Butch Mahinany. I am a teacher by profession. And right now, I am the education program supervisor of the Department of Education, specifically in Region X. And one of my work is focused on the Alternative Learning System for the entire region. Cagayan de Oro is one of the 15 divisions of Region X. So, therefore, the coverage of my work is very, very large considering that I am looking at 525 ALS teachers in the entire region and then we have. If I am not mistaken, we have almost 40-plus thousand ALS learners for the entire region, but for the CDO alone, my heart is actually close to Cagayan de Oro City because I am from Cagayan de Oro. Before I was promoted in the regional office. I work in the division of CDO, also, for the Alternative Learning System. So, I started with 35 ALS teachers in CDO of whom three are now assigned to handle the Xavier Night School Program, and if I am not mistaken, we have around 3,000 plus ALS learners in the city. And to give you an idea as to the enrollment of the Alternative Learning System, we have more junior high school learners compared to elementary learners. Yes, we believe the reason is in the formal school system. I think our elementary students are still guided along the way, but as soon as they are already in the junior high school, they are already entertaining some options on continuing their education, their education on a later part. So, perhaps they drop out along the way, and they find it difficult to go back to the mainstream. And that's why they opted for the Alternative Learning System. And many of our learners in ALS are actually parents already, and they are already workers. And that is true to the entire region.
We have many adjustments as to how to arrange our learning sessions with our ALS learners because, of course, they have to prioritize their family, they have to prioritize their work, and they have to look into bringing food into their table. So, to say the priority of continuing their education is really at the bottom, already. But we are really trying our best to keep them motivated. We really try our best to keep them in the program. But unfortunately, our trend for many years already, the trend is that we have many enrollees, and then, we have little completers, and then, we have little passers. So, the trend is always downwards, and it's frustrating. But looking at it, our learners in ALS are once drop out students, so, therefore, it's not so hard for them to drop out again. So, that's the challenge of keeping them again. They have so many priorities, but I am very proud to say that in Region X, we have one of the most number of enrollees in the entire country. We are the third in the entire Philippines, as to the number of enrollees, and I contribute that. I mean, I attribute that to our ALS teachers who are very dedicated in doing community mapping.
When I say community mapping, our ALS teachers will go out in the community, they go door to door, house to house, asking if they have out-of-school youth and adults, and that is the essence of community mapping. So, when they do community mapping, I know it's also challenging, but this is one of the surest ways for us to find learners in the community. For Xavier University, it's opposite because our teachers at Night School Program don't have to do community mapping. Because the learners are attracted to the concept that they go to the university. So, if I am not mistaken, there are many learners who are very interested in the Night School Program because of the label it is inside Xavier University. So, can you imagine the prestige that they could feel being in the university compared to a learning center found in the community? So, it's very different. And of course, again, the many services that Xavier University is offering to our ALS learners is very nice. For example, they offer uniform, they offer learning materials, and so on. And I think they are also trying to minimize the enrollment at Xavier at Night School. For them to keep a healthy number of learners to sustain the program, because it would be very challenging for them to accommodate very many learners and then finding it difficult to sustain afterwards.
But we are very happy with the Night School Program because it's one of our best practices. It's a night school, and in the entire country, there are only a few who operate ALS during night time. And what is another best feature is that it is operating inside a university.
Sir Butch, I was a little bit curious, and I don't know if you mentioned these numbers before. I was trying to take note of it. In the entire region, how many ALS centers are there, and are they typically located in public schools, or are there designated learning centers for them?
Yeah. Our arrangement is that all central schools should have an ALS learning center. So, that's already a given. And then, in terms of the community learning centers [CLCs], these are the learning centers found outside the schools. This is, actually, we already have a survey done, but we are still trying to consolidate it. So, as of the moment, I cannot give you the exact number as to how many CLCs or community learning centers we have right now. But we have enough in every barangay, in every...I do not know what the English counterpart means.
Like, the town, right.
Yeah. I think it's a town. Yeah. So, for every barangay, there is at least one community learning center, and our community learning center is actually categorized by types. I can share to you some materials, if you like, for you to understand the types of CLCs. I think type one being the basic, the most basic and type five being the sophisticated. Type one, just to give you an idea, this is a learning center that is made of light wood, materials like wood, etc. and type five is already concrete, and so on. So, that kind of gap from type one to type five. Majority of our community centers in Region X is three, looks one story concrete CLC, and it's already enough. I mean, it's concrete, too. Therefore, our learners are safe inside these facilities.
Great. Could you elaborate a little bit more about the Alternative Learning System, and maybe, you could do it in a way that also explains why you have been working with the Alternative Learning System and promoting the Alternative Learning System for so long?
In the Department of Education, we have two types. We have the formal school system, and then, we have the non-formal school system. The formal school system is what you can see in the regular schools. They have buildings. The structure, the features, are already there. The students report being Monday to Friday, 8:00 in the morning, up to 5:00 in the afternoon. So, there is a structure that's for the formal school. For the non-formal school in the Philippines, we call it the Alternative Learning System or the ALS. So, essentially, it is not formal, so therefore, the set up is very flexible. The set up is very...What do we call that? It is alternative in a way that we believe in many modalities. We introduce the use of modules, we introduce the use of radio, we introduce the use of TV, and so on. Just for us to fit the needs of our learners. So, flexibility is the name of the game for non-formal schools.
The non-formal school is very important because we understand that there are students who cannot sustain in the formal school system, and therefore, the non-formal is responsible for providing second chance education to our students. The non-formal school system in DepEd has been operating for a long time already, and, to be honest, it's an off and off system because of some government prioritization. There is this time that it's not really the priority, and therefore, one unit of ALS in DepEd was dissolved. And then, I think it is just very recently that it was really organized again. So, leadership really plays an important role in sustaining the Alternative Learning System program. So, I think that's for now.
You mean, like political leadership.
Political leadership. Yes. Political leadership.
So, it was a little bit inactive during the...not as prioritized during Duterte, and now, with Marcos, it is more prioritized?
I think I'm not sure as to who is the president was by then, but it was in the year 2015 that the department was dissolved. The house unit was actually sold, but the program still continues. But of course, without the specific personnel to handle, there would be no proper monitoring. So, therefore, you can expect inconsistent implementation, inconsistent delivery. And then, there's nobody to focus on the budget and operation…it was the time of the Duterte that the ALS law was passed and approved. And it is actually one of the biggest accomplishments of the administration that the law was passed. So, at least, now, we are protected. That means regardless of leadership, ALS unit will stay and not be affected because there's a law protecting it. This Republic Act 11510.
Yes, I think Sir Maeng shared this with me before I came to the Philippines when I was preparing my materials. Yeah. Yeah, but still, like, to zoom in a little bit on the personal. What has motivated you to work around ALS. Is this intentional?
It's not, to be honest, because I was a classroom teacher, and I was teaching science, physics, chemistry. And then, when I was promoted in the division office, they handed me the Alternative Learning System management, and it was honestly very new to me. This was in 2018. But eventually, I learned how to love the program, considering that it's not just about the work, but it's also giving service to others. This is what I love most about my work because I get the chance to serve our fellow who are disadvantaged and those who are, you know, already left behind, not in terms of education. So, it is now our mantra, actually, to provide second chance education that is not second class. That is why in Region X, we are already considering the model region in terms of the implementation of the Alternative Learning System. So, we were able to introduce a lot of innovations and programs for us to really take the lead in the implementation of ALS in the entire country.
Wow. Can you speak to me a little bit about the innovations that were undertaken within Region X's status of ALS, across the 14 divisions, within the region?
Yes, I can cite three. Number one, the learning activity sheets. These are learning materials for the six learning strands in Alternative Learning System. We don't call them subjects. As you know, we have English, science, math. We call them learning strands. And the challenge before I came in is that there were no learning materials for each learning strand. And our teachers are really finding it hard to find materials for every copy. So, what we did is that we innovated. We produced complete learning activity sheets for all the learning strands for elementary and junior high school level. And that provided big relief to our teachers.
So, then, the focus now is to prepare for the session and little time for preparation in terms of learning materials, because we provided them already. And I was surprised that when we provided the learning materials, the teachers are now more directed as to what topics to give for the week, for the month, and for the entire year. So, the learning activity sheet provided big help and good structure in the implementation of ALS.
Second, is also very important. We were able to partner with one university also found in Cagayan de Oro City. I'm not sure if you're familiar with USTP. It's found near SM downtown. It's the University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines USTP. So, we were able to forge a five-year partnership wherein they will provide professional development trainings for all our teachers in the entire region for the reason that, based on my survey, almost 75% of our ALS teachers are graduates of Bachelor of Elementary Education. But as I have mentioned already, majority of our learners are junior high school. And so, therefore, there is a disconnect in terms of their preparation in college and the type of learners they are handling. So, what I did is I arranged professional development training with USTP so that our ALS teachers will be capacitated with higher-level competencies for all the learning strands, so our teachers will become confident in handling the topics. And this is something new because no other regions were able to have this kind of arrangement, and this arrangement is for free. That's why I'm very happy about this arrangement, because this is for free. And our teachers there, our university professors are high caliber professors, which means I am very confident that our teachers will really learn a lot from their trainings.
And thirdly, the ALS senior high school, the ALS senior high school was formally introduced in 2020, but in Region X, we started it in 2018—we initiated it inside city jail and in the rehabilitation center, drug rehabilitation center. This is very convenient for us because the leaders in the city jail and the leaders in the drug rehab are very supportive of the implementation of senior high school inside the facilities, and we were able to negotiate support. And the learners are already, in fact, inside the facilities. So, therefore, it's not hard for us to find learners. So, we started our ALS senior high school way before the entire company piloted the ALS senior high schools. And that's something we're very proud about. And in fact, the model that DepEd is using now is actually our model when we started in 2019.
Wow, that sounds fantastic. I have a lot of follow up questions, so I will try to write a structure appropriately. Can you tell me a little bit more about ALS teachers generally, like how 525 teachers, like, do they volunteer themselves? Are they appointed? Do they get remunerated for this position? And could you also talk about this capacity-building initiative that you have created for them at the USTP? Like, again, you mentioned that this is not common. So, how uncommon and how pioneering is it for these ALS teachers? And yeah, if you could talk a little bit more about this for me.
Yeah, our ALS teachers are actually regularly paid DepEd teachers. So, therefore, whatever benefits that our formal school teachers receive are also received by our ALS teachers. So, therefore, they applied, they were accepted just like a regular teacher. So, therefore, the nature of the job is not volunteer in nature. They are really hired by DepEd to become ALS teacher. But we also have another set of implementers. We call them the community ALS implementer or nakai, we call them nakai. And these are the teachers who are volunteers in nature. We have around 2,000 plus volunteer teachers in the entire region, and we need them because we have 500 teachers. And with the 40,000 learners, you can just imagine the ratio. It's not really enough. So, therefore, we are also dependent on the volunteers that we can distribute in far places for ALS sessions to take place in these places. So, we have these two types of teachers: the regular ALS teachers and then our community ALS implementers. But we have the third type, we call them the learning facilitator. First, the volunteer teachers found at NSP. We call them LS. Xavier is a recognized service provider of ours. And so, therefore, because they are a recognized service provider, their volunteer teachers are then called learning facilitators. They are majority Bachelor of Elementary Education [BEE] graduate.
Are they working full time as teachers or are they...?
Yes. Yes, they work full time. So, they have no other assignment. But they focus on ALS, and I really consider them in a very tight and challenging position because number one: they handle the basic literacy program, the elementary, and the junior high school all at the same time. So, you can just imagine the complexity of the session when we say basic literacy programs, these are learners who cannot read, write. So, therefore, the three levels of education are catered by our teachers. Secondly, what's most challenging is that they get to handle all the learning strands. So, you can imagine it's universal. And they are BEE graduates. They have no major, they have no concentration. They have no area of specialization. So, you can just imagine the challenge of ALS teacher teaching mathematics. You can just imagine the challenge of teaching science when, in fact, it's part of his preparation in college. Yes, that's why our partnership with USTP comes into play. That's why I really tried that. This will really work for our ALS teachers, considering the little preparation that they have in ALS. Another one thing that I found very challenging, I'll say that our teaching curriculum in the colleges and universities does not involve an Alternative Learning System.
This was going to be exactly my second question. Is ALS not part of teacher preparation?
Yes, it's not part of the teacher education curriculum. It's not part of the teacher preparation program in colleges and universities. So, therefore, our education students have little to no exposure to Alternative Learning System. Now, when they apply in DepEd, and they get hired by DepEd, and they will be passed on to us, they will be culturally shocked because they do not know what this Alternative Learning System is all about. That's another layer that we have to consider because our newly hired teachers have to adjust. So, we are giving them, like, three years for them to be fully adjusted to the Alternative Learning System we already have in one year. In the second year, they are already expressing their interest to transfer to formal school because they could not adjust to how ALS is being implemented. Because again, they have no idea about it at all. So, therefore they really find it challenging. But then again, we are also having this mentoring system wherein the ones who are already in ALS for a long time, they could really mentor the newly hired ALS teachers. Yeah. So, that's how our ALS teachers are being groomed so they can be in the Alternative Learning System.
But as you mentioned, they are regularly paid. They get all the benefits of a regular teacher. They can also be promoted just like regular teachers. So, whatever benefits, incentives, bonuses that our regular teachers receive are actually being received as well by our ALS teachers. So, because of the additional background that they have, that's why the USTP partnership is very important, this is for me to be confident that our ALS teachers are not keeping the topics that they can share to their learners because. I can already imagine the worst case scenario. If I am an ALS teacher, and I do not know the topic, I might skip, omit, skip it, as well. And that's very challenging because we want our ALS learners to be prepared. So, they want to continue into higher education. So, that's why it's just me. That's why. I mean, acknowledge our partnership with USTP.
Yeah. And I believe that's very important also to achieve what you said earlier, which was second chance education, but not second.
Second, not second class.
Second class. And so, I am assuming that, based on this, like university students at night school programs that are currently learning facilitators, they have some exposure to ALS, so if they are people that are going to be joining the ecosystem, and they're less likely to leave, they're likely to have some more exposure than their peers at the School of Education.
Yes, right.
I agree. I agree totally that is giving them the edge already, because they already have an exposure as to what an Alternative Learning System is. That is why I also talked to the dean, Dr. Beng. I told the dean if they can also provide those interns practice teachers, if they can also be immersed in the Alternative Learning System. And the dean is very welcoming about the idea that she can actually assign practice teachers, not just in the formal school system, but also in the Alternative Learning System.
Yes. And to probe a little bit deeper into the ALS teachers, so please, correct me, if I'm wrong. So, one teacher can be assigned to multiple learning centers, and they shift between.
Okay. That's correct. Before, they are called mobile teachers for the very reason that they go around the community, they do not just handle one learning center. So, the maximum, if I'm not mistaken, is about 3 to 4 CLCs for the week. The set up is very flexible. Their meeting with the learners is once or twice a week, only. So, it's not like with a formal school system that they have to meet for five days every day. But our ALS teachers will meet their learners once or twice a week, only. So, therefore, that gives them the chance to go around learning centers and accommodate as many learners.
So, Sir Butch, shifting gears a little bit, going back to my other follow up question about what you mentioned earlier and the three innovations that you mentioned. Could you tell me a little bit more about senior high school? Is the senior high school for students that is on the junior high school track or something else, or is this for a whole different profile of learners? And what was it like implementing it in the city jail and in the rehabilitation center? Please elaborate.
We take pride in our senior high school. The set up is different because we acknowledge that our ALS teachers could not handle senior high school subjects. Again, they are elementary education graduates. So, what we did is that we partnered with the nearest senior high school for these facilities. So, for example, if we have the city jail, and the location of CP jail is in Lumbia, we partner with Lumbia senior high school teachers. So, therefore, our teachers in the Lumbia senior high school will actually report inside the jail once or twice a week. So, that gives us the confidence that our senior high school teachers are really competent to handle the senior high school subjects.
So, we are trying to arrange as to, I mean, we tried arranging how to accommodate the subjects in the Zoom meetings only for a week. We tried that. That's very challenging. And we also tried substituting some subjects that could fit well inside the facilities: for example, research. Our students inside the jail have no access to the internet, and therefore, doing research is very challenging, very difficult. To believe it's more appropriate for them in the drug rehabilitation center—it's the same. They don't have access to computer, to Internet. Therefore, we do not offer practical research, and we substitute with formation sessions so these subjects are more apt, more responsive to them being inside the facilities, and It's not very challenging because, attendance wise, it's not a problem because, I mean, the learners are already inside the facilities. They cannot go outside, and they're on the inside. So, therefore, having a session is not a problem.
If we compare it outside the community, it's a very big challenge because once our ALS teachers report to the community, sometimes they're there, less learners than the expected number of learners. Although there are some challenges in the implementation because of the restrictions. For example, our learners in, say, the jail and rehab center, they could not use ballpens and pencils, and they can use it at respective times because they already know the implications. These are sharp objects, and they could use them for, you know, already. So, there's this allocation of time as when they could use these materials. And another, also, is the skills training meant that we could not introduce cooking to the bakery. We want to introduce life skills. But of course it's very challenging on that part because we could not bring materials inside the jail. Another big challenge is during the [COVID-19] pandemic, because this is a very tight facility, and, therefore, the entrance of our teachers are minimized. And there's even this one year, I think in 2021, that they are not really allowed to go inside, and, therefore, our implementation was suspended. So, these are the challenges that we had during the pandemic.
But then again, now, from the only two facilities in the entire region, we are implementing 35 senior high schools in the region, and we partner with existing senior high schools already. We only accept those who graduate from ALS. So, therefore, ALS junior high school completers can proceed to ALS senior high school, which means we do not accept junior high school completers from the formal school. We do not want to make our program as an escape or a shortcut method for our formal school to enjoy in ALS. Because again, flexibility. I mean, our learners in ALS senior high school would meet once, twice a day and I don't want that to become an option to our regular junior high school completers. So, that's why we limit our entrance only for our junior high school ALS completers.
So, just out of curiosity, for example, if there is someone who completed junior high school five years ago, didn't go to senior high school, will they be eligible for a ALS senior high or will not be eligible for ALS senior high school, as it currently is?
Yeah, actually, we already encountered cases like that. Like, they’re already out of school for seven years, already. Like, for five years, for example, we accepted. Then, we accepted them because, by nature, they're already out of the school, by category. They're already out of school, but that's one of the challenges now because we really want to open more senior high school, open ALS senior high school, because, as I've mentioned, I think, well, I think I have not mentioned it already, but we have around 30,000 of ALS junior high school right now. And if we do not accommodate these 30,000 ALS junior high school to our senior high school... So, that's a big problem. So, our target now is to multiply it by two. At least, that's more sustainable by the opening of the new school year. We hope to open 70, that is, twice, two of the 35. So, little by little, I hope we will progress in terms of the opening of the senior high school.
Understood. Sir Butch, I want to zoom out a little before talking about these ALS education facilities. Could you speak to me a little bit about just the state of out-of-school adults in Region X and in CDO? Do they share a common profile? Are they from our common religious background, you know, gender background, age background, or something like that, or...
Yes, by majority. They share a common profile, common demographic profile in terms of level. They are mostly at junior high school level, most of almost the same age, almost of the same age bracket, like being 20-something. Next, they're in the common age bracket. But the majority of our learners are females. In terms of religion, it's not the same because religion is very diverse. We have an area in Region X where it is Muslim dominated. So, therefore, it's different there. I am talking to Lanao del Norte. And then, we also have this one location in Region X where there are more indigenous people. So, therefore, the culture is different there. So, the focus is different. So, our demographics in terms of religion and culture is really different because Region X is very culturally diverse. But when it comes to age, when it comes to the level, it's almost the same.
Oh, okay. And are there certain parts of the region where you have more out-of-school youth and adults, or is this not something discernible?
The bigger the geography, the more our learners. For example, Bukidnon is our biggest division. So, therefore, it has 7,000 learners. So, it would follow. It would follow. And you would be surprised. Not in cities like CDO. It's a small place. But we have many learners. That's also because many of our learners in the provinces will go to the city for work. And therefore, they are also focused and concentrated in the cities like CDO.
Oh, I see. Now, I want to talk a little bit more about just the students and the learners that are involved in ALS. So, you mentioned in the introduction that student motivation is sometimes an issue and there is a trend of many enrolling, and then, a little competing, and even a little passing. Can you speak to me a little bit more about this trend? Why do you think this trend exists?
Yeah. Motivation is one of the factors that we're seriously looking at because we want to help them sustain education. The pattern is really downwards. Enrollees have very high completion rates going down. Then passersby are going down further. It's always the trend that's very challenging for us, as well, because we are competing for economical reasons. I mean, they are working, they are, they are tending their families. So, therefore, that's the kind of factors that it's so hard to compete with.
But what we focus on is the reason why they have to go to school. That is thing where we can really anchor on. That's why I told the ALS teachers that, "Please give them that reason to stay. Please give them the reason to learn, give them materials, give them the support that they need." That's why, when I said the learning activity sheets, it's very, very helpful because if our learners can sense that our teachers are not prepared, they are not also motivated to learn. So, therefore, I am looking at providing materials as much as possible to our ALS teachers, so they themselves can be prepared, as well, in taking care of our students.
I really believe in taking good care of our teachers because I know it has a ripple effect for their leaders. And also in terms of program support fund. I really make sure that I can get enough funding from the central office in DepEd central office, so I could download funds to the division offices. And I'm happy to report that, for the current school year, I was able to download twice already in funding. Yeah, funding is very important. The funds that they get from these downloaded funds are the funds that they will use to buy learning materials like papers, like ballpens, like clear books for their portfolios. So, and also, help kids, like, alcohol and, like, masks, and so on. So, it could give an impression to our learners that the program is supported. It would give an impression to our learners that we are prepared to take good care of them, and hopefully they could feel that so that they can also be motivated to go to school.
And I also tell our ALS teachers to make our CLCs more attractive because that would matter. No one would like to report to a center that is not clean. It's not healthy, that it's not conducive for learning. So, this is something that we are constantly working on because, as you know already, our learning centers inside the schools are not the most beautiful classrooms. Because if you are a school principal, I will give you the room that I least need for you to be utilized for ALS. And I will prioritize the formal school because this has more number of enrollment. So, the dilapidated classrooms will always go to the ALS for use. And, therefore, I challenge our teachers to make them beautiful and conducive for our learners to be motivated. So, another project that I am trying to implement for next school year is the gradual shifting of the learning centers from the elementary central schools to high schools. By profile, right now, most of our learning centers are found in the elementary central schools, and least that you can see in the national high schools.
Now, I understand the psychological understanding of our learners, that they are already mature, but they go inside elementary schools. And I know this kind of stigma, or it's not a good picture for them. I understand that. That's why I would like to introduce the gradual shifting of the operation of ALS to high school to give them the confidence that they are entering high school and not elementary schools. Because I have this observation in one place here that we have two learning centers, one in Central School and just across the Central School is the National High School. And there's also a learning center here. The learners enrolled in the Central School will report in the high school because of the observation I am sensing that they are somewhat ashamed of reporting to elementary schools because of their age, they don't want to be seen by their neighbors, by their friends. They're still entering elementary schools. And that's one thing that I am really seriously considering because I understand the psychological implications attached to it, that they report in elementary school. So, I hope all these things will help motivate our learners. Yeah.
Yeah. And I believe that's also the reason why you mentioned at the start that learners are more confident going to Xavier University because it's a university setting.
And that's the reason. That's the reason why, because even there is already college level and that gives them a very good picture. Then, in entering a college institution compared to an elementary institution that we normally provide in-house.
I wanted to probe in a bit further on what you just mentioned, like what is the motivation for, I guess, they are mandated, these high schools and these elementary schools, are required to provide a space for a learning center for ALS. But what other sort of...do they get additional benefits for it, or do they just get a certain proportion of funding allocated to them from the division for their ALS?
To be honest, I'll be honest. Operating ALS inside an elementary school or high school is more of a liability to the principals because they don't get additional funding for it. The learners in ALS are not counted as part of the enrollment in the school, and if it's not counted, therefore, the operating expenses would not warrant the number of ALS that we have because the operating expenses for schools are dependent on the enrollment of the school. And if we do not count the ALS learners, and they are inside the school, they are kind of a liability rather than an investment.
On the school?
Reducing the use of water, and electricity, and so on. And that's one, that's why not all principals are very open to it because of that situation. That's why we are trying to reach out to the school principals, to the school heads that we can actually share a little of the downloaded funding to the schools, so they can be assisted in terms of that expenses. And we cannot deny that serving ALS inside the school is the most convenient way for us to operate. I mean, the facilities are all inside. And if our ALS students would like to access the library, that 's already inside the school; if our ALS learners would like to access the computer laboratory, it's already inside the school. So, therefore, we are really looking at operating inside the school. But we have so many learning centers outside the school, the community-based learning centers. But then again, there are already many principals and school heads that are already open-minded about ALS. And to be more specific, on Alice Senior High School. The target for 70, I believe, is just the minimum because there are already many school principals.
Yeah, that's really nice. And now I want to zoom in. I want to zoom out a little bit more once. Can you, I guess, from your experience, speak to me about it? Well, one is the number of out-of-school students, people eligible for ALS—is it increasing, or is it decreasing? And is it, I mean, regardless of this trend, what do you think are the reasons for why sort of these learners, I guess, for lack of a better, fall through the crack, through formal education, like what sort of systems are contributing? Is it criminal justice reform? Is it the education system itself? Is it I don't know, the employment? That's something on that end. Is it, You know, the economy? So, what do you think? So, yeah.
Yeah. In terms of trend for the past three years, it's not consistent. It goes up and down, maybe because of the pandemic. That's right. It's hard to to say which trend, really. But for the past few years prior to pandemic, it's always been increasing. And that's actually...I understand your question; that it's also our question, why is it always increasing? I mean, what is happening in the formal school system, and where, and why? I mean, what is the holding power of our formal schools of these learners—on why they fall out and why they drop out? For us in ALS to have an increasing enrollment than before...and, honestly, there is no study yet that...and this is something, right now, as we talk, this is something, a flash bulb moment, for me to perhaps also do a study on this and investigate the reasons on why they drop out in the formal school system. But based on the sharing of our learners, it's really more of poverty. It's really more of looking at it that their family could not provide or could not support them anymore. That's why they stop, and they work. So, that's the very usual story that we hear from our learners. They stop in the form of school, they proceed to work, and then, they find it hard already to return to the formal school because of their age. And that's why they resort to Alternative Learning System. So, that's usually the pattern. It's more of financial, the capacity of the family and finding it difficult to provide.
That's very interesting. And maybe, even, like, I'm just speculating, of course. But maybe, the problem is not just in the formal schooling system. Maybe it's health care is contributing, or maybe, the criminal justice system, but I would not know. Right now, I want to zoom in once again... Before that, on the issue of the pandemic, because I think this warrants a lot of discussion. Could you tell me a bit about the state of ALS in the region during the pandemic, and how you reached learners, and to what degree?
Yeah, during the pandemic, just like all the schools in the former school, to continue learning, to continue education, was really challenging, of course, with the many restrictions that we had before, like we had. We had levels of community restrictions. There's a level that the people cannot really go out that. We have these kind of levels. And that's why learning, really, was really challenging. But it gave us opportunity to explore on the different learning modalities that we can give. And that made us practice the radio-based instruction for a bigger scope. When I say radio-based instruction, this is the use of the radio station, the radio frequency. It is using the radio stations while the learners are at their homes listening to radios. That's radio-based. And then, we also explored TV-based instruction. We've partnered with cable stations for us to deliver our lessons through TV. And then, we also intensified our learning activity sheets, the printing of it, and the costing it entailed, forwarding these learning activity sheets to reach the home of our learners.
So, it made us open, and it's like a blessing in disguise because we were able to explore a lot of modalities and, and because of that, many implementers from different divisions from different regions would come to our region to benchmark our best practices, our practices on radio-based instruction. And this is something that we can also be, you know, and another thing that we can be very proud of. And of course, it wasn't easy because it needed a lot of funding, for example, for us to partner with radio stations, for us to partner with cable TV, cable stations. It would require airtime. Yeah, funding for airtime. And this is where our ALS teachers would really become creative to partner with local government units. And we're so happy to see that many local mayors and counselors would support us financially by paying for one year of the airtime fees of the radio stations and of the cable stations. So, the pandemic made us explore a lot of options, and that's the beauty of it. And what's good is that it is being sustained at this point. So, for me, it really solidified our modalities in the alternative system, really catering to the flexibility of the nature of the ALS.
That's wonderful. And this sounds like a story of great resilience to me. Yes, it is. And, but on the flip side, like distance learning with radio provided instruction, what was retention of students in ALS during the pandemic? Was it similar to pre-pandemic and now post-pandemic, or was there a drop in students? Do they have the facilities to join in there? Did the radios, for instance, mobile phones, if they're doing classes online?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We're on that, as well, with the use of Facebook Messenger. Yeah, we were able to utilize that as well as to sustain it. It's almost the same. It's almost the same. I mean, the reasons are also the same because of the pandemic. Many of our learners, where many of our learners lost their job, and because of that, they were not able to continue learning with us. During the pandemic, many institutions, many commercial establishments were also closed, and that also affected our learners, our parents and parents who are, at the same time, learners in ALS. So, the same reason, economic reasons made them not continue, but for the learners who sustain in ALS, helped.
And that's wonderful, so, so good. Now, I want to zoom in once again on the Night School Program. I've learned that you are responsible for so many ALS within the region. You are seeing so many students and the ALS center. Does the Night School Program stand out as a center? Where does it stand within the region in terms of what it's providing to students?
The implementation inside the Night School Program is very worthy of being followed by other divisions, by other schools. If you try to look at how to implement that, it's very holistic. I think it's because of the facilities that they have inside. They could do games because they have gymnasiums, they have courts, so they have the facilities to do it. And their learners also have exposure to arts, to the dance, because they have little theaters. They have these facilities. Therefore, the implementation is very strong inside Xavier. And what's good is that because of the kind of learners that they cater there, for example, the street kids, the local government is very supportive. I mean, if I'm not mistaken, they receive a yearly budget from the local government of the Cagayan de Oro and because of that, funding is consistent, and because of the funding, they can really sustain all of the activities that they're doing inside of Xavier. And, of course, as Xavier, they also introduced a spiritual dimension to the interventions. And this is something that we do not look inside ALS, because of the cultural diversity we have in our learners, because something that we cannot introduce, or else, we will be accused of something you know, for a year.
They introduced Jesuit tradition.
Correct. Correct. But in Xavier being a Jesuit institution, they can introduce the spirituality side, spirituality into their sessions, and that's very good. So, therefore, Xavier was able to implement things that are not normally being introduced outside Xavier. So, that's made them stand out. And because of that, I think you already know that they were awarded last December.
The National Literacy Award.
Yes, for the National Literacy Awards for the outstanding literacy program that they introduced. And we are aiming to join again next year for higher placement, hopefully. So, this is something that we can really be proud of for Region X. And my challenge for them is to increase the number of learners that they can accommodate because...again...number one: it's already attractive. It's a college facility where the sessions that they introduce are very rich. So, therefore, I want them to increase because if I'm not mistaken, Yan, they are handling 40 right now. Yes, that's correct. Yes. Yeah. They're only handling 40. And for me, it's for me, personally, it's a wasted opportunity for them to handle only 40. I hope they can increase that number, hopefully, to a hundred. I was telling Natalie, I was telling her, Sir Maeng. Hopefully, they can offer ALS senior high school this opening of the school year, new school year. I hope they can open ALS senior high school. That is another challenge that I'm giving them because that resource; they already have what they need. If our center's outside, they can operate without these blessings, without these facilities, how much more we give them. So, I told them, you are very blessed already with these facilities, so please increase your capacity. People have been learning.
Yeah, and I think that's very important. Again, maybe zooming out a little bit, is it common for universities to adopt the Night School Program, private universities especially?
No, no. If I'm not mistaken, there are only three in the entire country. All for this one, but also, offering ALS inside university. I think this is the only one, so that gives them the winning edge in the competition of the National Literacy Awards because they have something uncommon in the entire country. So, that's why this is very special. And I told the dean, if we can expand the model to another school, in CDO, and, in fact, we already have this initial talk with Lloyds College or Lloyds College, hopefully, to adopt the same model by school today.
Yes.
Yeah. So, we are hoping to extend that kind of model, and hopefully, not only in CDO, but in many schools outside Xavier. But of course, this is a long way to goal because, again, this will entail expenses. This will entail the safety of the learners inside the university or inside the college. So, there are so many implications about this one.
Again, one thing that stands out to me in this conversation about universities and universities integrating it: On one hand, as an external observer, for me, it seems that this is something that universities wouldn't be inclined to do because it gives their students a school of education exposure to real-life teaching scenarios. But simultaneously, as we talked about earlier, it is not something that is integrated within the schools. This is something that is nationally made available by the Philippine government, which is also very unique because in many countries around the world, students could get a second chance to do so, and the only way that they get it is through formal education again. And many choose not to be able to have systems like this. So, why is it that ALS is not taught, I guess, in many ways is not a concentration, for example, available in schools across the Philippines?
The same question, actually, why this is not present in the teacher preparation program. I wish the commissioner of higher education, I hope they can consider this, but the good news is that they are already acknowledging. If, one time, I already received a call from CHEd about the program, and this means that I am already getting the attention, I am very noisy on Facebook. I have many activities in house, so I have something to post on Facebook, and I believe it matters. I mean, if you are not visible, then people will not see them. I mean, people will not see you, people will not recognize that you exist. So, therefore, visibility is very important. And I hope that CHEd will include ALS in the picture education curriculum, so that all the College of Education can also look into that student internship program that can also be offered in the Alternative Learning System. So, this is something that is operating only at Xavier. Because, of course, not all schools are aware of ALS. When we introduced our store, Lloyds College, they had so many questions, and that gave me the impression that they are not as well acquainted with ALS. So, it saddens me, to be honest. So, I hope we can intensify our initiatives, our activities, so CHEd can really, hopefully soon, offer ALS as part of the teacher education program.
This is an organization that is concerned about education, and they have these materials about alternative learning modalities. And they were able to get information to several countries, like Thailand, Cambodia, Philippines, and other countries about their practices that are similar to—yes, that are similar to ours. So, it's a very comprehensive material. I was stopped to become one of the validators of these materials. And I think, yeah, I see your email, I think, and I think this is very good material. But, at this point it is still being continuously validated. But the information is very rich, and I think...I'm sorry.
No, no, it's okay. Please.
With this material, you will be enlightened of how the countries are already implementing alternative learning. So, I hope that this is something that you can bring to your country.
Yes, I was, actually, and I know I have taken a lot of your time. I don't know how wise you would like to comment, but one thing that I was now a little bit more curious about to zoom in on is specifically on you. How do you manage your life? And this seems like a very heavy handed and also just emotionally very heavy kind of work where you're engaging with students from various different backgrounds and profiles—that must carry its own weight, and just the scale of your work and especially the manner in which you described it seems like a lot to take in. How do you manage this personally?
I know I'm also surprised at myself on how I was able to handle all of these things. But one thing, Yan, is that I was looking at the governance of ALS. Like being at the regional office. I also have direct counterparts in the division offices. So, which means I get to tap the leadership of my counterparts at the division of the office. So, therefore, I know, I know, I know the processes, the ways the communication on how I should be opening it from time to time, transmitting the information that they need for them to be supported in the policies in the entire implementation. So, I studied the governance structure very well for me to operate accordingly. Next one: second: I maintain a relationship to the central. If I have good funding, this is something that I can share with the division officer. As you know already, it is very difficult to sustain a program without good funding. So, therefore, I make sure that all the division offices are funded well. With our support, we call it the program support funds. This is something that I've also been doing for the past three years, already. And, therefore, our ALS leaders in every division are also utilizing these very well for our ALS teachers and learners.
I agree with you. This is also emotional. Every time I go to the field, it's always an emotional experience for me, looking at our learners, and their plight, and how they are very determined to proceed to schooling. It is something that is inspiring for me to be good, as well, with my work. So, that's why I hope to stay still with my work. But there are already invitations for promotions ahead. You know what I mean? So. Yeah. But I hope I could still serve with an Alternative Learning System, even if I'm not in the house because I believe in the courses that they give in ALS. Education is really important. I mean, I have this line from...I forgot whose line it is, but it says that... Victor Hugo, he said, "When you open schools, you close jails." And I really like that line because education really is a universal equalizer. It can really help a lot of social problems and inequities. And, therefore, these are exactly the reasons why I am very dedicated with my work in the Alternative Learning System.
You know, across borders or across life experiences. I share the same commitment to you, and I hope I can deliver at least an ounce of what you have already. I guess one thing to, I guess, close our conversation out for this interaction on the record because I am definitely going to connect with you for a long, long time. There is much I need to learn from you. You are an alum from Xavier University, right? Yes. You gave some pieces of advice earlier about what you would like to see with the Night School Program. Can you elaborate?
I learned to never settle for less. And this is something that I've been practicing, as well, in my profession right now. I mean, we have to do our best. We don't have to settle for less. That's something that I want our students at Xavier to learn from this experience. Another is to be men and women for others. I told you that what I like about my work is that it's not just giving me my salary as a professional, but it gives me the opportunity to serve others. And I really like it. When I was at Xavier, I was a volunteer at the catechetical group. I volunteered to do Catechism elementary school, before. And I was also active with leadership roles when I was still a student, and the year before, and all of these experiences, and I was able to use them right now knowing that I am leaving many teachers and many learners. This is a really good experience. So, one lesson perhaps that our Xavier education students should learn is to open up themselves to these experiences. The Night School Program is big there, and it needs volunteers. It needs people like the volunteers that we have right now at Xavier. So, I hope they could be involved in all of these activities. This is one of the best experiences that they will have, while they are actually at Xavier.
Yeah, and very formative, too, indeed, as this conversation has been for me. Thank you so much. Thank you so much for your time. I really enjoyed it. I've sent you a connection request on LinkedIn. I will search you soon on Facebook, and find you out.
Yeah, yeah. Thank you so much, Yan, for this. It is always a pleasure for me to share about Alternative Learning Systems. Every time I get an invitation to colleges, universities, to talk about alternative systems, I really find time. This is one way for me to advocate an Alternative Learning System to what we do in ALS in the hope that I could have more supporters for ALS, for all, or all of our learners and learners-to-be in the future. So, yes, Yan. I hope to connect with you soon, and I'm very interested in your study and looking forward to your output. I'm very, very excited for this one. I will. I know that you're ready...And I'm so amazed that you have all of this opportunity to be here in the Philippines learning all of these things. And perhaps, this is overwhelming for you. But I hope, because it is something that you can bring back to your school and share a lot with your professors. There's so much to share.
