Blended learning, limited space amongst struggles of displaced public high 

AFTER almost a year spent building the planned 10-storey Ramon Magsaysay High School (RMHS) building in Sampaloc, Manila, displaced students continue to face learning struggles burdened by their blended set-up and limited space in conducting classes.  

According to the students and faculty of RMHS, their current, temporary set-up includes ninth and tenth graders attending classes at Claro M. Recto Senior High School (CMRHS), while seventh and eighth graders hold lectures at General Geronimo Licerio Elementary School.  

Roderick Borja, a tenth-grade Mathematics teacher, said these schools were the “closest that our principal could find at the time.” 

“It was [also] the only ones that accommodated us,” Borja added.  

Prior to the seventh and eighth graders’ posting at General Geronimo Licerio, the lower years first attended Esteban Abada High School in Andrade Street for their classes. 

Unfortunately, electrical issues in Esteban Abada prompted the relocation of the students to their current host school.  

“There was a kid who got injured due to a light bulb explosion at Esteban Abada, so they relocated us immediately,” Sofia Khan, an eighth-grade student, said. Borja also cited that there were electrical issues found in Esteban Abada.  

Borja also recalled that another factor for the relocation was that the high school informed them that they needed to use the entirety of the establishment, leaving no more space for the displaced students and teachers of RMHS. 

Apart from the relocation of schools, both students and teachers expressed difficulty coping with their blended learning set-up.  

According to Marissa Teodoro, a tenth-grade Mathematics teacher and faculty club president, Mondays and Tuesdays are usually reserved for virtual meetings, while Wednesdays and Thursdays are for onsite lectures. 

Fridays, on the other hand, are designated ‘catch-up Fridays’ meant to be a weekly alternating schedule where students’ listening comprehension and essay-writing skills are tested. 

“In our case, we don’t have time. We only have a limited amount of face-to-face [classes], and ‘catch up Friday’ is taking some of it,” said Borja.  

Teodoro also shared that the learning and teaching challenges they used to face during the pandemic still remain.  

Despite the limited face-to-face interaction with students, Teodoro says that “this became our best solution to continue face-to-face [classes]," 

Students, on the other hand, have said that the setup is not conducive for learning because of online sessions and shorter onsite classes.  

“Pag face-to-face po, 30 minutes lang ‘yung klase. Pag online naman po, one hour,” Khan said. 

“We are having a hard time because you’re not really sure if the students are really listening, sleeping, or just joining for attendance,” she added. 

The same goes for tenth grader Charlene De Los Santos, who lamented that her time during onsite classes is “the only way to properly learn.”  

Construction progress 

According to RMHS’ Principal, Robert Velasquez, the first phase of their school’s reconstruction, which includes the ground level up to the sixth level, should be completed by August 2024. 

As for when the overall building would be finished, the faculty club president says that it might take two to three years from now. 

Despite the near completion of the first phase, the 10-storey building cannot be occupied yet as construction of the second phase, which consists of the seventh up to the tenth level, has not yet begun. 

Furthermore, a second phase of bidding for the remaining floors has yet to be conducted before the completion of the lower levels. 

“The whole building should be handled by one contractor only. But then, lately, we realized that the contractor for the ground up to the sixth levels would not be the one handling construction of the seventh to tenth [levels],” Teodoro said. 

The first phase of the construction was contracted to an unincorporated joint venture between St. Timothy Construction Corp. and funded by the City of Manila. 

A head officer at the site, who requested anonymity due to security reasons, said that the 720-calendar day duration as per the contract agreement is currently “not even being followed.”  

With the reconstruction hassle, Borja said it will rid graduating students an opportunity to attend classes inside the revamped RMHS. 

Special Education Fund 

The reconstruction of RMHS is one of Manila’s infrastructure projects financed through the Special Education Fund (SEF) approved by the city’s then mayor, Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, last December 2021. 

Amounting to more than 2.5 billion pesos, the fund covers the rehabilitation of 12 other schools, including a cellular data allowance extension for teachers and students, and a free annual checkup for teachers of the Division of City Schools in Manila. 

In one of the school’s official billboards, it was indicated that the allotted budget for the reconstruction of RMHS is valued at Php 1.39 billion 

The SEF comes from a one percent tax levy from real property within the vicinity of Manila. Proceeds from the fund are used for repairs and the construction of academic facilities, among other purposes, all for the city’s public schools. 

The major plan for the new building is to accommodate the large population of RMHS students through 232 classrooms, 18 faculty rooms, an administration building, a library, a canteen, an auditorium, a gymnasium, an outdoor sports area with roof deck, eight elevators, and parking spaces. 

This reconstruction came after the overpopulation of students.  

“Ang paaralang ito ay dapat mga less than 4,000 lang po ang dapat tanggapin pero umaabot po tayo ng lampas 6,000 dahil po sa kagustuhan din namin na paglingkuran din ang mga ibang mag-aaral,” Gene Pangilinan, the former principal of RMHS, said in the school’s groundbreaking ceremony last Feb. 17, 2022. 

With these plans in place, teachers acknowledge the benefits of waiting for the finished building.   

“Everyone benefits from it, not just the teachers, but in particular, the students,” said Teodoro. 

The Ramon Magsaysay High School was previously known as the Governor Forbes annex of the Victorino Mapa High School in 1952. 

It was named after William Cameron Forbes, the governor-general of the Philippines from 1910 until 1913.  

In 1959, the annex eventually transitioned into a full-fledged high school status and was renamed after former Philippine president Ramon Magsaysay. - Katrina Samantha E. Reyes, Jan Paolo M. Espolong, Angeli Ruth R. Acosta, Janica Kate J. Buan, Lianne Joyce T. Chan