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Background
The Special Project Site
The Special Project Site
Cecilio M. Saliba Elementary School (CMSES) is a public elementary school located in Barangay Pasong Camachile 1, General Trias City, Cavite. The school offers a variety of educational programs, including Kindergarten to Grade 6, a Special Education (SPED) Program, the Balik-Aral Program, and the Alternative Learning System (ALS).
When I first shared this project idea with Teacher John Durano, the head of the ALS Program at CMSES, he asked why I chose ALS as the focus. I sincerely replied, “I began to have an interest, sir, in the ALS program—particularly in how it helps children and adult learners continue their education despite personal circumstances.”
It has been a privilege to work with these learners, who are often overlooked in discussions about instructional design, yet whose learning needs are just as valid and important.
The Learning Environment
The Learning Environment
During my initial visit to CMSES, I observed that the ALS classroom was separated from the school’s main building. It is situated near the school court, with construction and renovation works ongoing just outside its door. Teacher John shared that the classroom is scheduled for repairs, particularly the ceiling, parts of which are currently dented or hanging.
The classroom has several armchairs, a shelf for DepEd-provided modules, a green chalkboard, and a single electric fan. Ventilation relies on open windows and doors, especially during hot weather.
Despite the minimal resources, the ALS learners warmly welcomed me and even offered their only fan for my comfort—a moment that reminded me of their resilience and generosity.
While the space is functional in size, it lacks instructional equipment such as a TV, projector, air-conditioning, or worktables, which could further enhance the learning experience.
The ALS Program and Curriculum
The ALS Program and Curriculum
The ALS program at CMSES follows the K to 12 ALS Curriculum of the Department of Education. It focuses on six (6) key learning strands: (1) Communication Skills (English and Filipino), (2) Scientific Literacy and Critical Thinking, (3) Mathematical and Problem-Solving Skills, (4) Life and Career Skills, (5) Understanding the Self and Society and (6) Digital Citizenship.
Each strand is taught through DepEd-developed modules, which are distributed to learners in printed and digital formats. These modules target specific learning competencies categorized into levels:
Lower Elementary (Grades 2–3)
Advanced Elementary (Grades 4–6)
Junior High School
Senior High School
The focus of this instructional design project is on the Advanced Elementary Level, specifically targeting the Communication Skills – Reading component of the curriculum. Booklets were developed to align with learning competencies such as:
Drawing conclusions
Distinguishing facts from opinions
Skimming and scanning texts
Understanding elaborately written sentences
Screenshot from DepEd ALS Curriculum Guide
Teacher John also conducts online classes and shares soft copies of materials for students with part-time jobs or inconsistent attendance. He frequently creates his own worksheets to cater to students’ varied needs. Upon observing the modules ALS learners currently have, some limitations observed and shared by the gatekeeper is its text heavy feature with few interactive or visually engaging tasks. In addition, upon exploring its pages, the modules' content is sometimes abstract or overly formal, with limited connections to learners’ everyday lives.
The Target Learners
The Target Learners
CMSES ALS Learners
CMSES ALS Learners
The primary beneficiaries of this instructional design project are learners enrolled in the Alternative Learning System (ALS) at Cecilio M. Saliba Elementary School (CMSES), specifically those classified under the Elementary Advanced Level (Grades 4–6). These learners, typically aged 14 to 18 years old, are considered out-of-school youth who were unable to complete their formal elementary education due to various personal and socio-economic circumstances.
Learners Challenges
Learners Challenges
During a pre-implementation interview, Teacher John Durano, the ALS program coordinator at CMSES, emphasized that one of the persistent challenges in ALS instruction is inconsistent learner attendance. Many of the students balance their studies with part-time work, which often results in irregular participation. Some days, all learners are present; on others, only a few can attend, making continuity of instruction a major concern.
Initial Assessments
Initial Assessments
To better understand the learners’ literacy levels, the researcher administered a 40-item Reading Comprehension Assessment designed specifically for ALS learners at the elementary level. This diagnostic was modelled after the Philippine Informal Reading Inventory (Phil-IRI) developed by the Department of Education, which evaluates reading comprehension in both English and Filipino (Llego, 2018).
The results revealed a wide range of reading abilities. Out of 17 students:
•4 learners scored low (21–28 points),
•7 learners scored within the average range (31–35 points),
•and 3 learners achieved higher scores (36–37 points).
Learners with lower scores particularly struggled with the English section, showing difficulty in understanding unfamiliar vocabulary and comprehending longer texts. These findings guided the direction of the instructional design project.
Notes indicated in Project Log (Week 2)
In response, the researcher developed an instructional booklet program focused on enhancing reading comprehension and vocabulary in English. Each booklet is designed to be scaffolded, modular, and contextual, integrating vocabulary-building tasks and diverse text types relevant to learners’ daily lives—such as flyers, barangay notices, school memos, and culturally rooted literary texts like Filipino folktales, poems, and short stories. These types of texts are often missing or limited in existing DepEd-issued ALS modules.
Considering the learners’ familiarity with printed modules, their inconsistent attendances in face-to-face classes, and the limited classroom resources (such as lack of internet connectivity and multimedia tools), the decision to deliver content through weekly printed booklets was both practical and learner-centered. The format supports independent and flexible learning while still allowing for guided instruction during face-to-face sessions.
Notes of the learner skill analysis can be found in the Project Log (Week 2) Appendix C.
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