The Disaster Response (DR) Team of Operation Blessing (OB) turned over a printer and bundles of bond papers to the teachers of General Tinio Central School in Nueva Ecija.
When OB’s DR team arrived, the teachers were currently preparing for the opening of classes on September 13.
Ligaya Valdez, Grade 5 adviser, said printers and bond papers are their new essentials replacing the chalk and boards. Last school year, she had to print 16-page modules of 8 subjects for her 187 students. That equates to more than 23, 000 pages for just a week’s lessons.
“Our printers usually break because of the massive printing needed. We send them for repair. Sometimes, we use our personal printers, too,” shares Ligaya.
The 39-year-old teacher has been teaching for 14 years. In more than a decade of her teaching experience, she had faced a lot of different challenges, but none like this pandemic had impacted the whole educational system.
But while Ligaya could speak on how difficult it is to be a teacher amid the pandemic, she could also relate to the mothers of her students, because she, too, is a mother and teaches her three children on their modules at home.
“Aside from preparing the modules for my students in school, at home, I am also a mother who teaches my children. Sometimes, I would sigh in frustration, ‘When will face-to-face classes resume?’ That’s why I understand the parents of my students,” says Ligaya.
Understanding both sides, Ligaya always goes the extra mile by providing one-on-one tutorials to her students who have difficulty understanding the lessons, especially in Mathematics. She carries a small chalkboard and visits her students. She also calls the parents if they have questions in their children’s modules.
Becoming a teacher is Ligaya’s childhood dream. And while there is still no sign of reuniting with her students in their classrooms soon, her dedication to helping her students learn is unshakable by the challenges this pandemic brought her.
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Bless more dedicated teachers like Teacher Ligaya by partnering with us. For inquiries, contact 09399215543 or 09189067753. You may also visit Operation Blessing’s website at www.operationblessing.ph for other ways you could extend a helping hand to our kababayans especially during this time of pandemic.
