Aklan schools brace for school opening, hold “Brigada Eskwela”

Kalibo, Aklan -- Public schools all over Aklan are now preparing for this school year’s opening on June 4.

Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Nellie H. Valerio, in a telephone interview, said since Monday this week, teachers, parents and school children started to prepare the schoolrooms by cleaning, painting and repairing so everything will be in order in time for the school opening.

The activity, according to ASDS Valerio, is called “Brigada Eskwela” conducted nationwide and observed yearly to prepare the schools.

This year’s “Brigada Eskwela” is being observed from May 21 up to May 26, Saturday, according to Valerio.

Brigada Eskwela is a campaign that invites stakeholders to help out in preparing schools to be pleasant for the children in the coming school opening.

ASDS Valerio said that this year, “Brigada Eskwela” is being conducted later than last year’s schedule due to the recently-conducted national and local elections on May 14. She revealed that despite the recent political exercise which made used of public school classrooms as polling centers, no damages on school rooms were reported to DepEd-Aklan.

Valerio acknowledged that in Aklan, provincial officials assist the DepEd in the repair and rehabilitation of classrooms, and also help in augmenting the number of teachers through the municipal and provincial school boards.

With the cited support from parents, teachers and Aklan officials, Valerio assured that “Aklan is very much prepared for the school opening.”

For this year’s school opening, the Department of Education launched Oplan Balik Eskwela (OBE), an interagency effort to prepare for the smooth opening of classes on June 4. The project seeks to streamline efforts of different government agencies to address common problems usually associated with the opening of classes. The different government agencies will ensure that students are enrolled properly, school facilities are prepared, school supplies are kept stable and student transport fares are fair.

Brigada Eskwela is part of the Oplan Balik Eskwela.

The government has prioritized solutions to perennial problems specifically those related to classroom, textbook and teacher shortages. The classroom shortage is now zero based on classroom-student ration of 1:50 with double shift for elementary except for isolated cases where local conditions prevent double shifts. (PIA/Venus G. Villanueva)