CLASSROOM shortage, emergency classes, broken or gap in relationship of parents and some school personnel, and low academic performance. These are the challenges that welcomed the school head by the time she assumed office on October 9, 2017 by virtue of the swapping agreement.
The scenario is this, six classrooms were borrowed and utilized by the division office as storage rooms, conference room, LRMDS, office and supply room. The situation created a gap between parents and DepEd officials because during that time, the school adopted two shifts of classes due to the lack of classrooms caused by the increase of enrolment each year.
Classroom shortage is really not a serious problem because we can always find ways and means to address this needs. We can hold classes in the library, in the ICT room, at the gazebo or even at the covered court just to solve the problem. What made it undesirable was when classrooms are borrowed and utilized as stockroom and conference room leaving the learners to hold emergency classes from 6 a.m. to 12 noon; and 12 noon to 6 p.m. Emergency classes affect the academic performance of our learners. And to the parents and stakeholders this is negligence in our part.
Concerned parents headed by the GPTA officers questioned the school head why can’t they get back classrooms when learners are sacrificing with the two shifts in a day? They further expressed their desire and possible drastic move to go to social media and even to air in the radio about the disadvantage done by the division office to the school. This is indeed a challenge that beset me — the challenge to regain the borrowed classrooms to serve its purpose.
Being new in the station, the school head assured them to study further the situation and would bring the matter to the concerned personnel at the office of the Schools Division Superintendent. She also presented to them the win-win solution explaining to them that perhaps by the time those classrooms were borrowed by the previous division superintendent, the school enrolment was not that much. Thus, proper protocol must be observed in airing our top priority concern. With the help of our school faculty club president, we send a letter request highlighting the pressing concern and the need to return the borrowed classrooms to the school for its proper usage. Parents agreed to wait for the feedback and would not resort on media broadcast in order not to escalate the situation.
To resolve this challenge on leadership and management, proper channeling of healthy communication was done. Ensuring harmonious relationship and practicing a win-win solution was the best resolve in matters like this. Recognizing that the Division Office is also our department’s concern, we cannot simply ignore their needs of a storage and conference room.
Nevertheless, we will not also forget that our learners’ is our prime concern. Thus, this dispute/misunderstanding must end. Cooperation and collaboration must be intensified among parents, school personnel and Division office personnel to attain our vision, mission and goals for quality education to happen.
Act appropriately. Channel communications both in oral and written form to the proper person in authority with due respect — these were the greatest armor that the school head considered most in resolving the challenge at hand. The challenge to change not only by regaining ownership of the classrooms and back to its proper usage but as well as the change in the attitude of some stakeholders who always rely on social media each time dispute or problem comes.
Influencing people such as parents and officials to work collaboratively and in harmony with our noble purpose requires ability, skill, enthusiasm, and constant repetitive actions of persistence and sincerity. The school head realized that her human resource management and leadership were honed as she put into practice the insights she gained from the 6 months of Leadership Enhancement Program. As she continues her journey in serving the learners and other clienteles, the facade of change remains to be uncertain. However, the department’s vision and mission is very clear and this will serve as her guiding principles. By abiding on that, her journey will surely become certain and has a definite destination with the end in mind — quality education for all.
Yes, she may face another challenges but the learning from her previous experiences being a problem solver is a value added to her expertise not to remain in status quo but rather to stir, to be creative, innovative and resourceful. Equipped with good courage and honed skills, she is confident that she could well — represent the school to all stakeholders with trust and integrity. And if she would to ask our schools division superintendent and assistant schools division superintendent, if they would continue to support and help solve and resolve whatever disputes, challenges, problems and gaps in any forms be it in human respurce, physical or financial resources that the school might be facing in the near future, the school head is certain that the answer is a big YES!
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