MINERVA BC NEWMAN
CEBU CITY – With the opening of classes in October public and private sector educators continuously find new learning strategies in the new normal, one of which is the launching of “Project Agile,” a learning series for teachers to build their capabilities and to support the Learning Continuity Plan (LCP) of the Department of Education (DepEd).
Project Agile is City Savings Bank’s (CitySavings) newest Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative that aims to equip teachers with tools and skills to efficiently collaborate and conduct classes online, according to Paula Ruelan, Assistant Vice President – Reputation and Brand Management Head of CitySavings.
Ruelan said that Project Agile is composed of several training modules. The Bank tapped Vilma Clerigo, MAEd, Integrated Basic Education Department Principal of San Beda College Alabang to conduct the first module which is “Managing Virtual Classes”.
Ruelan bared that since the pilot run, CitySavings has reached more than 1,000 participants from various DepEd divisions and regions nationwide.
It taught methods to elicit active participation from students and manage virtual classrooms while conducting an online class.
“It is indeed a novel and innovative endeavor of CitySavings in sharing resources to capacitate teachers in the new normal come the opening of classes” shared Dr. Reymond Mosquito, Master Teacher I of Caraga Regional Science High School in San Juan, Surigao City.
According to Jovelyn Piring, a teacher from San Vicente Integrated High School in San Pablo City, Laguna that Project Agile was different from the several webinars about online teaching. “It made me realize that the interaction of teachers and learners is possible.”
“As the DepEd community adapts to the new normal of teaching and learning, CitySavings continues to actively support education through Project Agile. We envision that this will help teachers find new ways to extend their classrooms beyond the constraints of traditional walls,” Ruelan stated.
CitySavings hoped to launch the second module soon which will train teachers to use and maximize G-Suite, the productivity and collaboration tool of Google, as the demand for virtual communication and teaching rises, Ruelan said.
“Even the authenticity of learning can be manifested and reflected to our learners during an online class”, Ruelan mentioned.
