By Ike Senere
REDEFINING BLENDED LEARNING
Every time that there is a disaster or a national emergency, classes in the public schools supposedly shifts to the “modular” method. I have always wondered about that, because in my understanding, the term “modular” refers to the learning “modules” that were printed during the Covid pandemic and were manually distributed to the students as an alternative to “face-to-face” instructions. Somehow, the term “modular” stuck, and it is still being used today to refer to “offline learning” or “learning at home”. As it is already happening now, our public schools are implementing what is now being referred to a “blended learning”, meaning to say that it is a blend of “offline learning” (meaning face-to-face) and “online learning” (meaning via the internet). As I understand it, some school districts may still distribute printed modules to those who have no internet access. What I am proposing now is to define “modular” as any form of learning content that could be delivered using either “online” or “offline” solutions. The “online” solutions could deliver the modular content using the internet through website applications (web apps), or it could also use the “Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) to send text messages otherwise known as “Short Messaging Service” (SMS). The “offline” solutions could deliver the modular content using the classrooms as the physical venues, meaning via “face-to-face”, or via any form of physical printed materials. Now that we have defined it this way, we could already say that the term “online” should now mean the use of digital (electronic) solutions, and the term “offline” should now mean the use of manual (physical) solutions. Having said that, I am also proposing that we now define “blended” as a method that uses both “online” and “offline” solutions to deliver the modules, depending on what is available at any given time. If we can accept this proposed “redefinition” of blended learning, it would become easier for our public schools to shift to whatever option is needed, every time there is a disaster or a national emergency.
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ONLINE MEDICAL CONSULTATION
It’s good to notice that more and more private doctors are now going into the practice of online medical consultation, also known as telemedicine or telehealth. Some Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) are also starting to use the technology, but it seems that many National Government Agencies (NGAs) and Local Government Units (LGUs) are still unable to adopt it. I say unable because I am just giving them the benefit of the doubt, but it could also be that they are even unwilling to use it for some reason or the other. It is also possible that some of them would not know how to adopt the technology, and are not even attempting to use it. Perhaps the problem could be money, but is it not that public health is supposed to be a top priority of government? It is a known fact that most Barangay Health Units (BHUs) do not have medical doctors on duty. That is really a big problem, because how could sick people get proper medical attention if there are no medical doctors on duty? Of course, that is not a problem for private clinics where there are always doctors on duty, but what about the poor people who have no choice but to go to the BHUs? Actually, not having access to medical doctors is a measure of poverty. What that means is the more people will not have access to poverty, the higher the poverty rate will be. But that is just one side of the equation. The other side is the higher the poverty rate, the more poor people who would go to the BHUs were there will be no doctors who would attend to them, especially in the remote and far flung areas. Thanks to telemedicine, any sick person could now have remote access to a medical doctor, no matter where the sick person is, regardless of where or she is, and regardless of whether he or she is poor. The technology could use any means of internet connectivity, such as mobile data and satellite dishes. Once connected, the patient could talk to a doctor via voice of video.
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HOLD DEPARTURE ORDERS
According to the law, only a judge could issue a “Hold Departure Order” (HDO), but first, a case must be filed in court, before an HDO could be issued. What that means is that not even the Senate could issue an HDO, even if it has the power to issue a warrant of arrest. That said, who is to blame for the alleged departure of Alice Gou from the Philippines? If in reality, the Senate has issued a warrant, then it could not be blamed. Moreover, the court system could neither be blamed for not issuing an HDO, because apparently, not a single case has been filed against Gou, at least not yet, as far as I know. Despite all the time and efforts that have been spent on the hearings surrounding POGOs in general and Gou in particular, we are now reminded that the Senate is not a court of law, therefore it could not sentence anyone to go to jail, and neither could it issue HDOs. Of course, the Senate could detain anyone for contempt, but that is not the same as sending people to jail. But assuming that an HDO was issued, that is only supposedly the trigger, because the bigger challenge is to quickly transmit the order to all exit points in the Philippines, using the fastest possible means. As far as I know however, there is apparently no analog or digital communications system that could possibly make that happen. First of all, I doubt if there is really a complete directory of these exit points. If I am to build such a complete communications system, I will make sure that I will include landline calls, mobile calls, satellite phones, UHF/VHF radios, email, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Viber, WhatsApp, Skype, and even Morse Code if I could. Of course, even letters and parcels could be used, but these could be extra means only if there is no real emergency. In many countries, they have a “Be on the Look Out” (BOLO) system that enables local and national law enforcement agencies to keep track of people on the run. According to www.cleverism.com, a BOLO is used to “officers in other parts of a city or country to be on the lookout for a fugitive, criminal or law offender that is on the run”. Bottom line, what we need is a BOLO system that could be used to quickly transmit HDOs.
