I woke up in the jarring, warm sensation of my body. My eyes wandering off in the pitch-dark room then a quick realization subsided to my consciousness—blackout. I stood up, walking angrily towards the agitated disturbance happening outside then I heard the sound of the instantaneous waters falling off on the roof just when I came to a stop by the door. “It’s raining, harder than I can imagine,” I thought while gazing outside with glazed eyes. While standing near the door, something bashed my mind like a baseball bat stroked with rage, immediately daunting my whole mental state. Disposing the wholeness of my being with anxiousness and heartbreak—
“Ma? May pera pa po ba tayo jan na pwede ko sanang ipambili ng load para sa darating na online class?” I asked my mom.
“Anak, patawarin mo ako pero wala na kasi tayong makakain eh. Pambili ko sana ito ng bigas. Kailangan ko nalang din itong ipunin para sa darating na bayaran ng kuryente. Wala pa naman tayong mapagkukunan ng pera ngayon dahil nga walang trabaho ang kuya mo,” she replied sadly.
“Ay okay lang ma. Oo nga pala, wala na tayong bigas nuh? Yan na lang muna ang unahin natin, mas importante naman na ma’y makain tayo at may ilaw tayo tuwing kumakain,” I grinned back to my mother considerately.
“Patawad anak ah. Alam ko naman kung gaano mo kagustong mag-aral pero hindi talaga natin kakayanin ang pera para sa isang wifi o sa load para sa internet eh. Magastos din iyon,” she replied while caressing my hair.
And I responded with an empathetic nod to her.
Then the room suddenly bloomed into life. The light shone above bringing me back to the reality. The electricity is back. I reminded myself. Somehow the freshness of the surrounding lifts the mood. Now, I have to face the consequences.
While there are some good benefits, we can never discount the fact that there still exist ugly truths and disadvantages from the pursuance of online education, which is not new in the Philippines setting. Primarily and most importantly, some students don’t have internet connection at their homes. This can be an outcome of financial incapability of some families which we can never blame them for not having—not being able to afford internet connection or load for mobile data, not to count the slow internet connection in the Philippines—online class isn’t just plausible for everyone. In line with this, the success of online classes is entirely dependent on the availability of electricity. Hence, the rotational electrical power shutdown does not contribute to the fullest effectivity of online classes since it hinders the continuous dialogue of professors and students regarding academic requirements, special queries, and online submission matters which are considered vital for students’ learning—worst, if blackouts are prolonged. Secondly, the inabilities of certain students to pay for the tuition since most students of ADZU are scholars which mean that these students are dependent on the scholarship given by the school. If duties are to be required for the scholarship to swathe the tuition and fees, then it’s impossible since no student can still go to the school to render their required service hours for the city is still under quarantine. The bigger question to ponder here is that, do parents need to pay for the tuition or for food to survive this pandemic? And lastly, not all courses are suitable for an online education since some programs require skill-based learning. Some of these are engineering and nursing—two courses that needs more of practical tests rather than reading a slideshow presentation. Considering the increase number of coronavirus cases in Zamboanga City, students might not be able to focus well on the scholastic demands of online teachings since the environment is not favorable and ideal for such. Learning is at stake when students are mentally and psychologically worn-out which cannot endow for successful learning.
Education is for all and not just for the “privileged” few. While all of us understand the need to continue learning, the exclusivity that online classes offer strips off the right of all students across distinct status to learn and not to be left behind. Questions still arise as concerns affright the community towards the quality of online classes considering the students’ tendency for ‘multitasking’ where students might engage themselves to several social media platforms; chatting, texting and watching videos while doing the educational activities, forgetting to anchor their full attention to the scholarly requirements at hand which therefore reduce the essence of online classes – to success-‘fully’ learn.
Others might face the consequences of continuous blackouts, others are worrying about the slow internet connection, and others might not be able to participate to the online classes because of not having resources, and here I am with the significant few experiencing all these. Maybe I just have to understand that a semester delay is nothing to worry about. I have to understand that my family’s survival is more important than pursuing this online class. Now, I have to face all these just because I’m poor.
