Kuwentong PagkakaISA:  The Story of One Child Inspiring a Champion for Inclusive Education– TCES Planning Coordinator Mylene Palma’s Stories of Transformation   

Kuwentong PagkakaISA:  The Story of One Child Inspiring a Champion for Inclusive Education– TCES Planning Coordinator Mylene Palma’s Stories of Transformation   

Inclusive education directly refers to an education that is inclusive of all learners, regardless of identity and background. This concept introduces a kind of education set-up (especially in terms of service delivery, curriculum, physical infrastructure, culture, and policies) that may be different from what is currently being implemented. Because of this, introducing this to educators who may prove to be a challenge – nonetheless, it remains to be a necessary transformation to reach every child in the Bangsamoro. 

In the interest of serving the specific needs of diverse learners who may have been overlooked in the current education system, the Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education (MBHTE), with the support of the Australian Government, initiated a region-wide transition towards inclusive education through the Project (also known as the Inclusive Schools Approach). This would eventually lead to the design and set up of Inclusive and Supportive Centres for Learning (ISCL) which shall serve as resource hubs for inclusive education in every school community. 

Teacher Mylene Palma, the current School Planning Coordinator of Timanan Central Elementary School (TCES), is eager to advocate this in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), starting with Timanan, South Upi in Maguindanao del Sur. Like all advocates, arriving at this point did not come easily to her; her growth as a KaISA champion was something that gradually nurtured through skill and knowledge development, strengthened by personal experience. Teacher Mylene recounted how her journey in the KaISA Project transformed and empowered her.  

Becoming a KaISA Champion is a journey 

For many educators, it takes time and a community that encourages and supports them before inclusive education becomes clear and understood, and eventually a personal advocacy for them. This was the case for Teacher Mylene when TCES was selected as the site for the pilot ISCL that shall serve as the blueprint for ISCLs that will be designed and built across the region in the future. 

Noong mga unang trainings, sabi ni Ma’am Germo (TCES Principal), ‘My, tayo magpunta dun ha.’ ‘Yes ma’am,’ sabi ko. Si [Teacher] Klyssa din inaaya ako. Sabi ko sige, susunod ako. Dalawang training sessions, hindi ako pumunta. Nung pangalawang session, sabi sa akin ni [Teacher] Klyssa, kailangan daw talaga ako. Pinagdadala ako ng data about something. Pumunta ako, dala ko yung hinihinging data… Sabi ko, bakit kailangan ito? In-explain sa akin, at ayun naintindihan ko na. Kaya nung third training session, um-attend na ako, sunud-sunod na ang pag-attend ko, kaya maliwanag na siya sa akin.” 

(Back when we were undergoing the first few trainings, Ma’am Germo told me, ‘My, we‘ll be the ones to attend the sessions.’ ‘Yes ma’am,’ I said. [Teacher] Klyssa was also encouraging me to go with her. I said, sure, I’ll follow. For two training sessions, I didn’t attend. When the second session came around, [Teacher] Klyssa told me, I was really needed there. I was assigned to bring data about something. I attended, and brought the requested data… I asked, why is this needed? It was explained to me, and I began to understand. So, for the third training session, I attended, and I continued to attend all the succeeding sessions, and now, it is all clear as day to me.) 

Experience as the best teacher 

The turning point for Teacher Mylene in becoming an inclusive education advocate was when she met Namraidah one day when she was on her way home.  

Teacher Mylene decided to go home from school that day by hitchhiking with a multi-cab (a small, light truck) driver who was going in the same direction as her. With him was Namraidah, his granddaughter. While traveling, Teacher Mylene thought to start up a conversation with her as they were traveling and asked her if she was studying. The child stayed silent and only looked her in the eyes. Thinking that she might have been too shy to directly respond to her, she decided to ask her grandfather if she was studying. He explained that the child was not able to respond to her because she is unable to speak because of a speech impairment. 

This moment stayed with Teacher Mylene, and she became invested in Namraidah’s fate. She asked the former teacher of Namraidah if she was still studying. She learned learnt that the child did not pursue secondary education after graduating from TCES; the parents only requested to let their child graduate to have a diploma as a souvenir for her family, to remember that she had gone to school.  

This made her reflect on the importance of making education inclusive of everyone, including learners with disabilities like Namraidah. She became open to the possibility of inclusive education making a real impact for learners in Timanan. 

“Para sa kanila (referring to learners with disabilities), pwede pala sila – kahit may difficulties, may kapansanan – pwede pala silang i-sali o mainstream sa regular learners,” she continued. 

(For them, they can still learn – while having difficulties, having disabilities – they can still be included or mainstreamed with regular learners.) 

Since meeting Namraidah and getting to know her journey in education as a learner with disability, she committed to being an active contributor in the next activities conducted for the TCES staff and other stakeholders for the pilot ISCL.  

Teacher Mylene’s lack of interest transformed into eagerness in learning inclusive education and the Inclusive and Supportive Centre for Learning (ISCL) after her experiences. One single experience can indeed transform a person into an advocate – just like Teacher Mylene.  

Moving forward for inclusivity 

Teacher Mylene saw how she, together with her colleagues in the school became empowered to be KaISA champions in solidarity with one another as they continued to take part in the KaISA Project. She credits their collective growth as educators and champions for inclusive education in Timanan to the culture of pintakasi or bayanihan (a Filipino cultural behavior that refers to working together for a common cause) that they had cultivated. For her, this was influenced by the values of inclusive education that the KaISA Project espoused.  

 

 

Teacher Mylene will continue what they have started with the pilot ISCL through her role by advocating for the availability of data and knowledge on inclusive education for all schools in South Upi who may want to implement inclusive practices in their own school, and further developing the hub by researching and collecting more information that they may need. Teacher Mylene hopes that more people from South Upi will enrol in TCES after the establishment of the ISCL, with the help of the information drive she seeks to spearhead. Through this, she will pursue encouraging all learners in Timanan with a dedication that is imprinted on her. 

“KaISA ako para sa mga taga-South Upi; KaISA ako para sa lahat ng mga nangangailan ng pagkatuto na pwede kong i-share,” she pledged.  

(I am KaISA for the people of South Upi; I am KaISA for all who need to learn that I can share what I can with them.) 

Kuwentong PagkakaISA: Tales of a Journey Towards Inclusivity – SDO Marawi Field Enumerators’ Stories from the Field 

Marawi faces a range of challenges to inclusivity that further drifts learners away from achieving educational success, with conflict and discrimination leading them. Hence, as a pledge of the Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education to reach every child in the Bangsamoro, the Inclusive Schools Approach (ISA) was initiated that aims to identify and address the educational needs of the learners. The KaISA Project (as the catchword for the ISA) was launched as a region-wide movement for document and locate learners with functional difficulties in BARMM for inclusive education that included a Pilot Child Finding Activity supported by the Australian Government, titled the 20 Days to Reach Every Child Campaign, which was implemented across 11 Schools Division Offices in the region that they themselves spearheaded – including Marawi. 

During the campaign, the Field Enumerators faced multiple challenges on the field. Problems included the terrain of the remote areas being muddy and crossing rivers through a faulty bamboo bridge. Despite these hurdles, Field Enumerators of Marawi still chose to traverse these tricky paths despite the risks. As the Field Enumerators encountered challenges as they conducted the survey interviews, they learned the larger issues that those who live in Marawi face. 

The findings gathered during the campaign revealed that many children in BARMM experienced learning difficulties during the two-year COVID-19 pandemic when physical classes were restricted. A mother in Brgy. Raya Saduc noted that her children were having difficulty learning with self-paced modules. As much as she wanted to teach them, she could not balance guiding her children through their educational tasks alongside earning a living for their family.  

It was also discovered that education was not readily available in all parts of the region. In Brgy. Basak Malutlut, no one is enrolled in Madrasah – even if they wanted to – due to its absence in the community. Multiple cases of out-of-school youth were also documented in the city. This led to a widespread call for the provision of alternative methods of learning to mitigate the educational needs of learners in Marawi. In addition to appropriate modes of education that residents of Marawi were seeking for learners in their community, there was also a need to make the enrolment process inclusive for parents with disabilities. Anisah Manalocom, a Field Enumerator, surveyed a barangay with numerous cases of disabilities lacking support. In one household, a mother had a visual impairment, while her son had a physical disability. There were also instances where multiple children with disabilities lived in one household; all of which experienced their own difficulties in getting a chance to be educated. In the same barangay, three siblings had disabilities with varying health cases of severe asthma and intellectual disabilities.  

These are simply a few of the many untold stories of children in the Bangsamoro region who are seeking education. All of these are proof that it is worth investing in inclusive education in every place. By ensuring that all learners in the Bangsamoro are provided with education that is appropriate and inclusive for them, BARMM can also be assured that every member of their community would be able to thrive and grow as productive individuals who can contribute to the prosperity of the region. 

In the face of adversity, the people of Marawi and their cooperation and respect continue to motivate and inspire the Field Enumerators to drive the campaign further from where it started, and nearer to the goal to reach every child and to manifest the MBHTE’s mission of a quality inclusive education that ensures no one gets left behind. 

Kuwentong PagkakaISA: Making a Change for Inclusivity – SDO Lamitan City Field Enumerators’ Stories from the Field  

As part of the Bangsamoro Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education (MBHTE)’s initiative with the support of the Australian Government to promote inclusive education in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) through the KaISA Project (also known as the Inclusive Schools Approach), identifying and locating learners with functional difficulties throughout the region was found to be a priority. To address this, the Child Finding Activity – dubbed as the 20-Day Campaign to Reach Every Child – was organized across all school divisions in the region among which is the School Division Office (SDO) of Lamitan. The implementation in SDO Lamitan was led by Team Leader Ma. Cristina Delos Santos, along with 10 Field Enumerators (composed of educators and school staff). In 20 Days, the team had unearthed many untold stories of children in the Bangsamoro. 

Challenges to reaching every child in Lamitan 

The Field Enumerators of Lamitan experienced many challenges in the pursuit of their goal. Heavy rains, impassable roads, poor internet connection, and power outages were among the difficulties that they had endured.   

However, the major difficulty that they encountered was some families feeling reluctant to take part in the survey, especially given that the members of the team were considered outsiders to their community. To address this barrier between them and the community, the team cooperated with the local community leaders to bridge the connection that they needed.

Eventually, the community warmed up to them, with parents of children with functional difficulties even taking the initiative to pave the way towards gathering the data they needed, acknowledging that this was vital to identify the issues that hinder the children of their community from pursuing education. 

Barriers to education for children with functional difficulties 

Majority of the communities that the SDO Lamitan had encountered were Badjao, a community of indigenous people. Education was especially difficult for indigenous children to access. Among the findings documented during the campaign here was the lack of birth certification for children here. 

Meanwhile, Badjao children also experienced bullying from their peers, discouraging them from going to school. Some also identified the trauma caused by family conflicts as a struggle that they dealt with. The combination of all these difficulties contributed to mental health issues such as anxiety and depression.  

Members of indigenous groups, especially their children, have experienced historical marginalization that has led to their lack of access to education. Teacher Cristina details these factors: economic poverty, child labor, and geographic isolation. These barriers to education are further compounded by the lack of teachers to serve in impoverished and isolated communities.  

The campaign gave Teacher Cristina a new perspective on what it meant to reach every child through the Child Finding Activity and how it directly addresses the barriers to quality education that indigenous learners encounter. By providing a platform to identify, provide referrals and interventions for learners and teachers alike, it is an opportunity to strategize providing not only educational opportunities but also interventions for poverty that can improve their quality of life such as financial assistance from the Ministry of Social Services and Development. 

Teacher Cristina is dedicated to generating more programs to coach and mentor more educators and school staff to enhance what they had achieved within 20 days. Recognizing that this is only the beginning of making education more inclusive in Lamitan, she is now committed to furthering the reach and impact of the Inclusive Schools Approach.  

Teacher Cristina thinks the activity was the first step in generating programs fitted for learners’ educational and intersectional needs. For her, aside from the campaign, there should also be intervention and assessment in regular schools for more programs promoting inclusion for all learners to be implemented effectively. 

“[The 20-Day Campaign to Reach Every Child] is still our obligation. While we had served [by] enumerating learners in barangays, it was found out that in regular schools, we had learners [who were manifesting functional] difficulties that [needed] to be served prior to addressing needs of regular teachers who are already in mainstreamed classes,” Delos Santos added.  

With the efforts done by SDO Lamitan to provide quality inclusive education to the learners of Lamitan City through the Child Finding Activity, it is important that all sectors of the community must also contribute to make education reach all children and provide effective programs to address their needs. 

A Field Enumerator’s Story of Reaching Every Child in the Bangsamoro

Note: This story was submitted by Cherel Cantay, a Field Enumerator from SDO Lamitan. Her submission has been edited for grammar and accuracy. 

Before I start my story, I just want to express my gratitude for giving me the opportunity as a field enumerator to be part of the KaISA Reach Every Child Campaign. It was such an amazing challenge, adventure and achievement.

[The 20-Day Campaign to Reach Every Child] was a challenge for me. Being a teacher, as part of my career I already had experience with child mapping, but this activity is way [different] from the usual mapping activities. I was trained on how to execute the survey tool, but I still had doubts and felt pressure on the things that could possibly happen in the field. I had to travel for 15 kilometers from my residence since my assigned Barangays is in the town proper. 

I had some difficulties in explaining the content of the survey and clarifying it to the respondents due to language interference since I am not well versed in the Yakan, Tausug and Samal dialects (used by the locals who were interviewed). The weather conditions, heavy rains, slippery roads, footbridges, community misconceptions on the survey as ayuda (cash assistance from the government), 4Ps or scholarship grants, encoding and uploading data through the KaISA Disability Information Management System (DIMS), using gadgets, [intermittent] signal, [unstable] internet connection, and data errors (which were later resolved) were some of the issues I was very concerned with. However, I was able to cope and overcome those challenges. I was glad to solve those concerns with my cooperative Team Leaders and [fellow Field Enumerators]. 

My experience in this campaign was an amazing adventure. I was able to visit new places, meet different people, learn new things, discover the reality of the learners’ situation at home and acquire different stories of childrenThrough this activity, I was able to see the situations of the children and how they were striving hard to continue their studies and some children who stopped schooling because of the [responsibilities that they needed to shoulder] to help their parents for family needs and expenses. Based on what I had encountered, it made me think that a teacher should not only see [what happens within] the four corners of the classroom but open their eyes and see the struggles of their learners at home.

I was lucky to be assigned in three barangays (communities) with supportive and cooperative barangay officials and staff, health workers and parents who contributed to the success of the child mapping. They helped me have [access to] the area and served as my guide, company and immediate translator of the survey tool in areas with Yakan, Tausug and Samal families. Without their effort and concern, this will not be made possible.

The KaISA Campaign was an achievement not only to the Team Leaders and Field Enumerators but also to the program organizers organizers and initiators [with the support of the Australian Government].

Through my courage and determination, I was able to reach 200 target respondents. It was a big achievement for me as an enumerator. Through this, I was able to witness the learner’s situation, meet children with disabilities and discover that there were still children who were left behind. [I am filled with] much hope and enthusiasm that the results of this survey will serve as the basis of cascading and implementing programs for inclusive education to benefit all [children in the Bangsamoro].  

 

And I’m proud to say that I’m one of the enumerators during the 1st [20-Day Campaign to Reach Every Child]! KaISA ako para sa bata, para sa bayan. At sana magkaisa tayo para sa kapakanan ng mga [bata sa Bangsamoro]. (Translation: I stand for children, for our country. And I hope that we stand together for the sake of children in the Bangsamoro.) 

Pintakasi: How Advocating for Inclusive Education Inspires Timanan Central Elementary School to Transform through the KaISA Project

Inclusive education is a significant step (in itself, also made of many steps) toward paving a just world for everyone, with no exceptions. In the impact it creates, one thing is often overlooked: within the passion of every advocate that seeks to make the world a better place, and that believes that it will happen, the community is often fostered as an unintended consequence.

As part of the KaISA Project’s implementation — led by the Bangsamoro Ministry of Basic, Higher and Technical Education (MBHTE) — to strengthen education systems towards inclusive education for all learners in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), Timanan Central Elementary School (TCES) accepted the challenge to co-create a pilot Inclusive and Supportive Centre of Learning (ISCL) that is responsive to the contextual needs of learners. This was enacted through ‘Pintakasi’, or ‘bayanihan’, which refers to the Filipino cultural behavior where an entire community comes together for a common cause. TCES practiced this through enabling collaboration among the school community by taking a whole-of-community approach, where the TCES school community fully demonstrated their open-mindedness and willingness to contribute.

With support from the Australian Government through the Education Pathways to Peace in Mindanao (‘the Pathways program’), this ISCL facility was launched on 23 May 2023, following the guidance of the project’s Human-Centered Design Thinking Approach.

Transforming through learning about inclusive education

When TCES first encountered the KaISA Project or the Inclusive Schools Approach (ISA) during the Division Education Planning and Development activity of the MBHTE, the newly introduced concepts were intimidating to them. The teachers were confused with the new terminologies and mindsets the partner implementing organizations laid out for them. Grade 5 Teacher Rubirosa “Ruby” Baron admitted that, at first, everything was so confusing for her.

“Now, you can foresee that it’s done, it’s already here. So, what we did (referring to the outputs of the co-designing sessions), that’s it. That’s what will be inside the hub. What’s left is the finishing touches. We’re ready for the launching. So, for everyone who has their assignments, let’s make sure to do our part to follow our timeline. Let’s help one another. No one will help us except ourselves. We’ve already been given the guidance to make this happen. We can do this,” Teacher Ruby declared.

For Rolet Joy Romero, a grade 6 teacher, initially interpreted the ISCL as a classroom.

“I thought that the ISCL was a classroom. So, we didn’t anticipate that the ISCL was this hub. I really didn’t know that this was a hub. We thought, I thought, and most of us thought that this was a classroom,” Teacher Rolet shared.

TCES Principal Lourdes Germo also felt what other teachers felt when she attended the training for the first time. ISA and what it aimed to do for Timanan and the rest of BARMM had not yet reached Timanan before this event.

“Fellow teachers, like you, we also went through the same as you when we attended the training for the first time. We also didn’t know anything about the ISCL. So that’s why we suggested having more trainings for those other teachers who are not able to attend so they can also have an idea of what the ISCL is. Because you, fellow teachers, those who can attend already know this program. Help us share this with our co-teachers, even our pupils, and our parents. Let’s help one another to achieve this. And the tasks that were assigned to us, let’s also help one another. There is no leader, there is no teacher, we are all on the same level, for the good of our program,” Principal Germo said.

Despite all these initial reactions to the ISA, TCES decided to continue attending the sessions being organized by the KaISA Project. As they continued, they began to grasp each concept of the ISA and inclusive education and saw the value that this would bring to their school community. This inevitably formed them into active KaISA Champions, which they voiced during the conclusion of the Pilot Testing and Simulation Activity for the pilot ISCL, led by the MBHTE.

Making inclusive education happen strengthens a community

Designing and launching the ISCL was no easy task, and this could not be done alone. Among the remarkable things that the TCES leaders of the pilot ISCL achieved was organizing their community to build the ISCL together. More than a culmination of what the TCES school community had achieved with its partner implementing organizations, it was also a representation of what inclusion looked like: a celebration of diversity, of everything that made people unique, and of all the things people can achieve when they come together.

In creating the physical space of the ISCL, TCES educators, some individuals, and partner organizations contributed materials to complete it to actualize their vision of what an inclusive classroom looks like. All these were contributed by various individuals and organizations that support the TCES school community in their endeavor to make inclusive education a reality in their school. These are TCES educators, the MBHTE Directorate for Basic Education and its Bureau Directors, the Pathways program, and The Teacher’s Gallery, and other individuals.

Another highlight of the transformation that the ISCL inspired throughout South Upi is the local ordinance that was signed during the ISCL Launching. This ordinance, titled, “The KaISA Ordinance to Reach Every Child,” officially cements the commitment of South Upi to support the implementation of the ISA and ISCL for all learners in the municipality.

Remarkable as well is the monetary support that all schools in South Upi cumulatively raised to make the launch of the ISCL successful — a total of PHP 231,000 for ISCL launch preparations, food, decoration, labor, and other materials.

Moving toward the future of inclusive education

Fast forward to June 2023, the KaISA Project proceeded with further co-developing the ISCL by delving into the applications of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles in the context of the Bangsamoro. This packaged the training resources that the project had provided in its past trainings on the foundations of the Inclusive Schools Approach to standardize and simplify the content, process, and expand the reach of the training program. This is in recognition of UDL as a critical and core competency to further expand the initiative to establish more ISCLs throughout the region and to facilitate the adoption of the ISA across all schools.

Since the commemorative signing during the ISCL Launching, the LGU is further developing the KaISA Ordinance by strengthening this with data management policies to support evidence-based planning for programs catered to learners with diverse needs. This effort will be linked to the Learner Information System (LIS) and Bangsamoro Education Management Information System (BEMIS) to further enable this. This shall also serve as an avenue to establish community linkages for data sharing toward the effective delivery of inclusive social services for all types of learners.

The ISCL of Timanan Central Elementary School will now serve as a model of inclusive practice not only for Timanan, but for all schools in South Upi. Now, when resources, trainings, and referral to other services are needed by diverse learners, the ISCL shall be the standpoint where school communities can learn about inclusive education and see how they can be part of the future of inclusive education in BARMM.