[11 June 2020] Teacher Lorena Rivera has been in the profession for over two decades now. As the school head of San Antonio National High School in Ozamiz City, she believes that this pandemic has a tremendous impact in the lives of the educators and students alike.
“It gives me uncertainty and anxiety, and I think all of us teachers have the same experience. Most of all, the students are the ones affected by this pandemic. They are excited to go back to school, to see their friends and teachers again, however, given the situation, some of them are worried and concerned about their education, and how this new normal can be a lot different than before,” Rivera says.
That is why she is happy that the Department of Education (DepEd) Division of Ozamiz City, in partnership with Smart Communications, Inc., has launched LAMDAG, an online learning series designed to address mental health concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lamdag — which means “light” in Visayan — stands for Learning Advocacy for Mental Development, Awareness & Guidance.
“The LAMDAG Program is so timely for all of us, not only for the educators, but also for the entire community, which includes the parents and the learners,” Rivera said.
She also mentioned how important internet connectivity has become in her life right now. “We are blessed to have companies like Smart [that provides] us means to connect and operate normally and during our work from home arrangement,” she added.
Each session focuses on a different topic such as stress management, cyber safety, responsible parenting, child protection during GCQ, among others. Learners, parents, and teachers are invited to join the sessions via Facebook Live. Smart sponsors the prizes for selected winners who participate in the question and answer segment of each session.
“We observed anxiety and behavioral changes among our students and teachers due to prolonged quarantine. Through this learning series, we hope to open a platform where members of our community could reconnect to the world. This can help them get ready for the opening of classes,” said Ell June Abucay, Planning Officer at DepEd.
LAMDAG sessions will run twice a week until August 19, 2020 via Lamdag-DepEd Ozamiz Facebook page. For more information, visit www.smart.com.ph.
