DepEd Mandaluyong

Razel F. Meneses, Master Teacher I – Addition Hills Integrated School

IN ADHERENCE to what the Department of Education (DepEd) envisions for quality education for all, and for the fulfillment of the DepEd Order No. 35, s. 2016, the Schools Division of Mandaluyong City strengthened the utilization of Division Learning Action Cell (DLAC) as a pool of experts to maintain shared responsibilities and collaboration among teaching personnel through learning sessions to solve emerging challenges in the city’s public schools.

According to Dr. Alyn G. Mendoza, chief education supervisor of the Curriculum Implementation Division (CID), DLAC serves as a vehicle for effective collaboration among instructional leaders, promotes shared decision- making, and creates relevant interventions that are being called for.

 “Thus, it promotes effective and efficient mechanism for communication and implementation for all the changes and adjustments being made to ensure that quality instructions yield better outcomes,” Dr. Mendoza emphasized.

The shift to online platforms has not hindered the division to pursue project implementation; and has recorded nine (9) DLAC sessions in an eight-month period during this school year of pandemic as compared to the previous years of having an average of 6-7 sessions yearly.

DLAC may have focused on content and pedagogy discussions, assessment planning, challenges encountered in relation to learner diversities, upskilling of teachers’ skills in using technology and other related continuing professional development strategies for the improvement of teaching-learning in the schools.

These tasks were delegated to all the education program supervisors as experts in the subject areas, and public schools district supervisors as instructional leaders, as the frontlines in initiation, coordination, promotion and monitoring of the existing and relevant co-curricular programs and projects.

“SDO Mandaluyong recognizes the quality of learning influenced by the quality of teaching.” the CID chief added. “Thus, it is important to hire competitive teachers and to support their development in the teaching profession continuously to aid teachers in the construction of new knowledge and practices about curriculum and instruction; and revisiting traditional teaching practices and assumptions about education to suit the present needs of learners.” 

 Although DLAC has been a practice in the division since September 2016, its implementation and endeavor this pandemic has created a strengthened and empowering role in bridging the gaps among the schools, communities, and learners.