A Crash Course in 2020
The pandemic interrupted and disrupted many things, but thanks to Ed Fermin’s quick thinking and immediate action, it didn’t affect the education at National Teachers College
Words by MARGA CONSTANTINO
Early in March 2020, Ed Fermin, Vice President for Academic Affairs at the National Teachers College (NTC), heard the circulating rumors of an impending lockdown and began worrying about the school. Would the students be safe? Would those without an internet connection be able to keep up with their studies? Were the teachers prepared for distance learning?
Ed knew in his gut that this was not going to be a normal year for them. He had to do something to prepare everyone—quickly!
The National Teachers College first opened its doors to the student public in 1929. Dr. Jose P. Laurel, who later became the president of the Republic of the Philippines, served as its first Chancellor. In 2018, NTC officially became part of AC Education, Inc., with Alfredo I. Ayala as the college president.
Learning to act fast
Ed immediately profiled NTC’s students to better understand their challenges and needs. He recognized three categories: those without connectivity and devices; those with limited connectivity but with access to devices; and those with reliable connectivity and access to devices. He realized that their courses would have to be reconfigured to suit these different needs.
Immediately, Ed told teachers to convert their lessons into self-instructed modules that could be downloaded or printed. And instead of having daily synchronous classes, NTC’s teachers were told to make themselves available at all times on messaging platforms in case students needed to reach out.
NTC’s teachers truly went above and beyond to look after their students, not just in academics. They were also there to provide emotional support to any student who reached out with personal problems. Many times, students would call in to tell them they were scared about their situation at home, and teachers would always lend a listening ear.
By providing online courses targeted to teachers, parents, and students, Ed Fermin was able to help communities within and outside National Teachers College (led by AC Education, Inc.) to handle the academic transition through the crisis.
No teacher left behind
“Even ahead of the other universities and colleges figuring out what to do, NTC was already rolling this out. And I say this with great pride because we did training for our teachers in less than two weeks, and we were running the show. That’s what happened,” Ed shared.
Thanks to their early planning, NTC (led by AC Education, Inc.) was up and running before other schools at the beginning of ECQ. But beyond this, Ed believed it was important for other schools to likewise keep up despite the pandemic. He knew that academic continuity was important for all, and that no teacher should be left behind.
NTC then started the “Alternative and Lifewide Learning Institute,” which offered specially designed two-week certificate courses anchored on its existing programs. These ranged from flexible learning modalities, to alternative laboratory-based and simulation-driven learning, to student learning programs in flexible learning systems. These were open to private and public school teachers, from preschool to college level.These short courses enabled NTC to generate additional revenue during pandemic, and also helped schools identify the areas they needed to improve to remain operational in the New Normal.
““I realized that responding to the greater challenges would mean reaching out to those who need it most.””
Lessons from life
As a successful, adaptive, innovative, and resilient education specialist, Ed has always been passionate about making quality education accessible to Filipinos. It is his deep empathy that helps him anticipate the needs of his students and teachers, and keeps this fire burning.
“I come from a family of farmers. And to us, and to my parents most especially, if you seriously take educational opportunities, you will get out of the rut of poverty. That’s very clearly ingrained in my consciousness as a teacher and as a person. And this passion has driven me in so many ways to continue engaging in providing meaningful education opportunities for people,” he said.
Ed has been through many things to get to where he is today, and this pandemic is just another bump on the road to reaching his goal of uplifting his fellow Filipinos.
“For a long time, I was in the private education sector in a very exclusive school. But I realized that responding to the greater challenges would mean reaching out to those who need it most. And that passion continues on now that I work with NTC, the Commission of Higher Education, and other sectors that are pushing for reforms in education… I believe that if we all make it a point to prioritize education opportunities especially for the impoverished families and communities, they will likely be able to get a more successful and brighter future for themselves,” Ed concluded. # — From interviews with Ed Fermin and Judel Roman
POSTED OCTOBER 23, 2020
