Joanna Marie D. Torda
Teacher-in-Charge- Bical Elementary School
The covid-19 pandemic has greatly challenged the educational system in the country and has not only navigated the delivery modes of learning from its traditional set-up to on-line classes, TV and radio-based instruction, but has also dared school leaders.
They say great leaders don’t just set out to be a leader but to embark a difference. The saying implies that it is never about our role, but what matters especially during this challenging times is on how we carry out our goal as school leaders.
The pandemic has stressed not just the disparities on the access on internet and other devices for distance and digital modes of learning, but also the preparedness and capabilities of leaders in this digital age.
The current situation, perhaps has not just required school leaders to be digitally-capable, but has obliged us to learn how to utilize different digital platforms to reach out to our learners, to supervise teachers and to communicate to our stakeholders and community.
Our ability to effectively lead, direct our people, manage school resources and linkages and wise decision-making are also being tested. As a school leader and captain of our boat, we are expected to set the best direction to respond to this difficult time and be able to create positive impacts to our learners.
Pressure is relentless and paper works are loaded. The current situation may be very stressful from supervising the preparation of Self-Learning Modules (SLMs) to distribution strategies and implementing of health and safety protocols, but as leaders, we must remain focused and apt to our goal of instilling resilience and hope that we will all come up with the best possible outcomes to continuously deliver quality education to our learners in the new normal.
We may be leading with uncertainty for we cannot predict how long this scenario would last, but we must take this situation positively, remain focused on the future and continuously strive in achieving the best possible teaching-learning strategies and outcomes for our learners.
This pandemic has indeed challenged our leadership skills, which on the bright side, will surely have an impact to our leadership styles. All the learnings that we have gained in this difficult time will always serve as a reminder, that our leadership will always be challenged and tested, but we must always find solutions to overcome them and consider them as travails in our journey of becoming a great school leader.