Therese P. Zipagan, and Junel Guzman, from the institute of Philippines. wrote a Research Article about, Disaster Preparedness in DepEd Schools: Insights from Isabela’s First District. Entitled, Disaster preparedness of DepEd schools in the first district of Isabela. This research paper published by the Journal of Biodiversity and Environmental Sciences (JBES). an open access scholarly research journal on Biodiversity. under the affiliation of the International Network For Natural Sciences| INNSpub. an open access multidisciplinary research journal publisher.
Abstract
Isabela Province is prone to various natural disasters, including typhoons, floods, and earthquakes. In the recent years, the frequency and intensity of natural disasters have highlighted the need for effective disaster preparedness and response strategies. Among the most crucial institutions affected are schools, which serve as vital learning environment for learners. In light of these hazards, ensuring the disaster preparedness of schools under the Department of Education (DepEd) in the province is of paramount importance. The study aimed to determine the level of disaster preparedness and awareness of public elementary and secondary schools in the First District of Isabela province in the perception of School Heads in terms of five (5) Disaster Risk Reduction Management (DRRM) program components: project & activities, personnel, budget, facilities & equipment and monitoring & evaluation. It also focused on the assessment of DepEd schools’ building vulnerability to disasters specifically strong winds and flooding through a rapid visual survey. It also aimed to address the challenges faced by DepEd schools in their disaster preparedness endeavors. Hence, the study emphasized the importance of disaster preparedness for DepEd Schools by implementing robust risk assessment processes, adhering to appropriate building codes, and developing comprehensive disaster preparedness plans ensuring the safety and resilience of schools and its buildings contributing to the overall well-being and educational continuity of learners, teachers and staff.
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Introduction
Climate change is
leading to more natural disasters around the world, with Asia being considered
the “disaster central”. Forty-five percent (45%) of natural disasters globally
happen in the region, and it is home to 3 of the 5 most disaster-prone
countries in the world, namely the Philippines, India, and Indonesia (followed
by Colombia and Mexico).
In 2015, the United
Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) divulged that there are
three hundred forty-six (346) reported disasters in the whole wide world. In
line with these cataclysms, 22,773 people died and 98.6 million individuals got
affected. Also, 66.5 billion US Dollars were lost due to economic damages.
These numbers are mere proofs that a disaster is uncontrollable especially to
vulnerable countries like the Philippines.
According to Philippine Atmospheric,
Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), the Philippines
is greatly prone to disasters especially to storms due to its geographical
location and typhoons averaging around 19-20 every year with Northern Luzon
among the worst-affected areas. Varying from mild occurrences to catastrophic
events such as super-typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda) which left 10,000 people
dead in southern Visayas region in November 2013. Typhoons bring strong winds,
intense amount of rainfall and flooding to the country, causing great damage to
both land and property. Table 1 presents the list of the deadliest and
costliest typhoon events occurred in the country.
In the case of extreme
events such as Haiyan, the magnitude and level of damage and destruction is
significant enough that action must be taken by the global community to
concentrate on and achieve disaster risk reduction for those who are vulnerable
to such events.
Disaster preparedness
plays a vital role in saving lives and preventing undesirable events from
happening. Additionally, being prepared helps people feel less stressed to
ensure they can react calmly and positively when a disaster is wreaking havoc.
Disaster preparedness, according to the National Disaster Risk and Reduction
Management Council (NDRRMC), an agency established by the Philippine government
to prepare for and respond to natural disasters or human-caused emergencies,
establishes and strengthens community capacities to anticipate, cope with, and
recover from the negative impacts of emergency occurrences and disasters
(NDRRMP, 2011 Final Version). However, problems still exist in facilitating the
execution and implementation of disaster risk reduction measures in critical
areas such as education sector. Schools serve an important role in educating a
nation's future generations; learners are among the most vulnerable members of
society according to their age and developmental stage. A more safe and
resilient school can save children's lives and offer a refuge for the
neighborhood especially here in the country. However, based on the country’s
inventory records of all public elementary and secondary school facilities
nationwide, many of these school buildings were constructed as early as 1990s.
It is evident that these old school buildings are no longer in compliance to
the latest Philippine building laws and codes (PD 1096 or the National Building
Code of the Philippines, RA9266 or The Architectural Act of 2004, Fire Code,
Accessibility Law, and the National Structural Code).
Schools are classified
as "Essential Structures" under the aforementioned standards, placing
them in the same category as hospitals, which are required for emergency
response and disaster recovery. School buildings and infrastructure are
frequently repurposed as evacuation centers or for other purposes, which is a
sad fact and contradicts the duty of guaranteeing learning continuity. If schools
are not aware of the problem and take proactive measures, unsafe schools will
keep betraying the faith and hope that people have in them. Students will be
killed, injured, and drop out in large numbers unless everyone takes
responsibility for keeping them safe.
The country’s
educational system continuously strengthens Republic Act (RA) No. 10121,
otherwise known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
(PDRDM) Act of 2010, to protect vulnerable populations from both natural and
man-made disasters. This law mandated that all branches of the national
government, including schools, create programs for disaster risk reduction and
management. The primary goals of RA 10121 are preparedness, disaster response,
recovery, and rehabilitation, as well as disaster prevention and mitigation
(Florano, 2018; Turpin, 2019).
Due to the challenges and problems that occur
during disasters, this study was conducted to determine the status on the level
of disaster preparedness and implementation among public elementary and
secondary school heads in the First District of Isabela province.
School’s Disaster Risk
Reduction Management (DRRM) program implementation has a greater positive
influence on the lives of the learners, but School’s Disaster Management is futile
if the school buildings where they are housed are vulnerable to
disaster/calamities. Thus, the main focus of this study is to determine the
status of school structure/buildings of the First Congressional District of
Isabela with researcher’s notion that if school, communities and the Department
of Education (DepEd) take responsibility for the safety in school, the first
and foremost consideration is the school buildings to safeguard the precious
lives of the learners during natural or man-made calamities, specifically in
San Pablo, Sta. Maria, Cabagan, Sto. Tomas, Delfin Albano and Tumauini and City
of Ilagan, the catch basin areas during floods in Isabela.
This quantitative
research entitled “Disaster Preparedness of DepEd Schools in the First District
of Isabela” sought to achieve the following objectives:
1. Identify the level of the implementation of
DepEd public elementary and secondary schools’ Disaster Risk Reduction
Management (DRRM) through the perception of School
2. Determine the
preparedness of DepEd elementary and secondary school buildings in the face of
calamities;
3. Identify schools
that are vulnerable to multiple hazards; and
4. Identify the
problems and issues on the implementation of disaster preparedness of the
schools.
Conceptual/Theoretical
framework This research endeavor is anchored on concepts, theories and findings
from assessment of various studies and reports about disaster preparedness of
school structures. The findings will be acknowledged in order to support and
validate the claims established in this study.
School building sector
National The Department of Education (DepEd) issued Department Order No. 83 s.
2011 Disaster Preparedness Measures for Schools in accordance to the agency’s
Disaster Risk Reduction Management – Climate Change Adaptation (DRRM-CCA)
policies. Stipulated on the said order addressed specifically to School
Division Heads/City Superintendents and Public and Private Elementary and
Secondary Schools is the addressing of disaster risk reduction in education on
the underlying disaster risk drivers such as (i) poorly built school
structures; (ii) teacher’s lack of knowledge about risks and risk reduction
skills; (iii) teachers’ and administrators’ lack of capacity in disaster
preparedness and response; and (iv) a lack of warning mechanisms and risk
assessments. Actions must be taken to mitigate the effects of disasters,
particularly in schools, where the effects are mostly visible and on children’s
education are most apparent.
Assessing school
buildings reveals many school building designs that have been modified to
reflect the culture, historical period, and responsiveness to changing climate
and new requirements. Designs vary depending mainly from the private and public
initiators – LGU, private donations, or the national government through the
Department of Education. Responsible agencies and collaborators
a. Design
Department of Education, Architectural and
Engineering Consultants, Local Government Unit, National Government, Department
of Budget Management, School Heads, Parent/Teacher Associations, Students,
Department of Health, Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office, Fire Services
b. Construction
Contractors, Architectural and Engineering
Consultants, Department of Education, Insurance Agencies, Financial
Institutions
c. Reconstruction after
destruction
Department of Education, Architectural and
Engineering Consultants, Financial Agencies, Contractors
d. Retrofit
Department of Education, Architectural and
Engineering Consultants, Financial Agencies, Contractors
e. Rehabilitation
Department of
Education, Architectural and Engineering Consultants, Financial Agencies,
Contractors
f. Repair after damage
Department of Education, School Heads,
Teaching and other Staff, Architectural and Engineering Consultants, Financial
Agencies, Contractors
g. Maintenance
School Heads, Teaching
and other Staff, Students, Department of Education, Parent/Teacher Associations,
Financial/Funding Agencies, Architectural and Engineering Consultants,
Contractors
Building a profile and
database Building a profile and database starting with the particular use and
description of the building in terms of architectural, structural, electrical,
plumbing, sanitary and mechanical aspect and the profile of school heads in
terms of level of preparedness
International
The Global Program for
Safer Schools (GPSS) a program funded by the Global Facility for Disaster
Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) launched in 2014, aims to increase significant
financial resources in order to improve the safety and resilience of school
infrastructure that is highly vulnerable to natural disasters as well as the
quality of learning environments for the children. The programs also provide
technical assistance in countries including the Philippines to design and
implement safer schools’ programs including recovery and reconstruction in
post-disaster conditions. The program developed an operational tool offering
guidance to project managers interested in advancing the safer school agenda
which is the Roadmap for Safer and Resilient Schools (RSRS).
Roadmap for Safer and
Resilient Schools Step by Step Process
Step 1 – School
infrastructure baseline To establish a baseline of existing school infrastructure
facilities and the demand for new school infrastructure.
Step 2 – School infrastructure policy To gain
an understanding of the policy framework that governs school infrastructure and
the projected demand for classrooms.
Step 3 – Construction environment To gain an
understanding of the regulatory framework, construction management practices
and construction technologies within which school infrastructure is planned,
designed, built, operated and maintained.
Step 4 – Financial
environment To gain an understanding of the financial environment within which
school infrastructure is planned, designed, constructed, operated and
maintained.
Step 5 – Risk and
resilience assessment of school infrastructure To allow task teams to identify
different intervention options by quantifying the potential harm to children,
damage and losses to existing school infrastructure, and disruption of services
caused by the occurrence of hazard events of varying intensity and frequency.
Step 6 – Intervention
strategy To set up objectives, priorities, and expected results within the
timeframe of the plan and define an intervention strategy accordingly.
Step 7 – Investment
plan To estimate the cost of the intervention strategy and propose an
investment plan within the plan’s time frame.
Step 8 – Implementation strategy To define implementation arrangements for the plan in line with the intervention strategy, the investment plan, and the country’s institutional and legal framework.
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Source : Disaster preparedness of DepEd schools in the first district of Isabela
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