CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Health Preparedness of Grade 12 Cuenca Senior High School

Students in Face-to-Face Classes in the midst of the Pandemic

A Research
Presented to
The Faculty of
Humanities and Social Sciences Department

In Partial Fulfilment
Of the Requirements
For Practical Research II

Aguila, Gaviel J.
Falsado, Julius Oliver F.
Mauleon, Randolph G.
Torres, John D.
Torres, Tannia Rose M.

2022-2023

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter outlines the related literature and studies, both foreign and

local, regarding health preparedness of schools for face-to-face classes.

Foreign Literature and Studies

Educational institutions, as part of the community, ought to exercise

precautionary measures in the event of any unprecedented situations, such as

emergencies. Bashir and Bakarman (2014) argued that in emergency situations,

fast and skilled intervention is vital for a patient’s outcome and saving life. In fact,

in schools, it is necessary that school staff be trained to respond to any health

emergencies that may arise because they have a responsibility to protect their

students, especially children who are vulnerable to such conditions. However,

both authors acknowledged that some schools should give more health-related

training to their respective staff. For instance, the female school staff of a primary

school in Saudi Arabia were found to have insufficient level of knowledge and

practice of first aid. Nevertheless, they still exhibited a positive attitude towards

first-aid training.

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
It is also noteworthy that there are schools that completely lack sufficient

preparedness in terms of dealing with health emergencies. Carter et al. (2022)

discovered that throughout the Coronavirus Disease – 2019 (COVID-19), most

secondary schools in Rwanda have manifested significant gaps in school leaders’

and teachers’ access to technology and training, which is straightforward evidence

of a lack of preparedness that could inform policy and practice in future health

emergencies. Moreover, because of the inadequacy of the schools’ resources,

school staff and administrators tend to lose the opportunity of accessing

technology which could significantly help them in resolving potential health

hazards on their educational community.

In addition, the shift from traditional face-to-face classes to a virtual type of

learning set-up has caused academic and social concerns for learners, especially

amid the COVID-19 pandemic (Al-Maskari et al., 2022). The authors of the study

asserted that a school’s resource availability will always determine the level of its

preparedness in many aspects, such as responding to any kind of emergencies

which concern its stakeholders, especially students. It is also critical to ensure that

students’ concerns, whether academic or social, be resolved because it will play a

vital role in developing their skills and abilities even in online teaching and

learning.

Furthermore, Anderson (2020) noted that to prepare for any health-related

emergencies effectively and efficiently, even from smallest to the biggest scales,

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
schools must craft and develop contingency planning which would analyze the

impact of potential crises and ensure that appropriate arrangements are made to

respond in a timely and effective way. This type of planning involves not just an

individual but a team which would also establish working relationships to resolve

such kinds of situations. In fact, the author cited the report of the United Nations

Inter-Agency Standing Committee which stated that an effective response at the

onset of a crisis is heavily influenced by the level of preparedness and

contingency planning.

On the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak around the world, schools are

forced to halt its operations temporarily to prevent its further spread among the

populace. Governments are scrambling to give the necessary education for their

student population even amid a pandemic. Thus, Esposito et al. (2021)

emphasized that problems strictly related to school frequency and reduction of

infectious risk must be discussed and solved before school attendance can be

considered completely safe for school stakeholders again. They also stated that

having comprehensive yet understandable health guidelines will eliminate doubts

and foster strict compliance among students, teachers, and non-teaching school

staff.

In England, primary and secondary schools are heavily impacted by the

spread of COVID-19. Sharp et al. (2020) affirmed that there are many challenges

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
that those schools face such as the vulnerability of the students to the virus itself

and thus its government encouraged them to exercise lofty standards of hygiene

through deep cleaning and avoiding pupils sharing equipment. Social distancing is

also promoted to reduce the risk of infection among individuals. However,

regardless of the necessary preparations and guidelines being undertaken, the

authors still acknowledged that problems such as issues in coordination and

resource implications of opening schools fully which taking measures to mitigate

the effects of the virus.

Teachers, as part of the school community, play a significant role in the

fight against COVID-19. Lapada et al. (n.d.) stated that teacher awareness

regarding the causes and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in schools can be an

advantage to school administrators because educators can help them in

implementing health and safety-related school policies which will ensure that

measures are taken to combat the virus.

Moreover, teacher response is seen to contribute significantly to the

effective and efficient spread of information about how to take care of one’ self

amid the pandemic and the ways how an individual, especially a student, can be

of help to his community and other people.

Local Literature and Studies

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
The Philippines is one of the countries in the world that is severely affected

by the continuously raging COVID-19 pandemic. Many sectors of its society,

especially the education sector, have made numerous adjustments to cope with

the so-called “new normal.” Therefore, it has become imperative for Philippine

schools, under the directive of the Department of Education, to implement

guidelines that will ensure the safety of students and teachers (Sarmiento et al.,

2021).

In addition, they highlighted the importance of strictly adhering to minimum

health protocols, such as wearing face masks, exercising physical distancing, and

washing hands daily because it is the cornerstone of combatting the deadly

pandemic. Moreover, they stressed that the health guidelines set by DepEd are

significant in the delivery of face-to-face classes following national and

international standards in mitigating the effects of COVID-19 as a public health

crisis.

To genuinely combat COVID-19 in educational institutions, school

administrations must be at the forefront in terms of implementing health and safety

protocols. However, there are some instances where a school’s health and safety

framework are marred by such flaws and problems encountered by the

implementers. Hence, Estampa and Buniel (2021) posited that the further

strengthening of the implementation of a health program is essential, through

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
sharing of best practices among schools, to facilitate its enhancement.

Furthermore, it is necessary for schools to actively and seriously design a

monitoring tool to investigate the problems of monitoring and evaluation of the

health and safety programs closely.

DepEd memorandums about health and safety amid the pandemic are

helpful to disseminate timely information about the department’s actions

concerning the COVID-19 pandemic in primary and secondary schools in the

Philippines. The DepEd School Division Office – Valenzuela (2022), for instance,

has been instructed by DepEd’s national office to conduct the school monitoring,

evaluation, and technical assistance of health and disaster preparedness

activities. Here, schools under DepEd are encouraged to take part in such

activities that will boost their knowledge, preparedness, and response wherever a

health emergency happens, which, in that case, is the COVID-19 pandemic.

The DepEd Office of the Undersecretary Governance and Field Operations

(2022) has instructed the regional office of the Education Department to continue

their roles and responsibilities in ensuring that the promotion and implementation

of various school health support mechanisms are executed. Moreover, health and

safety programs are encouraged to persevere despite the hardships brought by

the pandemic because such policies will help the stakeholders of DepEd schools

to ensure that schools are genuinely safe for teaching and learning again. This

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
memo is also necessary so that DepEd schools are guided whenever new and

unprecedented situations arise because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Synthesis

Schools across the globe have been heavily impacted by the COVID-19

pandemic for two (2) years already since its major outbreak in 2020. Many of

those educational institutions have been forced to close because of the danger of

the virus. Consequently, learners, as well as their educators, have shifted from

pre-pandemic face-to-face learning to online classes. Numerous adjustments

have been made to ensure that regardless of the status quo, learning will never be

disrupted. However, governments have also urged schools to devise a framework

for the safe return of students and teachers to schools amidst the pandemic.

Health preparedness in schools, especially during times of public health

emergencies, is necessary to ensure that education will continue. Various health

measures and protocols exist so that the safety of students, teachers, and non-

teaching personnel will be guaranteed. Such mechanisms, if crafted and

implemented properly, will contribute to the success of the school of holding face-

to-face classes. The cooperation between school stakeholders and the

government is inviolable—because one cannot exist without the help of another.

Moreover, the related literatures and studies highlighted the importance of

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
resource availability in schools to combat COVID-19 so that all the planning will be

materialized. Hence, mutual help is key to resolve any unprecedented situations.

In the Philippine context, schools have also been encouraged to resume

full face-to-face classes if certain health standards and protocols are successfully

met. Nevertheless, challenges and problems about such major adjustments in

learning set-ups have been inevitable because of various uncertainties, such as

the sudden surges of some variants of the COVID-19 virus. Thus, government

agencies like the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Education

(DepEd) have been working together diligently to ensure the safe resumption of

face-to-face classes in the country.

It is therefore important to consider the vital role of the Education

Department. Its process of disseminating instructions, guidelines, and other

necessary information, through memoranda, has helped the education sector to

cope with the rapid changes under “new normal.” Most of the memoranda which

are being circulated to its regional offices contain the implementation of updated

health and safety programs and protocols and the monitoring of how the schools

within their respective jurisdictions respond to health emergencies, such as the

COVID-19 pandemic.

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

REFERENCES

Business World (2022, September 2). Consumers more concerned about rising

prices than the pandemic. Business World.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bworldonline.com/corporate/2022/09/0

2/472092/consumers-more-concerned-about-rising-prices-than-the-

pandemic/%3famp

Deparment of Education (2022). Health and Safety Protocols in Light of the

COVID-19 Pandemic, V. Minimum Public Health Standards (MPHS) and

Other Related Health Protocols. DepEd Order No. 039 s.2022.

GOVPH (2012). The K to 12 Basic Education Program | GOVPH. Official Gazette

of the Republic of the Philippines. https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/k-12/

Malipot, M. H. (2022, August 11). Face-to-face classes will be mandatory for

public, private schools this SY — DepEd. Manila Bulletin.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/mb.com.ph/2022/08/11/face-to-face-

classes-will-be-mandatory-for-public-private-schools-this-sy-deped/%3famp

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

 CUENCA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Marinoni, G., Land, H. Van., and Jensen, T. (2020). THE IMPACT of COVID-19

on HIGHER EDUCATION AROUND the WORLD IAU Global Survey

Report.

Reuters (2022, August 15). Pandemic pushed millions more into poverty in the

Philippines, government says. Reuters.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/pandemic-pushed-millions-

more-into-poverty-philippines-govt-2022-08-15/

Rogers, K. (2020, March 20). Pandemic | disease outbreak. Encyclopedia

Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/science/pandemic

Top Hat Glossary (n.d.). Face-to-Face Learning Definition and Meaning.

https://tophat.com/glossary/f/face-to-face-learning/#:~:text=Face%2Dto

%2Dface%20learning%20is,a%20learner%20and%20an%20instructor.

Vocabulary.com (n.d.). Preparedness - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms.

https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/preparedness

WHO (2022). Constitution of the World Health Organization. World Health

Organization. https://www.who.int/about/governance/constitution

HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT