Over 14,000 students are currently enrolled in more than 30 primary and secondary public schools in the city for the school year 2018-2019.
More than a year after the siege, they are once again reunited with friends and their schools to begin a year of learning.
Teachers welcomed learners to their classrooms which were prepared beforehand through the Department of Education’s (DepEd) programs – Brigada Eskwela and Oplan Balik Eskwela.
Several parents accompanied their children to school. Some even watched through classroom windows.
While displaced, they had the choice to enroll their children to nearby schools to where they were temporarily residing or briefly stop their schooling.
Aslima Malik, mother of three kids studying in Saduc Central Elementary School (SCES) along with other parents expressed their relief and joy about the reopening of schools in Marawi.
Assistant Principal of SCES Sainollah Salem recalls going house to house to convince parents to enroll their children to their school.
As of now, they have 339 kinder and elementary students from different barangays. According to Salem, SCES has been a catchment school (area) because two other nearby schools – Romoros Elementary School and Natangcopan Elementary School – were closed.
DepEd is confident that education won’t be hindered as assistance from the government and private partners continue to pour in to address the needs of the learners in the recovering city. (PIA)