Effective Alternative Secondary Education

Effective Alternative Secondary Education
(EASE)

What is EASE?

EASE is an alternative learning system for secondary school students who cannot report to their classes regularly, for justifiable reasons: part-time job, illness in the family, seasonal work, distance from school, calamitous events, peace and order problem, absence of regular public transportation, and the like.

Its general objective is to help students in difficult situations complete quality secondary education.

Specific objectives are to:

1. improve the holding power of the school;
2. strengthen school and family partnership in order to reduce student drop out rate; and
3. increase students’ capabilities for independent self-managed learning.

What are the main features of EASE?

1. EASE is semi-contractual. The student enter into an agreement with the teacher, that while he is on school leave, shall find time to study a set of learning modules and shall be allowed to enter his regular class, only after passing the re-entry assessment. The student’s parent or guardian shall be a witness and shall also consent to provide the necessary resources that the student would need.
2. EASE is distance learning. The student assumes the responsibility to study on his own  a module or a set of modules that corresponds to the lessons the regular class shall take while he is on leave.
3. EASE is modularized learning. It uses a set of user friendly, self-learning modules, so arranged from the simple to the complex that makes it easy for any kind of learner, fast, average or slow, to locate his learning entry point.
4. EASE is student-directed and teacher-facilitated. The teacher monitors the learner’s progress and sees to it that scheduled meetings are conducted, monitoring feedback is utilized, and quality standards are being observed.
5. EASE supplements but does replace the regular learning system. It supports, reinforces and enriches the regular instructional system in order to help learners in various situations attain their life goals.

What educational assumptions support EASE?

1. Education is life, not a preparation for life. It should be concerned with actual problems, issues and concerns of the learner.
2. EASE helps students respond to the everyday challenges and demands of family and community life: accidents, illnesses, calamities, job opportunities, change of residence, deaths, seasonal work rythms.
3. Education is self-realization of a person’s potentials: mental, social, physical, emotional. While EASE puts importance on academic achievement, it recognizes at the same time the other aspects of the learner’s development: economic security, civic responsibility, physical and emotional health, worthy membership, and vocational efficiency.
4. The school exist for the learners; it is the school that should adjust itself to meet the learner’s needs. The EASE modularized learning approach is highly adjustable to meet the varied interests and abilities of the learners, their differing learning styles and environments.
5. The world is a classroom. Learning can take place anywhere – at home, in the work place, in learning centers. EASE modules are handy, highly portable and easy to carry. Learners can easily tuck them in their pockets or backpacks and browse over them wherever they are. EASE recognizes the values of incidental learning-the unintended or non deliberate acquisition of new knowledge, skills and attitudes or the unintended change in one’s KSA resulting from participation in meaningful activities.
6. Learning is continuous progression. Previous knowledge and experiences are utilized to form new knowledge. It is a continuous of new knowledge on the basis of previous knowledge. Thus, EASE modules are arranged according to the hierarchy of competencies from simple to complex, from concrete to abstract. The learner;s entry point is the highest or most complex knowledge or skill he is able to perform. From there he can continuously progress until he reaches mastery.