By Marivic G. Rosario
School 2012-2013, Sadsadan Trail Elementary School participated in the search for Brigada Eskwela Best Implementer School. This was through the initiation of Jocelyn Samidan, the school’s then Principal I, now a Division Supervisor. Just a first timer in the said competition, the school luckily garnered First place in the District and Division levels and was a finalist in the Regional Level. These were wins in themselves. But as later events would show, these served as a springboards to greater heights.
For as the results turned out, they were both an inspiration and a challenge. Private stakeholders got inspired to participate as well as local government units. And nobody could have been better inspired than the school personnel, parents, alumni and the students themselves. In short, the whole community was moved to help out for their Brigada Eskwela to do even better.
Assessment of the program which certainly included its strengths and weaknesses was objectively had. The strengths were worked on to be made even better. The weaknesses were tweaked to reduce them to the barest minimum. On the whole, its implementation was closely scrutinized for better efficiency.
And just like any other communal project where the people involved were inspired and giving their utmost cooperation without counting the costs, the whopping result came in 2014. This obscure school in the middle of nowhere was awarded in the national level as the Brigada Eskwela Best Implementing Exceptional School. The award was received, to the unexplainable joy of the community, on Nov. 4 of that year.
The school went on to win as regional finalist for the third time on November 15, 2015.
For those not in the know, Brigada Eskwela is one of the DepEd programs being conducted yearly two weeks before the start of regular classes in the month of June. Among others, it entails the enhancing of school facilities, classrooms, teaching aids, library, etc. Thus, unlike before where students had to spend the first day and several hours each day thereafter of the first month cleaning and preparing the school, the “whole school” is now ready for learning from day one of the school year. No time is wasted on cleaning or scrubbing or reconstructing, among other things.
This got reflected on Sadsadan Trail Elem. School’s subsequent academic performance. The MPS or National Achievement of the school was continuously improving since it seriously implemented the Brigada Eskwela program last May 2013. Its average NAT result for S.Y. 2012-2013 was 62.16 %, S.Y. 2013-2014 was 75.71 % and S.Y. 2014-2015 was 83.24%.
These empirical evidence cannot be ignored and the fact that, as shown through the ages everywhere, when a community is inspired and get galvanized to cooperate and work hard for the common good, unbelievable results are achieved.
Every community in this country, most of which are poor, should take heed of Sadsadan Trail Elem. School’s success. By making students or pupils perform better in their academics, they are given the chance to attain unbelievable achievements in the future no matter how poor they might be.
Good education being the greatest equalizer is still true to the core.**
