Some learners in Negros Occidental are receiving incentives, such as rice and vegetables, for completing their self-learning modules (SLMs), a way to ensure that they are nourished while “going to school” amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

In northern Negros, the Sagay City Eco-Zone National High School has initiated an innovative program called “Module Mo, Veggies Ko” to encourage parents to assist their children in distance learning.

“This is the school’s way to motivate the parents in guiding their children to comply with the SLMs and to continue to enjoy learning at home,” the city government headed by Mayor Alfredo Marañon III, which is the partner for the initiative, said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

The high school, located in Hacienda Ricky, Barangay Paraiso, gives the parent or the learner a bag of fresh vegetables when he or she returns a completed module.

The vegetables come from the school’s “Gulayan sa Eskwelahan” being maintained by the parents themselves under the “Adopt-a-School Gulayan” project.

Among the vegetables being given away are eggplants, pechay, string beans, okra, and tomatoes.

Meanwhile, in Toboso town, the municipal government has also been providing rice to learners in exchange for completed modules.

Called the “Modyul Baylo Bugas” (MBB), which means “module in exchange for rice”, the pioneering program rewards each student a kilo of rice upon submission of their weekly SLMs.

Under the MBB scheme, learners are encouraged to comply with their module for the week so they can avail of the subsidy after the teacher has checked their work every Friday or Monday.

Mayor Richard Jaojoco said he came up with the idea to motivate students in his locality to adapt to the distance learning mode.

Toboso’s story was featured on the official Facebook page of the Department of Education (DepEd), which called the program a response to the implementation of the agency’s Basic Education-Learning Continuity Plan.

For the school year 2020-2021, which started on October 5, the DepEd is adopting three learning modalities – modular distance learning, which uses self-learning modules in printed or digital format; online distance learning, which uses the Internet in downloading learning materials and uploading homework; and radio/TV-based instruction for learners who have no Internet connectivity.

For some students, blended learning, which is a mix of online distance learning, modular distance learning, and radio/TV-based instruction, can also be an option. (PNA)