Balud Elementary School

Vision: To be a Center of Excellence for Rural Public Elementary Education.

Balud Elementary School is the village school serving the community and the nearby villages. It is a public school which started educating the local population since 1922. The school has six classes, Grades I to VI, which are the first six years of childhood education in the Philippine system called elementary education. The school has an annual population of 250 children. Most of the pupils come from poor families. Philippine school year is from June to March. Summer break is April and May.

BALUD arrived in the site and saw the school in dire need for rehabilitation. Due to neglect and lack of funding, the school was in a bad state. Some classrooms were unfit for use. The buildings were crumbling. The wood was rotting. Rain brought flood to the grounds all the time. Due to lack of facilities the classrooms still had to be used.

Improving the school is crucial in breaking the cycle of poverty. As we improve access to quality elementary education we ensure better reading, writing and numerical skills of the children to prepare them for high school learning. They will be more motivated and enthused to strive to achieve further education. Their enthusiasm for education will inspire their parents to send them to school instead of requiring them to help in fishing or agriculture at a very young age. Others are sent to the urban areas to assume menial and domestic jobs and send money back to their parents.

BALUD took the challenge of developing the school through the Adopt-a-School Program of the Department of Education. It started to rehabilitate the school to better serve the children since 2005. As we worked with them for the past years we saw a nobler opportunity. BALUD took the challenge to a higher level—to make the school a Center of Excellence for Rural Public Elementary Education. As a model school, BALUD is creating a model of educational development to emulate and to be followed.

Project Components

Infrastructure Development. The school needs a total overhaul in its infrastructure. All existing buildings have to be renovated. Renovation includes enlargement of the classrooms, changing of roofs, ceilings, windows and electrical installation. New classrooms are need for home economics, science and laboratory, reading room and library and special learning rooms. Toilets have to be built. New desks are needed to replace rusty and rotten ones. The school site have to solve the flooding problem through drainage. A playground and sports facilities have to be realized. Fencing of the school is also needed.

Teacher Training and Staff Development. Training the school teachers is crucial in achieving quality education. Good teachers will provide better learning to the students. Scholarships will be provided to allow teachers to finish masters degrees. They will also attend regular training programs and refresher courses to keep them updated of new trends in teaching and new knowledge.

Curriculum and Instructional Materials Development. To keep the school abreast with new trends and innovative curriculum, BALUD will work in partnership with the Department of Education and other institutions who are experts in the field. Funds for new instructional materials will be available for the use of the teachers. The future introduction of information technology to the school will create a demand for new methods of delivering lessons.

READ – Reading Enhancement and Development. Reading is a crucial tool for success in primary education. A special program to improve the reading skills of the students will be implemented using a one-on-one and personalized approach. A special teacher for reading will be hired. A volunteer program in partnership with nearby high schools and universities will be in place. Books and other audio-visual materials will be help in this program.

Library and Information Bank. Lack of books has hampered the reading skills of the students. A multipurpose learning room that will house a library and an audio-visual facility will be built. Books will be collected for the new library. Audio-visual equipments will be procured together with a collection of materials for viewing and listening. Knowledge Channel package (television and satellite dish) will be installed.

Arts and Cultural Enrichment. Developing the children in the arts and culture goes hand in hand with educational development. The Project will support the performing arts groups by providing new musical instruments for the Rhythm Band, costumes for the dance group, choir and drama clubs. Trainers for these groups will be hired. The Scouting movement within the school will also assisted. The participation of the school in outside activities whether academic or cultural will be supported.

Special Components

Life Skills and Spiritual Development. Home skills, entrepreneurship, livelihood training and environmental awareness will be introduced at their age. Building of a good home economics classroom will help in this area. Spiritual development through catechism lessons will be held in cooperation with other organizations providing such teaching.

Ascertaining a High School Program. Only ten percent of those who graduate from Balud Elementary School are able to proceed to high school which is another four years of study. Even if public high school education is free, they are not able to proceed because of lack of financial means to pay for the daily ride from the village to the municipality and to cover other costs related to their study. With this bleak scenario, we will not be able to break the cycle of poverty. Thus, the Balud Project is challenged to address this problem. So far three options are possible: to put up a high school in Balud, to provide a school bus that will ferry the students, or to provide financial support to be able to send them to high school.

School Staff

Department of Education Officials

Community Leaders

	Hon. Wilfredo Estorninos Municipal Mayor, Basey
	Hon. Nilo G. Yangao Barangay Chairman
	Hon. Melanio Medico A. Patindol Sangguniang Kabataan Chairman
	Barangay Kagawad (Community Council): Hon. Nympha Modesto Hon. Rodolfo Gacutno Hon. Billy Pacaanas Hon. Celso Gacutno Hon. Violeta Odinada Hon. Eddie Gacutno Hon. Aurea Ocop