CESAR G. YADAO
Education Program Supervisor
The world of sports has really been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. It has made sweeping changes not only in amateur competitions but also at the professional level. Preparations for every team were canceled and all training facilities were closed. Sports managers, coaches, trainers, and even sports stakeholders were struggling to develop a contingency plan. Policies in sports were created to overcome this crisis.
The Department of Education took more than a year to revitalize its sports program as our former Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones said, “We are continuously crafting and creating policies to help our learners amid the pandemic. We recognize the important role of sports in making sure that learners remain physically and mentally fit.” The National Virtual Training on Sports Skills was conducted by the Department and was participated by the teacher-coaches from different regions all over our country. The virtual training provided the teacher-coaches and Physical Education teachers with basic and appropriate knowledge and competencies in demonstrating the different sports skills based on the performance indicators provided in the DepEd Sports Manual.
The COVID-19 pandemic did not prevent the implementation of the sports program in our Schools Division Office. Thru the leadership of our Schools Division Superintendent, Dr. Carolina S. Violeta, the Division Memorandum No. 172, s. 2020 entitled, “Division Online Accreditation of Coaches in Athletics” was released. This was eight months after Presidential Proclamation No. 929 which placed our country under a state of calamity due to COVID-19. Lockdowns did not stop us from bringing the opportunity to our sports gurus. We must be positive despite the negative effect of the pandemic. The online training was followed by a series of virtual training such as Division Online Accreditation of Coaches in Volleyball, Division Online Accreditation of Officiating Officials in Chess, Division Online Accreditation of Coaches in Badminton and Basketball, and Virtual Training on Sports Skills in Badminton, Arnis, Futsal, and Dance Sports. Coaches were also advised to attend different sports activities such as SBP Technical Officials Refresher, Accreditation, and Licensing Program, and The PEKAF Online Accreditation Seminar for Anyo Judges and Technical Officials.
We acknowledge that sports are still an integral part of the daily life of our school children hence, we want to make sure that our teacher-coaches are equipped with the necessary sports skills in teaching our student-athletes. So that when the time comes that we will be able to meet them personally, our coaches are readily available to share the necessary skills they need. We must be persistent to meet our goals. We should make sure that when everything comes to normal, our athletes and coaches are ready to face the challenge.
