THE rainy season is not yet behind us. Given the meager efforts of this government to perform routine preventive measures against the adverse effects of heavy rains — and the inept response of its executives — we can expect more inconveniences and devastation brought about by worsening floods.
What suffers most from inclement weather are school operations, severely hindering efforts to address learning gaps caused by a shortage of in-person classes. Learning management systems, for those who can afford them, offer only a limited solution because online delivery serves merely as a last resort. In other words, weather-imposed disruptions compound a deepening learning crisis that we already need to face squarely.
The government’s handling of these weather-related disruptions was recently highlighted by the Second Congressional Commission on Education, or Edcom 2. A news posting from the commission rebuked national and local government units with a report title warning: “Blanket class suspensions could deepen literacy challenges, new policy note warns.”
Reflecting discontent with the government’s actions, the commission’s newsletter said:
“Blanket class suspension orders may be imposing a learning cost even on schools that are not directly exposed to unsafe conditions.
“Weather conditions can likewise vary significantly within a single administrative boundary. One municipality may experience severe flooding while a nearby municipality sees only intermittent rain — or none at all. Yet, when a provincewide or regionwide order is issued, schools in both circumstances lose the same amount of learning time.”
Safety and the protection of life during natural calamities must be everyone’s primary concern. However, when there is “excessive risk aversion and the tendency to issue suspension orders across entire cities, provinces, or regions that are not exposed to those conditions,” student learning loss becomes inevitable.
Thus, one of the commission’s recommendations goes straight to the point:
“For schools confronting rising floodwaters, impassable roads, or other actual hazards, the learning cost is justified by the need to protect lives. But when the same order closes schools that are not exposed to those conditions, the cost becomes unavoidable. Every cancellation should, therefore, be supported by evidence, accounted for, and weighed against its consequences for learning.”
Blanket class suspension pronouncements reflect the work of officials who lack critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and the ability to act with common sense.
How I wish they were oriented to the quintessential work of Paul R. Lawrence and Jay W. Lorsch of the Harvard Business School, which was introduced in their seminal book “Organization and Environment: Managing Differentiation and Integration.”
In contrast to issuing blanket class suspensions, officials should know when to apply a differentiated approach and when to apply an integrated approach, depending on what the immediate situation calls for.
– A differentiated approach. When the environment is unstable and uncertain, it does not automatically mean that all places and people are affected to the same degree, such as when confronting rising floodwaters, impassable roads, or other localized hazards. Not all areas experience the same level of difficulty. One municipality may face severe flooding while another one nearby experiences only intermittent rain — or none at all.
As Lawrence and Lorsch note regarding such situations, “what best organization leaders do is to become less formalized, more decentralized, and rely more on mutual adjustments.” Differentiation means that various units of an organization adapt distinct operational methods to cope with their specific local environments.
– An integrated approach. When a situation is clear, and everyone faces the same conditions regionwide — such as when severe hazards affect an entire province simultaneously — effective organizations become centralized, standardized, and closely coordinated. Integration involves aligning every component of an organization to achieve a common goal.
As Lawrence and Lorsch say, “[t]he best organization leaders are those who scan their environment, use their best analysis on it, and achieve high performance by getting both differentiation and integration right and balanced, given the external context.”
It seems those who enforce blanket suspensions are guided more by bureaucratic convenience and assumptions, ignoring the hidden costs of learning by closing schools.
A differentiated approach relies on empowering people, giving local leaders the agency to meet expectations and boost morale. When local officials are given the power to decide and act, they can take productive steps tailored to the specific conditions they know best. Practicing differentiation contributes positively to the broader organization by allowing each unit to make its own unique, context-appropriate contribution.
An integrated approach, on the other hand, relies on broader teamwork and close coordination across units to move a large organization in a single direction. It represents a unified effort to achieve a shared outcome, emphasizing alignment, a cohesive identity, and a standardized approach where appropriate.
The lesson is simple: when natural calamities disrupt classes and aggravate learning gaps, officials must return to the principles of differentiation and integration rather than hastily announcing blanket class suspensions — or worse, turning blanket suspensions into policy.
During natural calamities, student safety and uninterrupted learning should not be treated as opposing forces. We do not have to sacrifice one for the other when both can be achieved. But one thing is clear: blanket class suspensions will consistently undermine our efforts to recover an already deeply challenged national school system.
Fr. Jesus “Jay” Miranda Jr., OP, is an organization and leadership studies resource person. He teaches at the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School and the Department of Educational Leadership and Management of the Bro. Andrew Gonzalez, FSC, College of Education of De La Salle University, Manila.
jaymiranda.op@ust.edu.ph
jmmiranda@letranbataan.edu.ph