Learning curve

An incident like last week’s bus crash in Tanay, Rizal, that killed 15 persons must not be allowed to happen again. The dead were mostly college students with the best of their lives ahead of them and on whom their families rested fondest hopes. That they would meet a violent end in the course of a field trip, away from their near and dear, constitutes the profound anguish of their parents and others who love them.

The field trip was for students of Bestlink College of the Philippines. The unfortunate bus was one of nine in a convoy that left the Quezon City campus at 6 a.m. on Feb. 20 and headed to Sacramento Adventure Camp in Tanay for activities related to the National Service Training Program. The bus, owned by Panda Coach Tours, was traveling down a road near Magnetic Hill in Sitio Bayucal when the driver lost control at 8:45 a.m. The brakes apparently malfunctioned as the bus approached a dead curve known to be accident-prone. The bus slammed into the road barrier, then hit a Meralco post and a tree before coming to a stop. A number of students died on the spot, others in hospital. In all, 13 students died along with a Bestlink staff member and the bus driver. Of the 62 bus passengers, 47 were injured, a number of them severely.

The Commission on Higher Education has formed a task force to look into the matter, and imposed a moratorium on field trips and similar educational tours for all colleges and universities until the investigation is concluded and pertinent policies reviewed. The Department of Education has also suspended field trips for all public schools until June, or the completion of its own review of related policy. It said the review would “cover alignment of field trips to learning outcomes, security and safety, and responsibilities and accountabilities not only of schools but of parents and
other relevant government agencies.”

Field trips are envisioned to provide learning opportunities for students beyond the confines of a classroom. While risk is a reality of life, it is entirely reasonable for the grieving families to demand answers to questions begging to be asked: Were the guidelines followed? Were all precautions taken?

CHEd Memorandum No. 17, s. 2012, spells out the requirements: Schools need to report the planned field trip to regional offices, stating the purpose, schedule, destination and costs. The destination should be close by to limit the associated costs. Of prime importance is the requirement that all field trips be optional, with participation requiring the voluntary permission of parents. According to Bestlink College coordinator for school activities Sammy Samsona, the school had properly prepared for the trip. The CHEd inquiry will verify that claim along with other issues concerning the students’ safety; for the technical aspects, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has scheduled a hearing for next week. (Initial investigation has turned up certain irregularities.)

And of course the delicate issues of money and the value of human life have emerged. Concerning insurance coverage, the anguished question “Is a life worth just P200,000?” cannot conceivably be answered. The parties can only look to the law to be guided. The severely injured students are still another matter to be considered. Indeed, how compensate for a young life interrupted? Most important, who is liable?

Moving forward, and with the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, it is necessary to review education guidelines pertinent to this issue. In themselves and with proper management and enforcement, field trips are educational tools that can benefit students in the long run. Would not banning them altogether mean throwing the baby out with the bath water, as it were? The learning curve is steep and sometimes dangerous not only in the literal sense.

The bus crash “is a reminder that we must be very strict in regulating the use of public transportation for school-sponsored trips,” CHEd Commissioner Prospero de Vera III said in a statement. He added: “While it is true that field trips are essential to give students the opportunity to see and explore new things, enhance their learning experience in a natural setting, and provide for interest-driven and hands-on training, the safety of the students on field trips must be ensured at all times by school authorities.”