By Maribel V. Fajardo, School Principal I, San Juan Elementary

Learning continues despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Providing students
with responsive and relevant learning activities are the main concerns which are
very important in developing their 21st century skills and competences. The
Department of Education ensures to deliver education considering the situation we
are facing right now. Because schools are perceived as a haven to hone learners,
they are given tasks to provide assessment to examine the readiness of all learners.
They thought of many ways and devised different learning modalities to still
educate and nurture learners even at home with the help of teachers and most
especially with the guidance of parents.
In this current situation, many education experts are looking for new
instructional methodologies because the traditional approaches in teaching may
not be effective in developing student learning. Thus, the design thinking approach
can be employed in the teaching and learning process. It is also mandated in the
Republic Act (RA) 10533 (2013), otherwise known as the Enhanced Basic
Education Act of 2013, that the curriculum shall employ pedagogical approaches
that are inquiry-based, collaborative, differentiated, and integrative. Highlighted
also in the Republic Act no 10533 that to measure the learning of students and
their skills in accomplishing practical tasks and in handling with real-life problems
is using performance task. After K to 12 basic education, every Filipino learner is
visualized to be ready for challenges in higher education and in life.
However, learning at home has many struggles especially on the part of
parents who also have troubles in guiding their children. It was shown in the news
that parents found it hard to guide their children in answering modules and doing
learning activities. Some parents do not have much time to guide their children
because they have business, they have work to do, and they have many children to
guide. Some parents cannot guide their children because they themselves cannot
understand what is on the module.
That is why educational leaders devised a way to help learners and parents
ease their burden in some learning activities and learning assessments. Integrative
Performance Task or also known as IPT, the new system in the assessment of
learning of learners was being introduced to teachers and to learners. This new
trend of assessment for learners is just a manifestation that teachers adapt new
ways to assess students’ learning and may also showcase collaborative efforts
among teachers.
An Integrative Performance Task strategy is also in cognizant to D.O. No.31
s. 2020, entitled Interim Guidelines for Assessment and Grading in Light of the
basic Education Learning Continuity Plan to provide guidance in the assessment of
student learning and on the grading scheme. Teachers must also be creative and
flexible in assessing student learning, while still adhering to the principles of
quality assessment practice.
An Integrative Performance Task (IPT) is also a learning assessment that
learners will do to show their understanding, knowledge, and skills with the
integration of the learning competencies from the different learning areas. This can
be used to participate learners in relevant and meaningful learning. This is also an
alternative strategy to help ease the burden of learners in the assessment of their
learning because they are going to make one performance task to be graded by
teachers from two or more subject areas. An Integrative Performance Task is a

tangible product and/or performance that serves as evidence of learning of every
learner.
In Integrative Performance Task, teachers from different subject areas
convene and collaborate among themselves. This can be done twice or more every
quarter. While doing such, teachers must present to each other the learning
competencies from each subject area for the whole quarter and look for the
competencies that fit to other competencies from other subjects to make one
performance task. They must agree as to what kind of performance task will be
done by the learners using rubrics and according to the level of knowledge of the
learners and linking content knowledge with the 21st Century skills like creativity,
critical thinking and technology use. The output of their collaboration must be
checked by their superior (Head Teacher/Master Teacher/Principal) for quality
assurance purposes.
Here are some of the benefits of Integrative Performance Task to the teachers
as well as learners:
IPT is a form of academic ease. Learners can only focus on one performance
task which incorporates the different learning areas. The effort and time are being
lessened which is beneficial to learners.
IPT is an innovation with collaboration. The IPT involves effort and involves
collaboration of creative minds of teachers from different learning areas. They form
creative ideas to come up on one performance task that fits to the competencies of
the different learning areas.
IPT is a practical way to save time and effort of teachers and learners.
Teachers can save time and effort in doing performance task since the IPT can
cover different learning areas. Students can also exert less effort in doing
performance task since there is only one IPT to be done.
IPT is very helpful not only for teachers but most especially to learners. It
focuses on helping them to think critically, where they become inventive and
imaginative, and most importantly, giving them a chance to creatively demonstrate
their interests within the curriculum and across learning areas.
Integrative Performance Task strategy is just a manifestation that there are
ways to help learners, parents, and teachers to have academic ease. The COVID 19
pandemic can be on the way, however; we can think of new ways of delivering
education. There are still more innovations to come and there will be many more
ways to uplift education despite the pandemic and at the same time ease the
burden of students in learning as well as in doing assessments at home.