FLOWERING GARDENS IN SCHOOLS

ANN RHOSE DALUZ MARIANO

Entering the school premises should be an enlightening experience for visitors. Schools should be places of knowledge and relaxation, and what better way to do this than having flowering gardens in them?

In line with the Department of Education’s core values, Makakalikasan, the Department seeks to strengthen and reinforce the integration of environmental education in the elementary and high school curriculum.

Through the introduction of several programs, DepEd said it aims to establish and maintain a mostly indigenous and endemic flowering plant garden in public schools.

This will be done with the revival of “School Inside a Garden” program, in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), which aims to transform school campuses into gardens of medium-sized flowering and colorful native trees and plants.

The DepEd has also initiated the Search for Campus Heritage Trees where schools are enjoined to identify and submit heritage trees found within their school campuses for inclusion in a nationwide inventory.

According to a statement, the department is correcting earlier news items that erroneously mention the planting of heritage trees. Campus Heritage Trees are defined as native and endemic Philippine tree species that are living and healthy, found within school campuses and in their immediate surroundings. They have a minimum girth of 100cm, and have significant educational, social, cultural, historical, or aesthetic value.

The Selected Campus Heritage Trees will be given tree markers, identifying them as such and will be provided protection against danger from damage and displacement due to construction and other related activities, according to the DepEd.

This program is aligned with the “Public Schools of the Future” goal, with the vision of school campuses becoming centers of biodiversity and conservation, and serving as living laboratories for learners.

It also aims to inculcate in learners the importance of planting and conserving indigenous and endemic tree and plant species and their role in the ecosystem through the Youth for Environment in Schools Organization, the Supreme Pupil Government, and the Supreme Student Government.

The DepEd is also partnering with local scientists, non-government organizations, enthusiasts and advocates to properly identify the native, indigenous and endemic trees and plants that will be used in all these projects.

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The author is Secondary School Teacher I at Diosdado Macapagal Memorial High School, Floridablanca, Pampanga