Challenges Faced and Practices Employed by Elementary Teachers During Class Suspensions Due to Inclement Weather: Basis for Capacity-Building and Support System Programs

This study determined the seriousness of the challenges faced by elementary teachers during class suspensions due to inclement weather and the extent of implementation of practices employed by elementary teachers in managing weather-related class suspensions, as perceived by elementary teachers and school heads in all public elementary schools in the City of Alaminos, Pangasinan. This quantitative descriptive research design employed a survey questionnaire administered to 221 public elementary school teachers via Google Forms. Frequency count, percentage, mean, Spearman’s rho, point-biserial correlation, and Mann-Whitney U test were all used to examine the data collected from the survey. The study’s results revealed that the level of the challenges faced by elementary teachers during class suspensions due to inclement weather is viewed as highly serious (3.72), while the level of implementation of practices employed by elementary teachers in managing class suspensions is rated as highly implemented (4.31). Several profile variables show weak negative relationships with challenges faced. Some do not have a strong correlation with these factors. Several profile variables are weakly and negatively associated with teachers' implementation of practices. However, some profile variables do not show significant relationships with implementation. The findings revealed no significant relationships between elementary teachers and school heads, with both groups exhibiting comparably elevated overall mean scores, indicating an agreement on the effective implementation of practices. The study concluded that, despite a high level of teachers’ implementation of practices, the seriousness of the challenges requires immediate action to prevent them from becoming a major problem in the future. The STORM-PREP and GGSS programs were proposed to address the challenges elementary teachers face in managing weather-related class suspensions.