Palace: Ongoing virtual classes in private schools will continue

PRIVATE schools that have started classes may continue holding them even after President Rodrigo Duterte approved the postponement of the August 24 school opening, Malacañang said.

In a statement, Palace spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said the resumption of private schools’ online classes would be subject to present health and quarantine protocols imposed in their respective areas amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

“For private schools which have started to conduct online classes they shall proceed holding classes, subject to present health protocols following the declared quarantine classification in their respective areas,” Roque said.

Roque made the statement after Duterte, upon the recommendation of the Department of Education (DepEd), decided to move the start of classes to October 5 from August 24.

The Palace official said the deferment of school opening  was applicable to “both public and private schools.”

“The President’s decision is based on the recommendation of the DepEd, in response to the implications of the imposition of modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in Metro Manila and in the provinces of Cavite, Bulacan, Laguna and Rizal,” Roque said.

The Education department will release the necessary guidelines for the new date of opening of classes in the country, he added.

The classes for Academic Year 2020-2021 were initially scheduled to open on August 24 and end on April 30, 2021.

Duterte canceled physical classes in early March shortly after the Department of Health confirmed local transmissions of the coronavirus.

As of Friday, the Philippines has chalked up 153,660 Covid-19 cases, with 2,442 deaths and 71,405 recoveries.

Source: TheManila Times