Schools ready for physical classes

THE Department of Education (DepEd) announced on Monday that 73.28 percent of the country's public schools are ready to conduct face-to-face classes.

Education Secretary Leonor Briones said 34,238 schools have been nominated to resume face-to-face classes as of May 26. Briones said 33,000 are public schools while 1,174 are private institutions.

"As long as the DoH (Department of Health) has clearance, and the local governments agree and the parents have the consent, we will continue with face-to-face classes," Briones said in a press briefing.

She said the department urged more private schools to resume face-to-face classes by June.

The approach to and modalities of face-to-face classes will vary with each school because it is "dependent on the situation and state of health and assessment of the DoH," she said.

"There are schools that are really ready in terms of facilities, teachers, while there are others that still have some catching up to do. What we are saying at the regional level is that they need to decide what approach they will take on their own because they know the actual situation in their respective areas," Briones said.

"It's not going to be just one style of work, that everybody is marching to the same tune, we might be singing different tunes but we will always be in harmony," she added.

By the next school year, the DepEd expects all schools to conduct face-to-face classes, Briones said.

Education Undersecretary Diosdado San Antonio said that while they are encouraging schools to hold in-person learning, the Education department is still eyeing a blended setup wherein there are days when students will be physically attending school and some days when they will study at home.

But whatever mode the Covid-19 Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases recommends, the department will implement, San Antonio said.

DepEd Undersecretary Revsee Escobedo said division and regional offices have their own guidelines when it comes to resuming face-to-face classes, but the emphasis is always on ensuring the safety of schoolchildren.

"We still need to get the concurrence of local government units and consent of parents," said Escobedo.

Source: TheManila Times