The opening of classes will push through in August this year, according to the Department of Education (DepEd-6).
“We maintain our stand nga ma-open kita sang klase naton sa August 24, ” said Dr. Lea Belleza, DepEd-6 information officer.
According to her, the new school calendar was approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
The DepEd recommended to reschedule the start of school year due to the dreaded disease.
“Ang actions naton kag decisions ginrecommend naton ina sa IATF kag gin-adopt man nila ina,” Belleza said.
But if the IATF orders schools to resume their classes next year, Belleza said: “Of course ma-follow lang na iya ang DepEd.”
The DepEd-6 official, meanwhile, clarified that formal opening of classes does not necessarily mean traditional face-to-face learning in classrooms.
In a report by state-run Philippine News Agency, Belliza said they will be employing various learning modalities and not just face-to-face learning once classes open.
“In the new normal in DepEd, they won’t be going to school every day. There will be a shortened number of hours where they will just choose the most essential learning competencies,” she said.
While there are free webinars for online platforms, the department is now planning for a series of training for the re-skilling and upscaling of teachers, she added.
Last week, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas sent DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones a letter asking her to “postpone the opening of classes in [the city] until next year.”
“This lack of vaccine may unduly expose the children, who are among the vulnerable persons, to the [new coronavirus],” Treñas said.
The city, classified as low-risk area, is currently under GCQ (general community quarantine).IMT
