CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Should there be areas in Central Luzon placed under Alert Levels 1 and 2, expansion of limited face-to-face classes in the region may begin first week of February, according to the regional office of the Department of Education.
Department of Education (DepEd) Regional Information Officer Michelle Lacson said no in-person and distance learning classes are currently conducted due to the implementation of academic break amid the surge in Covid-19 cases.
Lacson said that the suspension is two weeks because that is the interval of the announcement of the classification of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases under the Alert Levels System.
Hopefully, whatever the situation will be in the coming weeks, most of the classes, whether online distance learning or face-to-face, will resume in February already, she said.
There should have been a conduct of limited face-to-face classes this month but was delayed as all provinces and highly-urbanized cities in Central Luzon are under Alert Level 3 until January 31.
Most local government officials revoked their concurrence upon the rise in Covid-19 cases and the parents who consented at first backed out and did not allow their children to do face-to-face, officials clarified.
Apart from the concurrence of the local government units and parents, academic institutions should meet all the criteria of the School Safety Assessment Tool prior to the implementation of physical classes in eligible areas.
Meanwhile, DepEd said the pilot implementation of limited face-to-face classes from November 15 to December 20 last year gained satisfactory results and positive feedback in a survey from learners, teachers and parents alike.
Lacson said the region was able to participate in the pilot implementation last November in Zambales where 17 public schools, one private school in the City of San Fernando in Pampanga, participated.
This is considered an advantage because the DepEd regional office has seen what needs to be prepared, and how the protocols are, Lacson said.
Based on the poll, the respondents reported a “high level of feeling of safety” while participating in the face-to-face classes; “high satisfaction levels” in the implementation of health and safety protocols; and “high level of confidence” to expand and continue limited in-person classes.
DepEd has proposed an adjusted school calendar extending the last school day from June 24 until the second week of July since most of the institutions are having a two-week health break.
