MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Education (DepEd) is eying August school opening based on consultations with stakeholders and existing law but clarified that resumption of classes does not mean physical return.
“When we say opening of the school, it does not mean that we will be asking the teachers and students to physically report to the school,” Education Undersecretary Annalyn Sevilla said in an interview with DZBB.
UPDATE: Opening of classes for SY 2020-2021 is on August 24 – DepEd
The agency is now formulating strategies to minimize face-to-face interaction.
“We are preparing modules para minimum lang ang face-to-face interaction. ‘Yung pag move ng opening from June to August, this will give us more time to train our personnel and the students for distance learning, so the school opening could happen without them going out of their houses,” Sevilla added.
As some students and parents worry on distance learning which will depend on online classes and materials, Sevilla said teachers would also be deployed to the houses of students to complement the requirement of formal education.
“We often hear that formal education is the normal education [that] we are aware of and used to have but this new normal may now mean that that we need transition to the online platform [so] even the learning resources have to be adjusted,” she explained.
Aside from the learning preparations, Sevilla also emphasized other consideration like readjusting budget allocation to respond to emerging needs.
“Even if we want to have a specific timeline on school opening, we have to consider a preparatory timeline, not only for our teachers but also in terms of budget," she said.
Note that the official date of school opening schedule for SY 2020-2021 is not yet finalized as DepEd needs to submit proposal to the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF). The agency added that decision mainly depends on overall situation of the country amid the COVID-19 crisis.
SEE ALSO: DepEd: Opening of classes for SY 2020-2021 may be moved to August
— The Summit Express
“When we say opening of the school, it does not mean that we will be asking the teachers and students to physically report to the school,” Education Undersecretary Annalyn Sevilla said in an interview with DZBB.
UPDATE: Opening of classes for SY 2020-2021 is on August 24 – DepEd
The agency is now formulating strategies to minimize face-to-face interaction.
“We are preparing modules para minimum lang ang face-to-face interaction. ‘Yung pag move ng opening from June to August, this will give us more time to train our personnel and the students for distance learning, so the school opening could happen without them going out of their houses,” Sevilla added.
As some students and parents worry on distance learning which will depend on online classes and materials, Sevilla said teachers would also be deployed to the houses of students to complement the requirement of formal education.
“We often hear that formal education is the normal education [that] we are aware of and used to have but this new normal may now mean that that we need transition to the online platform [so] even the learning resources have to be adjusted,” she explained.
Aside from the learning preparations, Sevilla also emphasized other consideration like readjusting budget allocation to respond to emerging needs.
“Even if we want to have a specific timeline on school opening, we have to consider a preparatory timeline, not only for our teachers but also in terms of budget," she said.
Note that the official date of school opening schedule for SY 2020-2021 is not yet finalized as DepEd needs to submit proposal to the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF). The agency added that decision mainly depends on overall situation of the country amid the COVID-19 crisis.
SEE ALSO: DepEd: Opening of classes for SY 2020-2021 may be moved to August
— The Summit Express
