PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. yesterday said the government is appraising the possible return of the school year calendar to the pre-pandemic June to March schedule and the school break from late March to early June.
The President, in a radio interview over “Erwin Tulfo on Air,” noted that there are no area is under lockdown and most schools are already implementing face-to-face classes.
“Pinag-aaralan natin ng mabuti iyan dahil nga marami ngang nagsasabi pwede na, tapos na iyung lockdown. Karamihan na ng eskwela, face-to-face na, kaunti na lang iyung hindi na (We are carefully studying that because a lot of people are suggesting it since the lockdown is over and most schools are already implementing face-to-face classes),” he said.
He, however, reminded the public that the threat of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) remains present, and that cases have been climbing in recent weeks.
The government adjusted the academic calendar from the original June to March schedule to August to June program at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic after students failed to complete and attend in-person classes towards the end of the 2019-2020 school year when the coronavirus started to rapidly spread in March 2020.
For the academic years 2020-2021, 2021-2022 and 2022-2023, classes in all levels were scheduled from August to June, with the school break set June and July.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, had suggested reverting the school vacation during the dry season due to the hot weather, while the Alliance of Concerned Teachers said it should be done as soon as possible.
DepEd spokesman Michael Tan Poa said the department is studying proposals to revert the school vacation to March instead of having it from June to July.
“”Pinag-aaralan po ng DepEd ang mungkahing ibalik sa April-May ang break (The DepEd is studying the proposals),” Poa said.
AIRCONDITIONERS
The Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) Federation urged the Department of Education (DepEd) to provide air-condition units to public schools amid the high temperatures that the country is currently experiencing.
PTA president Willy Rodriguez said installing air-conditioning units in public schools is the better and long-term solution instead of resorting to modular instruction and the return of the previous school calendar.
“Ang solusyon diyan ay hindi calendar change o modular. Ang solusyon diyan ay magkaroon tayo ng mga airconditioned classrooms for public schools. Tingnan ninyo, walang reklamo ang mga private schools (The solution is not calendar change or modular. The solution is to have airconditioned classrooms for public schools. If you can see, our private schools have no complaints),” Rodriguez said.
But Poa said there are restrictions in their budget expenditures, as he reiterated that public schools can still continue their classes despite the hot weather through alternative delivery modes.
“Bagamat may mga MOOE ang mga schools, hindi po ito magiging sapat upang maglagay ng airconditioning units sa lahat ng classrooms natin (While our schools have their respective MOOEs, this is not enough to provide for airconditioning unit in every classrooms),” Poa said, referring to the funds for maintenance and other operating expenses.
“Kaya po mariin naming pinapaalalahanan ang ating mga school heads na kung hindi na conducive ang learning environment sa mga paaralan nang dahil sa init ng panahon, maaari po silang mag-suspide ng in-person classes at mag implement ng ADMs or alternative delivery modes (That is why we reminded our school heads that they can suspend in-person classes and implement ADMs or alternative delivery modes if the learning environment in their schools are not conducive to learning due to the summer heat),” he added.
Poa had earlier said that school heads have the authority to suspend in-person classes if the learning environment has become intolerable due to the summer heat without waiting for further instructions from their respective city or division offices.
SCHOOL UNIFORMS
On the other hand, the Teachers Dignity Coalition (TDC) urged the DepEd to shorten class hours and suspend the use of school uniforms for teachers and students amid the intolerable summer heat.
TDC national chairperson Benjo Basas said that while the DepEd has allowed school heads to suspend in-person learning if the summer heat becomes intolerable in their respective areas, the only option it gave was a shift to modular distance learning.
Basas noted that some school heads are hesitant to suspend in-person classes and implement modular learning, which makes the DepEd directive ineffective.
“Yang pure modular ay napatunayan nang hindi effective, kaya nga may learning gaps tayo ngayon. Baka pwedeng shortened period na lang, halimbawa ay once or twice a week na physical classes between 6 to 9 or 10 a.m. sa morning session at 3-6 p.m. sa afternoon session kung double shift ang schedule ng school (Pure modular has been proven to be ineffective, that’s why we have learning gaps today. Maybe we can have shortened periods, for example, one or twice a week of physical classes between 6 to 9 or 10 a.m. for morning sessions, and 3-6 p.m. for afternoon sessions if the school schedule can accommodate double shift),” Basas said.
The TDC chair also urged DepEd to suspend the use of school uniforms for both students and teachers since these tend to be uncomfortable.
“Mainit talaga ang uniform namin, so hindi komportable ang mga guro at nakadaragdag pa ito sa stress at physical exhaustion. Mainit na ang panahon, masikip pa ang classroom, mainit pa rin ang suot ni teacher. Maari naman kaming magsuot ng disente pero komportableng damit sa tag-init (Our uniforms are really uncomfortable, and can add to the stress and physical exhaustion. The weather is hot, coupled with classrooms that are cramped, and teachers have to wear uncomfortable clothes. We can wear decent yet comfortable clothes even during the dry season),” he said.
Last month, the ACT said a survey it conducted from March 24 to 27 showed that classes suffer from the scorching summer heat.
ACT chairperson Vladimir Quetua said 87 percent of the 11,706 teachers nationwide who participated in their online survey said students cannot focus on their lessons due to the intolerable heat in public schools.
About 37 percent of those surveyed said the summer heat triggered existing medical conditions of teachers and students, while 40 percent noted that more students have been missing classes since the hot season started.
Quetua said 97 percent of the respondents said their classrooms relied only on electric fans for ventilation while only one percent have air conditioners and 2 percent depend on natural ventilation. — With Ashzel Hachero
