MALACANANG yesterday said more than 18 million elementary and high school students have enrolled for the 2020-2021 school year set to start on August 24.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said latest data from the Department of Education (DepEd) showed that 18,239,528 students have enrolled as of July 4, more than a two million increase from the 15.8 million that enrolled in public schools and private schools when the June 30 enrollment in public schools ended. Enrolment in public schools had been extended until July 15.
Roque said 17,401,529 students are enrolled in public schools and 818,137 registered in private schools.
He urged parents not to allow the COVID-19 pandemic to hinder the education of their children.
Meanwhile, Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) chairman Prospero de Vera III said universities and colleges engaged in flexible learning schemes are now offering free training to faculty members of other universities and colleges for free in anticipation of the opening of classes in August.
De Vera, during the Laging Handa network briefing, said among the institutions that partnered with CHED in providing two-week training courses are De La Salle-St Benilde, Far Eastern University, and Philippine Normal University.
He said other higher education institutions, both in the country and abroad, had also shared programs, syllabus and learning modules through the CHED online portal “PHL CHED” which can be accessed by faculty members and students to help them in conduct of online classes.
Face-to-face or in-person classes may be conducted for higher education institutions, provided that it is on a limited capacity and there is strict compliance with minimum public health standards, consultation with local government units, and compliance with guidelines set by Commission on Higher Education.
HEI activities that involve mass gathering of students will continue to be prohibited while the blended learning program of the DepEd will be adopted for the elementary and high school levels.
The DepEd said 8.4 million have registered for the agency’s commons program. — With Noel Talacay