THE government is eyeing the expansion of face-to-face classes to include more high school and elementary schools by the first week of February depending on the coronavirus disease situation at the end of month, Education Secretary Leonor Briones said Monday night.
Cabinet Secretary Kalro Nograles said President Duterte and the Cabinet had no objection to the Department of Education’s (DepEd) recommendations for a “progressive expansion” or opening of more face-to-face classes.
Briones, during the Talk to the People address of the President, said not all schools would be able to participate and conduct face-to-face classes at the same time so it would be limited to areas with few COVID cases or lesser restrictions.
She said schools in areas placed under Alert Level 3, for instance, would still not be included in in-person classes.
Briones added they would continue to abide by the protocols as well as their requirements such as obtaining the parents’ permission to allow their children to participate, having the approval of local government units where the schools are located to hold face-to-face classes, and having the proper school facility and equipment on hand.
She said only fully vaccinated teachers and non-teaching personnel will be allowed to participate in face-to-face classes.
“We will not expand without knocking at the local governments and without the written consent of the parents…. The expansion will be in February but we will take care, taking into consideration the advice of the Department of Health, the LGUs, as well as now the Department of Justice,” she said.
