CLASSES in all public schools for the school year 2023-2014 will start on August 29, according to the Department of Education.
The department said private schools may open classes on any date starting “the first Monday of June but not later than the last day of August” pursuant to Republic Act 11480, or the act amending Section 3 of RA 7797 otherwise known as “an act to lengthen the school calendar from 200 days to not more than 220 days.”
Around 28 million students were enrolled in 44,931 public elementary and secondary schools nationwide in the previous academic year.
DepEd data showed there are 12,162 private schools in the country.
The department opened last May the registration for incoming kindergarten and Grades 1, 7, and 11 students in public schools for the coming school year.
The early registration, according to an order issued by Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte, would allow the DepEd to make the necessary preparations and adjustments of plans for the coming school year.
The education sector (basic and tertiary) was allocated a total of P924.7 billion in the 2024 National Expenditure Program of the national government.
At the same time, Duterte said that incoming Grades 2-6, 8-10, and 12 learners from public schools “do not need to participate in the early registration” as they are already considered “pre-registered.”
The early registration also seeks to locate, identify and register out-of-school youth and children identified as living with disabilities, having chronic illness or nutritional problems, a victim of child abuse or economic exploitation, in conflict with the law, or living in the streets.
It also encourages schools and local officials to reach out to those displaced due to natural disasters and conflicts, those living in a geographically isolated area, and those no longer in school but are interested in going back.
Prior to the shift in the school calendar (from June to August), the DepEd conducted the early registration every January.
