MANILA – The new school year will open Aug. 24, whether it will be physically or virtually, the Department of Education (DepEd) announced Tuesday.
According to DepEd secretary Leonor Briones Briones, it was agreed upon during the consultations made that the school year will begin on Aug. 24 and will end on April 30, 2021.
She added that students will either go to class physically or via online due to the enhanced community quarantine and general community quarantine implemented in different parts of the country.
“Ang napili nating school opening date ay Aug. 24,” Briones said. “Una sa lahat, ang pinakamalaking konsiderasyon natin dito ay to protect the health and safety and well-being of learners. ‘Yun ang pinakaunang priority natin.”
Briones also said that the changes will pose a huge challenge for the DepEd as new teaching methodologies before the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, including Flexible Learning Options, have been fast-tracked.
“May mga schools na handa na daw sila na magbukas ng online, public o private, ng kanilang school lessons. Marami ring through the cellphone. Nag-survey kami, puwede ding sa telebisyon at saka sa radyo,” Briones said.
Briones also ordered teachers to render service to DepEd, whether physically or virtually, from June 1 to June 30, for them to undergo capacity building for new lessons, including the DepEd Commons.
Even with DepEd’s announcement, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said that he will still push for the bill granting authority to President Rodrigo Duterte to adjust the schedule of opening of classes.
“Yes. Because my bill gives the President the power to adjust [the] school calendar unlike the previous law,” Sotto said on his Senate Bill No. 1438, which aims to amend Section 3 of the Republic Act No. 7977 or the Act on Lengthening of School Calendar./PN
