Pilot Implementation of Face to Face Classes for 2021

Maricris M. Gavino

And face to face classes is about to begin. After more than a year of battling the corona virus pandemic, the Philippines will reopen up to 120 schools for limited face-to-face classes in a pilot run approved by President Rodrigo Duterte. Prior to this, the Philippines was one of the last two countries in the world that had yet to reopen schools since the World Health OrganizationdeclaredthepandemicinMarch2020.

The Philippine government has been criticized for its pandemic response, with critics saying that the school closure in the country reflects misplaced priorities and failed management of the health crisis. For two pandemic school openings,studentshavebeenkeptathometostudyunderalarge-scaledistance learning system that has been criticized for its poor implementation.

Education groups said the approval of the pilot run was a "significant step towards improving the delivery of education" in the middle of the health crisis. The run will happen at a time when the country is dealing with a fresh surge of infections driven by the highly transmissible Delta variant.

The Department of Education (DepEd) said that the run's operational guidelines were prepared together with the Department of Health (DOH) and with the support of the World Health Organization, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and other organizations specializing in children’s health.

The department said that the guidelines took into consideration the "personal protective equipment available, sanitation, detection and referral, ventilation, contact tracing, and quarantine, coordination, and contingency measures."

The guidelines also included protocol for preparing school personnel, students, and the community before the school reopening.

At a press briefing on Monday, September 20, Education Secretary Leonor Briones said that schools must have adequate facilities in order to ensure that social distancing and other health protocols are followed. The DepEd announced on October 6 that the pilot run of limited face-to-face classes will start on November 15.

TheDepEdsaidthatitwillbeimplementedfortwomonthsandwillbeclosely monitored for risk assessment. The pilot run covers a maximum of 100 public schools in areas categorized as minimal risks and that have passed the readiness assessmeny and an additional 20 private schools jointly validated by the Deped and the the Department of Health. We are hoping for the best result so that everybody one at a hand can start a new life in the field of education.

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The author is a Teacher III, Lauc Pao Elementary, Lubao West

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