The Office of the Vice President (OVP) is standing by its earlier claim that it coordinated with the Department of Education (DepEd) in the establishment of community learning hubs for students in need of support for their classes during the coronavirus pandemic.
Lawyer Barry Gutierrez, spokesperson of Vice President Leni Robredo, said the OVP’s learning hubs were coordinated with the DepEd at “both the national and local levels, every step of the way.”
(FACEBOOK / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
Gutierrez issued the statement contrary to Briones’ claim in an online Palace briefing that the DepEd did not approve the OVP’s community learning hubs.
He said Briones even told Robredo‘s office in official correspondences “it is a good initiative” and requested for additional details to “evaluate the feasibility of implementing such a program at scale.”
“Until today, national DepEd did not express any opposition to the initiative, and our office has in fact been ready for any coordination to scale up the hubs,” he said.
Gutierrez explained it was very clear when they communicated with DepEd that the “hubs are not meant to be sites for classroom or face-to-face instruction.”
“Instead, it is meant to be a place for students where home-based learning is not conducive to get tutorial support in completing their modules and accessing resources, including the internet,” he added.
The OVP and its private partners have so far set up 11 learning hubs in various pilot sites—Pasig City; Taytay, Rizal; San Jose, Camarines Sur; Balete, Aklan; Lucena, Quezon; Himamaylan, Negros Occidental; and Tabaco City, Albay.
They serve as alternative learning spaces for students who don’t have access to gadgets and face difficulties in their modules needed for distance learning.
In a later Twitter post, Gutierrez said it is “ridiculous” for Briones to make such claim since the DepEd has been informed by the OVP about the project in August.
He added the secretary asked for more details to study implementation of the hubs, which Robredo’s office provided on September 8.
Last month, the OVP official opened its community learning hubs for students.
Gutierrez assured the public that safety and health protocols are strictly observed in these learning facilities.