A federation of teachers on Friday urged the national government to come up with a “clear plan” that would ensure the safe resumption of face-to-face classes following the reported concerns on distance learning.

In a virtual press conference, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) asked the government to “immediately put in place” several key measures that would help address the mounting challenges experienced by students, parents, and teachers under the distance learning set-up being implemented this school year.

“Dapat inihahanda na natin yung resumption ng tunay na blended learning classes na may halong face-to-face, online, at modular pero pinakadapat yung face-to-face kasi ito lang ang talagang magso-solve doon eh, yung problema sa pagkawala ng mga bata at iba pa (We really should prepare for the resumption of true blended learning classes, one that has face-to-face, online and modular but the most important is the face-to-face which will ultimately solve the problem of dwindling participation of students, among others),” ACT Secretary General Raymond Basilio said.

Aside from rolling out a clear plan to prepare for the safe resumption of face-to-face classes in low-risk areas, ACT is pushing for the government to include the installation of health facilities, hiring of health personnel, strict observance of health protocols, and vaccination program for education frontliners.

Basilio said that passing a supplementary budget to “provide for all the teaching and learning resources needed in distance learning” is very crucial as well as ensuring the provision of health protection and payment of just benefits for education workers. The group is also asking the Department of Education (DepEd) for the implementation of a “genuine” academic ease.

Citing its own ground monitoring, ACT said that the “worst hit” are students from the families of landless farmers in the rural areas and the poorest of the urban poor whose parents have very little education and are pre-occupied by their daily subsistence.

“Their modules are mostly unclaimed and they cannot buy data load to attend online classes even if local government units have lent them gadgets,” ACT said. Citing DepEd data, ACT noted that there were only 3,200 learning support aides employed nationwide.

ACT also noted that teachers have been “staking everything” such as shouldering the costs of module printing and online classes, and gambling their own safety to distribute modules in schools and communities sans health protection and transportation support from the government just to keep their students in the fold of education.

“However, no amount of teachers’ sacrifices can fill in the great gaps created by the government’s abandonment of education,” the group said.

ACT is urgently demanding the Duterte government to “tackle and take responsibility” for the sharply worsening education crisis in the country as witnessed in the alleged grave failures of distance learning in the first quarter of the school year 2020-2021.