Antipolo LGU installs handwashing facilities for resumption of face-to-face classes
The Antipolo City local government is ramping up its efforts in ensuring the safe return of students and faculty as the Department of Education (DepEd) extends its limited face-to-face classes amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Kung dati-rati ay puro ceiling fans at wall fans ang ating mga ikinakabit sa mga paaralan, ngayon ay kaliwa't-kanan naman ang pagtatayo natin ng wash facilities para pag bumalik ang face-to-face classes ay madali tayong makakasunod sa minimum health and safety protocols (Before, we used to install ceiling and wall fans in our schools, but now, we are ramping up the installation of wash facilities for the safe return to face-to-face classes. We can also maintain the observance of the minimum health and safety protocols)," the local government unit (LGU) said in a Facebook post.
The limited pilot implementation of face-to-face classes started in November to December 2021.
Based on the operational design of DepEd, the pilot phase included 100 public schools and 20 private schools. The participating schools must have concurrence from the local government unit (LGU), located in low-risk areas (at least level 2) and passed the school safety assessment tool (SSAT).
The pilot run only covered students who were given consent by their parents to join the face-to-face classes.
Only students with no co-morbidities in Kindergarten to Grade 3 (Elementary) and those who are taking TVL Track for Senior High School (SHS) were allowed to join.
The class sizes were also limited with only 12 students for the Kinder level, 16 for Grades 1 to 3, and 12 for SHS Laboratory.
All teachers and school personnel involved in the pilot run were also required to be vaccinated against COVID-19.