“Tagumpay.”
This is how Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte described the first day of classes on Monday, Aug. 22 as schools nationwide reopen for face-to-face classes.
“Today, we acknowledge that this is a victory for basic education,” Duterte said during the 2022 National School Opening Day Program (NSODP) at the Dinalupihan Elementary School in Bataan.
“Isang malaking tagumpay para sa mga kabataan Pilipino ang muling pagsisimula ng in-person learning ngayong araw na ito (The resumption of in-person learning today is a great achievement for Filipino youth),” she added.
School Year (SY) 2022-2023 marked the first time in two years that students were allowed to attend in-person classes.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2022/08/21/ph-schools-to-open-sy-2022-2023-with-face-to-face-classes/
Due to the threat of the Covid-19 pandemic, DepEd implemented distance learning where students learned their lessons at home through various alternative learning modes.
While she recognized all the concerns on health and safety coming from various quarters, Duterte said that there should not be any excuses when it comes to the education of students.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2022/08/22/covid-19-pandemic-no-longer-an-excuse-to-keep-children-from-schools-duterte/
Duterte explained that even before the school opening, there were calls to postpone the school opening to a later date.
However, she noted that the education of the Filipino youth can no longer wait given the learning losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Duterte shared her visit to Limasawa Island in Southern Leyte two weeks ago. She went to Trianna Elementary School which was severely damaged by “Odette” last year.
Despite the devastation, Duterte said that the parents and teachers themselves did not want the Aug. 22 school opening postponed. Trianna ES, Duterte said, also represented the resilience of Filipinos in the face of challenges.
Just like how the parents and teachers in Trianna ES found ways to push through with the school opening, Duterte underscored that there “are no excuses.” “Hindi na po natin kaya na muling maantala pa ang pag-aaral ng mga Pilipino (We cannot afford to delay the education of Filipinos again),” she explained.
Students, she said, need to go back to face-to-face classes because, with in-person learning, they will get the quality education that they need to be productive citizens of the country.
As of Aug. 19, DepEd data showed that 29,721 schools, or 51.8 percent of schools nationwide, implement a blended learning modality. There are 24, 175 schools, or 46 percent of schools nationwide, implement five days in-person classes. While only 1.29 percent or 1,004 schools implement full distance learning.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2022/08/19/90-of-schools-nationwide-to-open-sy-2022-2023-with-in-person-aspect-deped/
Out of more than 60,000 schools nationwide that offer basic education, 12,624 are private schools and 47, 553 are public schools.