The Department of Education (DepEd) will wait for the official approval on the optional wearing of face masks outdoors before making the necessary adjustments in its guidelines on in-person classes.
“We will wait for the official approval of the Office of the President and we will abide by whatever the President directs us to do as well as the DOH ,” said DepEd Spokesperson Michael Poa during a joint press conference on Thursday, Sept. 8.
Poa refused to comment on the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to make the wearing of face masks outdoors voluntary in places across the country.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2022/09/07/iatf-recommends-optional-wearing-of-face-mask-outdoors-doh/
“For now, no comment muna ang DepEd sa bagay na iyan (DepEd has no comment on this matter),” Poa said, noting that there is no coordination between DepEd and the DOH on this yet.
In DepEd No. 34 series of 2022 or the School Calendar and Activities for the School Year (SY) 2022-2023, it was stated that “face masks shall be mandatory in the re-opening of classes” as part of the guidelines on the prevention of Covid-19 and other infectious diseases.
When classes for this school year opened on Aug. 22, DepEd said that the majority of schools nationwide were expected to implement blended learning with an “in-person” aspect.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2022/08/19/90-of-schools-nationwide-to-open-sy-2022-2023-with-in-person-aspect-deped/
However, the implementation of blended learning will only be allowed until Oct. 31. Starting Nov. 2, DepEd said that all public and private schools should have transitioned to five days of in-person classes.
Given this, “no school shall be allowed to implement purely distance learning or blended learning” except for those implementing alternative delivery modes.
To date, Poa said that DepEd is still waiting for approval from the Office of the President before it coordinates with its local DOH counterparts.
“We have to wait for this so we can give clear guidelines for learners and teachers,” Poa said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Poa noted that once there is approval on this coming from the OP, DepEd local offices will start coordinating with its DOH counterparts. “We will also come out with the necessary announcements,” he added.