The Department of Education (DepEd) on Wednesday, May 8, reminded schools to ensure that the activities for the end of the current school year will remain simple but meaningful.
“Nakapagbigay na tayo ng guidance sa mga school heads na ang pagdaraos ng ating mga year-end activities like moving-up exercises and graduation ay kailangan simple pero makabuluhan celebration (We have already provided guidance to school heads that the conduct of our year-end activities like moving-up exercises and graduation should be a simple yet meaningful celebration),” DepEd Assistant Secretary and Deputy Spokesperson Francis Cesar Bringas said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview.
DepEd has already issued the guidelines for the K to 12 Basic Education Program End-of-School-Year Rites (EOSY) for School Year (SY) 2023–2024 in Memorandum No. 23 series of 2024.
No-collection policy
To ensure that there will be no additional financial burden on the parents of learners who will graduate or those who will participate in the moving-up exercise, DepEd reminded schools of the existing “No-Collection” policy.
“They should be avoiding extravagant events at hindi kailangan ng mga special attires para magkaroon ng makabuluhan na graduation and definitely, ipapatupad natin yung no collection policy natin (They should be avoiding extravagant events, and special attire is not necessary to have a meaningful graduation and definitely, we will implement our no-collection policy,” Bringas said.
Since the expenses related to graduation and moving-up ceremonies are covered by schools’ Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE), Bringas stressed: “There should be no contributions coming from the learners or the parents in the conduct of our year-end exercises.”
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Adjustments due to hot weather
To ensure the safety of learners, parents, and school personnel amid the extreme heat experienced nationwide, DepEd also included in its end-of-school-year (EOSY) guidelines the advisory to schools to hold year-end activities indoors.
“Because of the extreme heat, we also have an advisory for them that as much as possible, if there is available space, they should do it indoors and they need to adjust their schedule,” Bringas explained in a mix of English and Filipino.
For schools with large populations, Bringas said they could consider conducting the EOSY activities in batches to accommodate learners in the indoor space available.
In the absence of indoor spaces like covered courts, Bringas said schools should not hold closing exercises from 10 a.m. to 3 to 3:30 p.m. or during the hottest parts of the day.
Instead, Bringas said schools may hold year-end activities from 6 to 10 a.m. or 7 to 10 a.m. or from 3:30 to 7 p.m. to ensure that the attendees to the graduation rites or moving-up exercises are not too affected by the extreme heat.
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https://mb.com.ph/2024/5/4/dep-ed-to-schools-hold-end-of-school-year-rites-indoors