Education Secretary Leonor Briones on Tuesday said 25,668 public and private schools had started conducting face-to-face (F2F) classes amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a report during President Rodrigo Duterte’s “Talk to the People” address, Briones said the schools were equivalent to 56.89 percent of public schools nationwide.

The Department of Education (DepEd) chief also said 676 private schools had begun F2F classes, a mere 5.47 percent of the total.

More than million learners are participating in the F2F classes, Briones said: 5,948,640 students from public schools and 226,991 from private schools.

“Walang problema sa public schools kasi the minute ma-assess ang isang region or isang place na [Alert] Level 1 or 2, automatic ‘yan F2F kaagad. Pero ang sa private schools, of course, decisions nila ‘yun,” she said.

The DepEd started resuming F2F classes in several regions of the country as Covid-19 cases started to decrease earlier in the year.

In-person basic education classes are allowed under Alert Level 1 and 2. John Ezekiel J. Hirro