Malacañang announced on Wednesday that enrollment of students in public schools would push through as scheduled on June 1.
“Tuloy po muna ang enrolment, madali naman pong ikansela iyan depende sa sitwasyon ng COVID-19. At saka kinakailangan pa ring mag-enroll, kasi bagama’t ang ating gagawin ay blended learning, magkakaroon pa rin tayo ng mga assessment,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in a DZRH interview.
Roque said that face-to-face classes would only be allowed in areas that are under the “new normal,” without quarantine measures put in place.
“[T]uloy pa po ang ating preparasyon, at malalaman natin talaga kung anong lagay pagdating ng Agosto,” he added.
Malacañang also said regional Department of Education (DepEd) offices should prepare for more students in provinces as many families had left Metro Manila due to the increasing threat of Covid-19.
“Karapatan ng bawat kabataan na makapag-aral. So hindi mo naman masisisi ang mga magulang dahil talaga namang sa probinsiya ay mas maliit ang banta ng COVID-19 kaysa dito sa Metro Manila. At talaga namang iniengganyo natin ngayon ang ating mga kababayan na magbalik-probinsiya. So natural dapat paghandaan din po iyan ng ating DepEd sa mga probinsiya,” he said.
Roque reiterated that until quarantine measures remained in place, face-to-face classes would be prohibited.
“Ang rule po basta mayroong community quarantine, hindi matutuloy ang pasok. Pero sa higher learning, mas may kakayahan silang magbigay ng flexible learning, kasama na diyan ang online learning. So inaasahan natin na mas matindi ang kahandaan ng ating mga higher education institute, higher learning education institute dahil matagal na silang naghahanda at mayroon talaga silang kapasidad,” he said.
President Rodrigo Duterte on May 25 said he would not allow classes to open physically before a Covid-19 vaccine becomes available in the market.
“It’s useless to be talking about the opening of classes. Para sa akin, bakuna muna. Pag nandyan ang bakuna, okay na,” he said.
DepEd previously announced that enrollment will take place from June 1 to June 30, and classes will start, whether physically or virtually, on Aug. 24. John Ezekiel J. Hirro