Amid existing and emerging challenges, the school opening for public schools will push through on Aug. 22, the Department of Education (DepEd) on Thursday, Aug. 4, said.
“Tuloy-tuloy na po ang opening of classes natin sa August 22, 2022 at kaya tuloy-tuloy din ang pakikipag-ugnayan ng DepEd sa iba’t-ibang sangay at ahensya ng gobyerno pati na din sa din sa mga lokal na pamahalaan (We wil push though with the Aug. 22 school opening and this is also why DepEd continues to coordinate with various branches and agencies as well as local government units),” DepEd Spokesperson lawyer Michael Poa said in a press conference.
“For enrollment, we still have high turnout,” Poa said. Citing the latest enrollment data, as of Aug. 4, he noted that there are 15.2 million learners enrolled for School Year (SY) 2022-2023.
“Just the same, hinihikayat po natin ang ating mag magulang na mai-enroll na ang kanilang mga anak bago pa mag-August 22 (we encourage the parents to enroll their children before the August 22 school opening),” he said.
Related to the preparations for school opening, Poa said that DepEd led an inter-agency coordination meeting last week. “Different government agencies were present and where we also discussed the commitments that these agencies will give the DepEd for the opening of classes,” he explained.
To ensure the smooth opening of SY 2022-2023, Poa said that DepEd also launched early this week the 2022 “Brigada Eskwela.” Also known as the National Schools Maintenance Week, the “Brigada Eskwela” is an annual effort where education stakeholders gather and hold school maintenance efforts to ensure that the schools are ready to accommodate the learners for the incoming school year.
“We thank the private sector for helping us with this and we encourage other members of private sector organizations to continue supporting this program para maihanda natin ang ating nga paaralan sa pagbabalik-klase (to prepare our schools for the resumption of classes),” Poa said.
DepEd has set the opening of SY 2022-2023 on Aug. 22. Until Oct. 31, schools will be allowed to implement blended learning before they transition to five days in-person classes starting Nov. 2, 2022.
Poa said that the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELCs) will still be adopted this SY as the agency eyes the full resumption of face-to-face classes amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
As enshrined in the Basic Education Development Plan (BEDP) 2030, Poa said that “access, equity, quality, and resiliency” will also serve as DepEd’s framework and guide in the coming years.
“The opening of classes will not be without challenges, that pretty much is obvious but if we can help each other, tulong-tulong po tayo, masisuguro natin ang ligtas na pagbabalik eskwela ng ating mga (as long as we can work together, we can ensure the safe school opening of classes for our) learners,” he added.