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High School Department

blue for facts Resuming Classes

By: Philippine Star
pink for opinion Released: April 23, 2020

Classes were among the first to be disrupted by the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. As in the difficult
balancing act between public health and economic health, stakeholders are struggling to balance the need
between protecting people from a contagion and resuming formal education.

The COVID-19 pandemic struck as public schools were entering the final weeks of the schoolyear.
Graduation proceedings remain in limbo; authorities have yet to decide whether there will be a universal
promotion of all students to the next level, or whether a remedial period for the missed lessons will be
required before students can move up to the next grade.

At this point, a regular school opening in June appears to be out of the question. With the country increasing
capabilities in COVID testing, contact tracing, isolation and quarantine, however, stakeholders are tossing
around the possibility of starting the next schoolyear in August.

Health experts are likely to caution against any haste in reopening schools. While children are not
considered at high risk for COVID infection, they are not immune to the disease: children as young as a
few weeks old, toddlers and teenagers have succumbed to the coronavirus.

As education stakeholders weigh their options, authorities can boost efforts to promote online learning.
Amid the enhanced community quarantine, the Department of Education has launched on online platform
called DepEd Commons, which allows distance learning through digital technology.

DepEd Commons offers online review materials and open educational resources prepared by teachers who
are experts in particular subjects. DepEd officials say most public-school teachers and students have
computers or cell phones that can facilitate online learning. The problem is that internet access in the
country is only at about 48 percent.

While acknowledging the limitations of the program, DepEd says: “In this extraordinary situation we find
ourselves in, we must walk before we run.” Those who cannot avail themselves of the program can opt for
paper-based homework to complete the requirements of the schoolyear.

With scientists still trying to develop a COVID-19 vaccine and any possible cure still several months away
from mass production, the consequences of reopening classes in the country’s crowded schools need careful
consideration. Technology allows remote learning, and efforts must be ramped up to make this universally
accessible. With the public health threat expected to persist for months, alternative learning modes must be
promoted.