MANILA City public schools have modified their class schedules in an effort to lessen the impact of the intense heat on students and teachers this dry season.

Instead of the usual full-day schedule, public schools shall conduct classes only from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m. from April 11 to May 28, the Office of the Schools Division Superintendent said in a memorandum issued on April 8.

It cited the ”onset of [the] summer season, where [a] dangerous level of heat index is expected.” 

Public schools district supervisors were asked to provide technical assistance to schools in the redevelopment of re-programmed schedules, including but not limited to blended mode.

Teachers must report to school, either to conduct online teaching, prepare activity sheets, check and record learners’ output, monitor learners’ progress, or fulfill yearend tasks. 

The months of March, April, and May are typically the hottest and driest in the Philippines, but conditions this year have been exacerbated by the El Niño weather phenomenon.

Many schools have no air conditioning, leaving students to swelter in crowded, poorly ventilated classrooms.

The DepEd, which oversees more than 47,000 schools nationwide, has issued an advisory giving school heads the power to decide when to switch to remote learning “in cases of extreme heat and other calamities.”