PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Wednesday he was in favor of going back to the old school calendar sooner in light of the extreme heat experienced by students and teachers during the dry season.
“Hangga’t maaari gusto nating ibalik sa dati. Dahil, I think, medyo may consensus na talaga na mas maganda ‘yung dating schedule kaya’t hindi naman sinasabi na hindi natin gagawin before next year, or the year after that,” Marcos told reporters in San Juan City.
”Susubukan namin gawin dahil sa aming palagay baka mahirapan pa tayo. Ngunit hanggang may paraan gagawin natin ng maaga para mapaaga at mapabilis ang pagbalik sa normal ang schedule ng mga bata,” he added.
In a statement, the Department of Education said it would seek clarification regarding the President’s remarks, as the agency had already declared that a return to the April school break would only be possible in two years.
The DepEd said the gradual shift of the school calendar was the result of extensive consultations held with field personnel, student leaders, parent organizations, and teacher organizations.
”The original proposal was a five-year period for the gradual reversion to the April-May break in order to ensure that learning outcomes and breaks would not be compromised. As a result of the mentioned consultations, however, the original timeline of five years was reduced to only two years,” the DepEd said.
”To reduce the timeline any further would have significant impacts not only on learning outcomes but also on the well-being of learners and teachers due to the lack of sufficient breaks.”
‘Knee-jerk changes’
The DepEd also said that schools may switch to Alternative Delivery Modes (ADM) in the event of man-made or natural disasters, including weather disturbances.
”To date, 5,844 out of 47,678 public schools nationwide have switched to ADMs. The number clearly indicates that not all schools are similarly-situated. Hence, giving school heads — who are in the best position to accurately assess the learning environment on the ground — the discretion to switch to ADMs provides a more immediate and effective response to heat conditions than knee-jerk changes that would further compromise learning recovery,” it said.
”Rest assured that DepEd is committed to improving the quality of basic education and will seek clarification from the President in relation to his recent pronouncements regarding the reversion upon his return from the Trilateral Summit.”
School Year 2023-2024 began on August 29, 2023, and will conclude on May 31, 2024.
SY 2024-2025 will start on July 29, 2024, and end on May 16, 2025.
