Briones: Threat of COVID-19 infection ‘lowest’ in schools

MANILA, Philippines — There is a lower threat of coronavirus infection in schools than at homes, Education Secretary Leonor Briones said Wednesday, as she defended the planned face-to-face classes pilot implementation in January next year.

“Sinasabi na lahat ng pag-aaral nagpapakita na ang pinaka-lowest threat ay sa schools,” Briones said in a televised Laging Handa Public Briefing.

“Ang malaking posibilidad ay sa homes kasi that is where they spend most of their time and other places,” she added.

Classes resumed nationwide in October with schools utilizing distance learning modality— a combination of online and modular learning—as campuses stay closed and physical classes remain suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

But the government earlier announced it will conduct a pilot implementation of face-to-face classes in select schools in areas deemed low-risk to COVID-19.

READ: Duterte OKs January dry run of face-to-face classes in low COVID-risk areas 

READ: Face-to-face classes dry run set from January 11 to 23 

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers, however, said that a low COVID-19 infection rate is not a guarantee for a safe return to schools, especially since probable areas for the dry run were poor rural localities “where school facilities are least ideal and personnel is most wanting.

Briones said 1,114 schools have so far been nominated for the pilot face-to-face classes dry run next month. But she noted that they would trim down the list as they will also consider other factors such as the consent of local government units and parents, as well as the schools’ facilities.

KGA