Leyte school readies ‘festive’ opening for in-person classes
READY This classroom in the upland village of Balanac in Ligao City, Albay, is readied in time for the start of in-person classes on Monday. —PHOTO COURTESY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION LIGAO CITY DIVISION
PALO, Leyte, Philippines — School principal Onesima Dacillo could not contain her excitement on Friday as Palo I Central School got ready for in-person classes starting Monday, a first in nearly two years for select schools across the country since the coronavirus pandemic struck in March 2020.
Palo I Central School, chosen by the Department of Education (DepEd) as among the 21 pilot schools in the Visayas to hold in-person classes, would initially only have two pupils in attendance but it was just the beginning, said Dacillo, who leads the biggest public school in this town with 2,042 enrolled students this school year and 64 teachers. The school is located in Barangay Cavite West, which has no single COVID-19 case.
“We are ready for the opening of [in-person] classes in our school, and we will have a festive opening with all the teachers in attendance and other officials of the DepEd,” Dacillo said.
The schools in the Visayas where in-person classes would be piloted were located in Barbaza and Bigasong towns in Antique; Nabas in Aklan; Samboan, Malabuyoc, Balamban, Bantayan, Oslob, Moalboal, Pilar and Bogo City in Cebu; Palo and Bato in Leyte; and Calbayog City, Pilar, Motiong, San Sebastian and Sta. Margarita towns in Western Samar.
To ensure protection against COVID-19, plastic barriers and hand-washing areas must be placed in the classrooms while students would be seated a meter apart from each other. Everyone should also wear face masks. The students’ temperature must also be checked before they would be cleared to enter the classrooms.
Article continues after this advertisementExcited
In Central Visayas, DepEd Regional Director Dr. Salustiano Jimenez said students who would be attending the pilot classes were “excited” to return to actual classrooms despite the health restrictions in place.
Article continues after this advertisementThe parents were just as happy. “In fact, some of them told me that they do not want an online class for their children who become lazy [while studying] at home,” he said.
In Western Visayas, the teachers, pupils, parents and officials of two schools in remote villages in Antique province were also looking forward to the in-person classes, said DepEd Antique Schools Governance and Operations Division chief Evelyn Remo.She said Mayabay Primary School in Barbaza town and Igsoro Integrated School in Bugasong town were selected because their villages were remote and had no COVID-19 cases.
Igsoro Integrated School, which has 89 learners, is 47 kilometers from the town proper. Mayabay Primary School, which piloted classes for 63 pupils, is 29 km from the town center.
Voluntary consent
In the Bicol region, nine schools in Albay and Masbate provinces chosen for in-person classes were ready for Monday’s opening after undergoing a series of simulation exercises designed to help them observe the health protocol standards against COVID-19.
Mayflor Marie Jumamil, DepEd Bicol information officer, said some divisions and schools in the region would continue the blended learning but were also getting ready for in-person classes once permitted by the DepEd.
In Albay, the five selected schools were all located in the upland villages of Malama, Tupas, Balanac, Tandarura and Tiongson in Ligao City that had no COVID-19 cases because of their remoteness, said Nelson Morales Jr., Ligao City schools division superintendent, in an interview on Sunday.
He said the parents of pupils in pilot classes readily gave their consent for the resumption of in-person classes since they were not affected by COVID-19. Still, he said, the pilot schools were required to comply with the health protocols put in place by the DepEd.
The more than 400 pupils in Ligao City would each receive backpacks loaded with 10 pieces of notebooks, writing pads, pencils, crayons and health essentials, like rubbing alcohol, sanitizer and face masks given by private donors, said Celeste Nasalita, the DepEd’s focal person for networking and partnership in the city.
In Masbate, the 43 grade school learners to join the in-person classes at the elementary school in the remote subvillage of Gatusan in Masbate City were also excited for Monday’s opening. These learners used to be taught through modules and radio-based instruction, said school principal Ramar Torres on Sunday.
