ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro. INQUIRER.net file photo / Noy Morcoso
MANILA, Philippines — Changing the academic calendar of schools was a result of “poor planning” and an attempt to keep up with global trends, according to House Deputy Minority Leader and Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Rep. France Castro on Friday following concerns of students having to go to school amid soaring heat temperatures.
READ: 67 percent of teachers say heat in their classrooms ‘intolerable’
“Halatang hindi inaral mabuti batay sa kondisyon ng Pilipinas as a climate-vulnerable country ang paglipat ng school calendar. Para lang makasabay sa globalized trend, academic calendar shift agad agad. Poor planning talaga at ang kawawa na naman ay ang mga estudyante at mga guro,” said Castro.
(It is obvious that the Philippines’ condition was not studied as a climate-vulnerable country when the school calendar was shifted. Just so that the country can keep up with globalized trends, it is an academic calendar shift right away. It is abysmal planning, and the students and teachers suffer.)
Castro pointed to the case of students in Laguna collapsing due to the intense summer heat.
READ: Mayor suspends classes after students hospitalized from heat exhaustion in Cabuyao
According to a previous online survey by the ACT, 67 percent of 11,706 public school teachers found the heat intolerable.
“Sa sobrang taas ng heat index ngayong panahon ng climate change hindi talaga safe para sa mga teachers at estudyante ang magklase sa mga malapugon nilang mga classroom,” Castro said.
(Because of the high heat index during climate change, it is unsafe for teachers and students to have class in oven-like classrooms.)
She reiterated her group’s call to shift the calendar back to having summer break during April and May.
Despite these calls, Vice President and concurrent Department of Education Secretary Sara Duterte said there were no plans to move the summer break again.
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