Teachers call anew on DepEd to return to old school calendar

Benjo Basas Facebook photo

A group of teachers reiterated on Tuesday their call for the Department of Education (DepEd) to revert to the old school calendar, saying that alternative learning strategies had adversely impacted learning that could not be recovered once missed.

“There is simply no substitute for face-to-face classes,” Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) chair Benjo Basas said.

The group that suggests going back to the old school calendar was reacting to Education Undersecretary Michael Poa’s statement in a recent forum that instead of suspending classes in times of disasters, the DepEd was resorting to alternative delivery modes—modules, blended learning, or online learning—to maximize learning continuity.

“Since we are in learning recovery mode, we are no longer suspending classes. The only ones that are suspended are in-person classes, but our learners continue to study at their homes,” Poa said.

Basas noted that during the previous school year, many schools were compelled to resort to online or modular learning when teachers and students fell ill due to extreme heat,

“Classes were also cut short for the same reason. These were done to mitigate the impact of the heat, which was exacerbated by our crowded, poorly ventilated and inadequately insulated classrooms,” he said.

Based on the TDC’s proposal, the next school year may start on Aug. 28 or Aug. 29 but should end on April 27, 2024.

“The proposed schedule includes 33 Saturdays of asynchronous class, bringing the total number of school days to 193, which is more than the DepEd-prescribed 180 nonnegotiable school days,” it said. INQ

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