STAYING DRY A teacher at Doña Damiana de Leon Macam Memorial Elementary School in Calumpit, Bulacan, on Tuesday holds her classes on a stage at the school’s covered court to keep her pupils dry as some of their classrooms are still flooded due to recent typhoons. —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA
Around 24.77 million students have so far enrolled, as of Aug. 31, in listed schools across the country, according to the latest count of the Department of Education (DepEd).
The running total, which is expected to increase until next week, is still 4 million short of the DepEd’s projected 28.8 million enrollees for this school year.
Based on data from the agency’s Learner Information System (LIS), a total of 24,772,003 students in public schools, private schools, state universities and colleges, and local universities and colleges, have enrolled as of Thursday afternoon.
Calabarzon recorded the highest number of enrolled students at 3,672,271, followed by Central Luzon, 2,753,328; and the National Capital Region, 2,597,582.
A total of 217,631 students are enrolled in the DepEd’s Alternative Learning System while 15,483 have registered in Philippine schools overseas.
DepEd deputy spokesperson Assistant Secretary Francis Cesar Bringas earlier noted that the enrollment data was a running number and that schools are continuously uploading their information on the LIS.
“The final count will only be established once all reports are in. That will take around two weeks. And the ongoing late enrollment contributes to a longer time of having the final number,” he said.
At a press briefing on Monday, Bringas said the DepEd would accept late enrollees until next week.