The Department of Education (DepEd) on Wednesday said there are no changes yet in its policy on face-to-face classes in November despite the detection of XBB and XBC Omicron subvariant in the country.
DepEd spokesperson Michael Poa said they are waiting for the advice of the Department of Health (DOH).
“Sa ngayon po, wala pa tayong advice on any change. In fact, kaka-issue lang natin ng DO 44 [Department Order no. 44] noong Monday. Tayo naman sa Department of Education, of course, we will always take our cue from the advice given by the DOH pagdating sa health guidelines or any health concerns,” he said.
On Monday, DepEd released the DO 44 directing private schools to continue offering flexible learning options to students such as five days of in-person classes, blended learning modality, or full distance learning.
While all public schools are mandated to transition to 5-days in-person classes and purely distance learning or blended learning shall be implemented.
The DO No. 4 amended the DO no. 34 s. 2022 that earlier required all schools, both private and public, to implement full in-person classes by Nov. 2.
Poa said the education department continues to coordinate with the DOH regarding the matter.
“Of course, patuloy ang coordination because sa pagbubukas natin ng schools, it is an interagency effort talaga,” he added.
Poa reminded teachers, school personnel, and students to follow minimum health protocols ahead of the implementation of full in-person classes.
“Hindi po natin pwedeng ibalewala ang COVID at nandito pa rin po talaga ang COVID. Pero iyon nga po, we just have to observe iyong ating public health protocols na nakasaad sa mga guidelines ng DOH at IATF. Mag-ingat po tayo sa susunod na araw and let’s all hope and pray na maging maayos ang pagbabalik eskwela kapag dating ng November 2 kung saan mandatory ang face-to-face classes,” he added.
