As some public schools reopened their doors to students in basic education, Catholic schools in the National Capital Region were told to prepare for the eventual return of physical learning.
The Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines-NCR urges its member schools to closely monitor and learn from the pilot implementation of face-to-face classes in other schools.
“We are encouraging the heads of private Catholic schools to monitor this pilot program and check which practices of the DepEd apply to us,” said Fr. Nolan Que, CEAP NCR Trustee.
“We call on the heads of Catholic schools to begin planning this transition as soon as possible,” he said.
The priest said this is because they believe that the initiative of the Department of Education is the right move almost two years since the start of the health crisis.
“We cannot hide forever. This endeavor is a calculated risk that all schools in the country must take to begin the transition from distance learning to limited face-to-face learning,” Que said.
In preparation, he said Catholic schools should coordinate with their respective local governments in the implementation of the health protocols.
“We estimate that our schools will start their own preparations when our schools have a guarantee that the local government units implement and monitor all quarantine health protocols,” Que said.
He also urged school administrators to begin communicating with the parents and guardians of their pupils.
“Please begin the process of securing the consent of parents, who wish to avail this when the limited face-to-face sessions are available in your areas,” said the CEAP official.
But Catholic schools, he also said, cannot leave behind the pupils and students, who prefer the remote learning modality.
“We call on our instructional leaders to ensure that provisions for the blended learning approach are in place to accommodate families, who prefer online distance learning,” Que said.
The DepEd on Monday began the pilot implementation of face-to-face classes in selected areas in the country after 20 months of closure due to the pandemic.
A total of 97 public schools participated in the rollout face-to-face classes.
On the other hand, the DepEd said that 20 private schools will begin to conduct limited in-person classes starting November 22. —Mariel Celine L. Serquiña
