The education department’s memorandum about wearing alternate uniforms for teaching and non-teaching school personnel during the warm and dry season earned mixed reactions from Filipinos.
The Department of Education on Monday issued a guide on what they can wear alternatively instead of regular uniforms to ease the heat being experienced recently.
In a Facebook post, the DepEd shared four types of collared polo shirts — two in white color, one in red and one in green.
The agency said that teaching and non-teaching personnel can wear the following:
- Collared DepEd polo shirts that were used in past DepEd events like Brigada Eskwela, Palarong Pambansa, Oplan Balik Eskwela, and regional/divisional/school conferences, etc
- Collared white DepEd polo shirt with the logo of DepEd and “Matatag”
The DepEd said these must be paired with black matte pants with any type of fabric (slacks, jeans, cargo pants), provided it must still adhere to the Civil Service Commission’s Memorandum Circular No. 19 (series of 2000) or the “Revised Dress Code Prescribed for All Government Officials and Employees in the Workplace.”
The mentioned memorandum does not allow the wearing of leggings, tights and jogging pants.
The memorandum was praised by some Filipinos as they face high temperatures and heat index levels during this dry season.
“Maraming salamat sa alternative uniform…” a Facebook user wrote in the comments.
“Thank you po,” another user commented.
Others, however, were more concerned by the type of clothing suggested.
“Mainit nga e, COLLARED SHIRT? Mag-uniform na lang [tayo], in short,” a Facebook user wrote.
“T-shirt [na lang] sana, mainit din [naman kasi] ‘yong polo shirt, uncomfortable pa din..” another Pinoy commented.
“Dapat ‘yung maaliwalas, presko, eh mainit din ang may collar, parang may sumasakal sa leeg mo. Nowadays, we need something comfy,” wrote a different user.
“A white cotton shirt will do. What’s important is makapagturo si teacher [nang] komportable kesa naman um-absent dahl na high blood, na stroke, sinumpong ng asthma o ‘di kaya ay natuluyan na. I’m just stating a fact. Please don’t get offended. Kaya sana po let us wear [a] comfortable shirt,” the user added.
Others also had concerns over the colors of the shirts which are green and red.
“Ang init naman ng kulay… baka pati materials,” a Facebook user wrote.
“Red? Init ang kalaban po. Polo shirt? Ahhhmmm,” another user commented.
“Coolest colors po ay white and yellow. Hottest colors naman ay green and black,” wrote a different Pinoy.
An experiment conducted by Japan’s National Institute for Environmental Studies revealed that white was the “coolest color” to wear during warm and sunny days.
Dark shirts, such as black and green, felt hot to the wearer. The experiment noted that such hues exceeded 50 degrees Celsius by the five-minute mark, more than 20 degrees Celsius from when the experiment began.
Extreme heat
Meanwhile, several schools in the country have already shifted to distance learning mode due to the extreme heat, with some local government units suspending classes.
Reports said towns or cities that have called off classes usually registered “dangerous” heat index levels.
The heat is exacerbated by the effects of the El Niño phenomenon, which may persist until May.
El Niño is a climate pattern associated with extreme heat and drought. It brings high temperatures and drier conditions to affected areas.
The Department of Health has previously advised the public to remain hydrated, refrain from going outside between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. and to wear light fabrics and light-colored clothes.