DepEd ‘uncertain’ classes will start in June due to COVID-19

t is "uncertain" whether the next school year will start in June considering the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation in the country, the Department of Education (DepEd) said on Wednesday.

"Lahat ngayon ay uncertain," said DepEd spokesperson Undersecretary Annalyn Sevilla when asked during a Dobol B sa News TV interview if classes will open in June as they traditionally do.

"Pinakamagandang scenario, tapos ang problema natin by May. Yan ang sinasabi nating milagro, so tuloy ang June," she said.

"But there are Plan B, Plan C, Plan D. Hindi pa naman namin pwedeng ibigay 'yung mga kongkreto na Plan B, C and D right now kasi we are still consulting our stakeholders, especially our regional directors," she added.

Despite these developments, Sevilla said what is important is that there will be a continuity of learning for the students.

"We are saying there are a lot of uncertainties, but the definite thing to do is we need to continue education, and that is continuity of learning," she said.

"Ang pag-aaral ay hindi para makakuha ng mataas na grado. Ang pag-aaral ay pagkuha ng tamang values, tamang application, competencies, paano ang mga bata ay matututo sa ganitong panahon," she added.

Sevilla encouraged students with Internet connection at home to visit DepEd Commons, where they can learn lessons through games and other interactive content as part of their learning while on summer vacation.

"Puntahan niyo yung DepEd Commons dahil nandito ang mga leksyon ng mga bata at ito ay ginawa na ring angkop sa ating panahon ngayon, parang ginawang games at very interactive. Lahat ng eskwelahan, at isa pang magandang improvement dito ay sinama na namin ang mga private schools," she said.

ACT-CIS party-list Representative Jocelyn Tulfo earlier urged DepEd and other concerned government agencies to move the opening of classes to either August or September to give schools time to recover from the COVID-19 situation.

She said delaying the opening of classes would also allow the national and local governments to come up with solutions to ensure that every student will be able to attend school amid the pandemic's economic impact. — Erwin Colcol/BM, GMA News