August class opening ‘too soon’ –Angara

Senator Sonny Angara believed that the opening of classes should be pushed back to after August given the coronavirus disease 2019's (COVID-19's) threat to the country.

Interviewed on “Quarantined with Howie Severino” on Tuesday, Angara said he would prefer for the classes to open late this year.

“[I]n this situation, palagay ko August is way too soon… And I would be looking at maybe November, December, January dahil blended learning na tayo eh,” Angara said.

The senator also pointed out that internet access remained a problem for many Filipinos in different provinces.

“Siguro ‘yong mga may internet, internet kayo. ‘Yong ibang sa malalayong barangay, sa probinsya, sa amin sa Aurora, maraming barangay doon na walang internet so they have to print the materials they will send,” he said.

“May kaunting adjustments which will take time especially with the big bureaucracy, you're talking about how many thousands, tens of thousands of schools, millions of students so millions of materials din 'yan. I don't envy the task of the DepEd. Kami sa Senado will try to help as much as we can,” Angara added.

Complying with the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte, the Department of Education on Monday reiterated that face-to-face classes would not be held until a COVID-19 vaccine was available.

Duterte on May 25 said he would not allow the opening of classes until a vaccine against the viral disease was made locally available.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque later clarified that traditional face-to-face classes would not resume as long as community quarantines meant to curb the spread of the virus remained in place.

Education Secretary Leonor Briones, meanwhile, said the DepEd has been preparing for the implementation of blended learning as the department maintained its commitment “to make education available and thriving, even in the most difficult time.” — DVM, GMA News