Academic freeze unlikely —DepEd official

The Department of Education (DepEd) will not likely implement an academic freeze amid the onslaught of several typhoons, an official said Tuesday.

Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, Education Undersecretary Tonisito Umali said while the department understood the call of several groups for an academic break following the series of storms that hit the country, there is a required number of days in the school calendar according to the law.

“Ako po, personally, nauunawaan ko po lahat ‘yan na mahirap ang mga hamong ating kinakaharap at baka kailangang ‘wag munang pumasok ang mga bata at ayusin muna ang ating mga sarili. Naiintidihan po namin ‘yan,” he said.

“Kaya lang po ito po ‘yong gusto kong sabihin na kailangan po namin ng pang-unawa ng ating mga kababayan na sa ngayon kaya pa bang mapatupad ito? The law has already kicked in kaya mahirap na pong mangyari ito. May batas po tayong nagsasabi na ilang araw dapat ang pasukan, ang school calendar natin bawat taon,” he added.

Quezon City Representative Precious Hipolito Castelo earlier called on the Department of Education (DepEd) to suspend for now the classes in areas hit by Typhoons Rolly and Ulysses.

Meanwhile, Umali said the department already gave students and teachers flexible time to submit requirements.

He added that DepEd will replace all damaged learning materials as soon as possible.

“May mga pag-uusap na po kung paano natin gagawin. Wala hong duda, kailangan ‘pag hindi na magamit ang modules at kailangang magpatuloy ang pag-aaral ng bata ay papalitan ho dapat ‘yan,” he said.

Moreover, Umali said as of November 15, 430 schools with more than 14,000 classrooms are being used as evacuation centers by more than 1,900 families in typhoon-hit areas.

He also said some 448 schools in Region 5 were damaged following the onslaught of Rolly earlier this month, followed by 412 in Region 3, 121 in CALABARZON, 91 in Region 2, 53 in Region 1, 41 in Cordillera Administrative Region, 15 in MIMAROPA, and nine in the National Capital Region.

Earlier in the day, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) brushed off calls for a nationwide or Luzon-wide academic break.

He said CHED cannot make a unilateral decision as the situation in different part of the country or Luzon varies. He further said they leave the decision to school and local government authorities.

Several student and youth organizations have called for an academic break and to protest the government's “criminally neglectful response” to the devastation caused by the typhoons that hit the country.—AOL, GMA News