Despite having the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, the senator said that DepEd’s panel can give a specialized approach given that each school has a unique situation.
“Hindi naman ibig sabihin na dahil nag-cancel ng face-to-face classes, titigil na rin tayo sa pilot schools (It does not mean that because we cancelled face-to-face classes, we will already stop with our pilot schools). This is a good way for our scientists to study what can be done to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 to our learners,” said Gatchalian in a statement.
Senators have been pushing for the resumption limited face-to-face classes in low-risk areas, citing different reasons such as the effect of online classes on the student’s academic performance.
DepEd is planning to conduct a pilot test of face-to-face classes in 1,065 schools in the country, but President Rodrigo Duterte has rejected the proposal pending the availability of enough COVID-19 vaccines for the public.
The Philippine Pediatric Society said last week during a Senate hearing that one year of school closure is equivalent to two years of lost learning.
The organization added that prolonged school closures can lead to increased exposure to sexual violence, sexual abuse, and early pregnancies.
“The damage of school closures can be deeper and longer. During pre-COVID, our learners did not do well in international large-scale assessments and our national achievement scores were not doing great. And now, because of the lack of access to face-to-face education, internet, and gadgets, the learners are left on their own,” Gatchalian added.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 1) – Senator Win Gatchalian on Monday urged the Department of Education to form a panel of experts that will guide the pilot testing of face-to-face classes in areas with low cases of COVID-19 infection.
READ: Lawmakers insist on limited face-to-face classes in some areas
