MANILA - The Department of Education (DepEd) said Thursday it is looking at the possibility of allowing limited face-to-face classes in areas with low-risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Education Secretary Leonor Briones said the review came after the department received several proposals calling for the resumption of face-to-face classes in select areas.
"Sa tingin namin sa mga tinatawag nating low-risk areas pwede siguro payagan natin 'yung limited na face-to-face pero may mga kondisyones," she said in a virtual press briefing.
(We think we can allow limited face-to-face classes can be allowed in areas deemed low-risk but with conditions.)
President Rodrigo Duterte was already informed of the proposal, Briones said.
Should face-to-face classes be allowed in select areas, the education chief said these would only be limited to around 1 or 2 days of meetings.
Areas that will be allowed to hold limited physical classes should also be scrutinized by the government's inter-agency task force (IATF) on pandemic response.
Should an area pass IATF scrutiny, Briones said the DepEd would still check if schools have enough resources for the safe conduct of face-to-face classes such as enough lavatories for handwashing, and enough space to implement physical distancing.
"Ayaw naman nating isubo ang ating mga learners at teachers sa mga lugar na mataas ang COVID," Briones said.
(We don't want to put our learners and teachers at risk in areas with high cases of COVID.)
Classes are set to open on Aug. 24 but through distance learning.