MANILA — As in-person classes remain prohibited due to the continuing threat of the new coronavirus, schools are set to carry out new ways of delivering lessons to students when the coming academic year starts on August 24.

The Department of Education (DepEd) has said it was offering schools a menu of options to implement distance learning, which can be done through the use of printed and digital modules, online classes, television, and radio.

The department has given schools the latitude to decide which learning modality to implement, depending on the available resources and what is most suitable to the students.

For instance, Mangayon Elementary School in Compostela town, Davao de Oro plans to teach students through radio-based instruction and printed modules that will be delivered to their homes, based on a video presented Monday during the launch of the DepEd's school readiness program.

In partnership with the local government and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), the school installed speakers in every household of its students for radio-based instruction.

Don Ruben E. Ecleo Sr. Memorial National High School in San Jose town, Dinagat Islands will also be using printed self-learning modules to teach its students.

The school will tap teachers and volunteers to deliver and retrieve the modules in certain drop-off points across the town.

The video also showed the volunteers riding boats to deliver the modules to students in other islands.

Learners may reach their teachers through gadgets while some teachers may also visit their students at home.

In Licuan-Baay, Abra, the local government is set to give out solar radios and flash drives containing modules to students of Sucao Elementary School, while an allowance will be given to teachers.

A school for indigenous people (IP) in Sarangani, Calay IP school, is set to use a new project called "LR on Wheels," which will provide gadgets and a local area network connection to students.

Most schools in urbanized areas will implement blended learning, which is the mixed use of modules and online classes. This was demonstrated by Navotas National High School in Navotas City and Santiago City National High School in Santiago City, Isabela.

Navotas also developed the "NavoSchool-In-A-Box," a box which contains modules and other learning materials. These would be delivered by teachers or barangay personnel in case parents are not able to retrieve them in the school.

In Tagum City, TAGUMpay Palengskwelahan would be delivering printed modules to learners under the Alternative Learning System.

TAGUMpay Palengskwelahan also set up a facility with 20 computers containing e-modules that learners may use once in-person classes are allowed.

President Rodrigo Duterte earlier approved the DepEd's proposal to hold limited in-person classes in areas with low risk of COVID-19 transmission starting January, in hopes that a vaccine against the respiratory disease would be available by then.

• Duterte OKs January face-to-face classes on hopes of COVID-19 vaccine: Palace

On Monday, the Philippines recorded a total of 136,638 confirmed COVID-19 after the health department reported a new record-high of 6,958 additional cases.

• PH logs record-high 6,958 new COVID-19 cases; total soars to over 136,000