Marcos: DepEd eyes full in-person classes by November

MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Tuesday stated that Vice President and Education chief Sara Duterte intends to implement full face-to-face classes by November.

Marcos said in a press briefing that Duterte announced her plan during their first executive meeting.

“First example of that, was Inday Sara’s announcement that we have a plan for full face-to-face classes by November, this year, September we will start a phased face-to-face schooling and with that, face-to-face will end up, in early November as already 100 percent attendance ng mga bata (of the children),” he said.

Marcos stated, however, that they will be encouraging booster vaccination, particularly among the youth, to combat the increasing threat of less harmful, yet more contagious Omicron variants.

The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday gave the green light on the booster shots for ages 12 to 17 years old.

Meanwhile, former Education secretary Leonor Briones assured earlier that vaccination against Covid-19 will not be made mandatory for learners across the country.

Briones clarified that for schools to qualify for face-to-face classes, they must comply with DOH guidelines.

These include parental consent, DOH health assessment, and the go-signal from the local government unit.

Approximately 38,000 schools have been nominated for face-to-face classes as of mid-June.