Alarmed over the continuing spikes in COVID-19 cases, Senator Win Gatchalian warned against the opening of classes on Aug. 24, saying the current situation would put 830,000 teachers at risk of getting infected with the coronavirus.
In a Zoom interview, Gatchalian said parents of students would also be endangered as they will be interacting with each other during the distribution of the learning modules to be used by students.
“In distance learning, the distribution and pickup [of materials] is a big issue. So there will indeed be an interaction,” said Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on basic education.
He said the Department of Education did not give any direct assurances on the welfare of the teachers in terms of testing, treatment and medical care. He said it merely gave a general answer that they could count on PhilHealth.
“It’s important to have a special lane or special treatment center where they can go because now, they are just dependent on the local government units, which are also busy attending to other matters,” the senator said.
During Wednesday’s Senate hearing, Gatchalian said Deped presented “9 Blocks of Readiness,” but nothing about the welfare of teachers and non-teaching staff.
“They will the ones who will move in distance learning and the reality of getting infected is very high. We need to ensure their welfare. We cannot just let them seek help for the mayor or the private sector,” he added.
Senate health committee chairman Senator Christopher Go also said a deferment of the opening of classes to October 29020 would give students, teachers, learning institutions and education authorities more time to prepare.
“Our children’s safety and well-being are of utmost importance and it is our responsibility to ensure these,” he said.
“I am appealing to the Executive branch to postpone for a few more months the opening of classes [while] there is no vaccine for COVID-19. Let us not risk the life and safety of our youth,” he said.
Go emphasized again the need for education authorities and school officials to explore more learning modes, combining offline and online methods..
In July, Duterte signed into law Republic Act 11480 which gives the President the power to set a differentdate for the opening of the school year in parts of the country that are under a state of emergency or calamity.