PTA asks Duterte to postpone class opening

The Parents-Teachers Alliance (PTA) asked President Rodrigo Duterte to postpone class opening schedule on August 24 to have more preparation time.

PTA chairperson Atty. Emilio Abelita III said in an interview with Unang Hirit that they wrote the President a letter explaining the reasons for the suggested postponement of class opening.

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“Nagpadala kami ng sulat sa Pangulo. Ang sabi namin kung pupuwede bigyan ng kaunting panahon para mabigyan ng DepEd ng ample time to prepare,” Abelita said.

(We sent a letter to the President. We said if we can give a little time for DepEd to provide ample time to prepare.)

Abelita believes the Department of Education (DepEd) is not yet prepared for the opening school year 2020-2021 on August 4. She cited poor internet connection for online learning, and teachers still lack educational materials.

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“As you know kahapon nga nag-dry run sila. Actually hindi nga natuloy dahil nagkaroon ng glitches, nagkaroon ng technical problems,” Abelita said.

(As you know they conducted a dry run yesterday. Actually it did not continue because there were glitches, there were technical problems.)

“This is one of the problems na ating dinudulog dahil ang ating online classes na sinasabi ng Department of Education ay still too good to be true,” he added.

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Also read: Teachers’ groups urge DepEd to move opening of classes

PTA asks Duterte to postpone class opening

DepEd was supposed to launch its school readiness program, but it was halted due to a technical problem.

“Kalimutan na natin ‘yung online learning. Sabi nga it’s too good to be true, na we have connectivity problems. Kung wala mang connectivity problems, mga gadgets ng mga mag-aaral o kaya guro ang problema,” Abelita said.

(Let’s forget about online learning. As the saying goes, it’s too good to be true, that we have connectivity problems. If there are no connectivity problems, gadgets of students or teachers are the problem.)

“Let us just confine ourselves to modular learning,” he added.

The teachers, Abelita said, are confused on where they will get resources to print materials for modular learning.

“Kung ang DepEd lang ay magpakatotoo ay ang dalawa o tatlong buwan (of postponement) ay medyo sapat na dahil sa ngayon naka-ilang buwan na sila e,” he added.