THE DEPARTMENT of Education urged all stakeholders to support the expansion of limited face-to-face classes in February to ensure its success.

“During the pilot phase, we witnessed how we came together to ensure the safety of our learners and personnel. We believe we can duplicate and even double our efforts in our expansion and make face-to-face classes a possibility for all,” Education Secretary Leonor Briones said.

During the EduAksyon Virtual Press Conference hosted by DepEd-Region II, Undersecretary and Chief of Staff Nepomuceno Malaluan highlighted the importance of the shared responsibility framework implemented in the pilot run.

“The framework of shared responsibility will continue and will be as aggressive as the pilot run. We will need help from our LGUs and the parents of the learners to make sure that this expansion will be as successful as our pilot,” Malaluan said.

He said that DepEd will continue to implement the framework, and the consent of the local government units and parents will still be the main requirement for in-person classes.

DepEd said that preparations for the expansion is ongoing. These include determining which schools are ready for expansion and coordinating with the Department of Health on regular Alert Level updates since places under Level 3 and Level 4 are not allowed to conduct face-to-face classes.

Meanwhile, DepEd reiterated that only vaccinated teaching and non-teaching personnel will be allowed to participate in face-to-face classes.

DepEd also shared that they are closely coordinating with the Department of Health for pediatric vaccinations.

“Since the government has announced the vaccination of school-aged children, participation of vaccinated learners is preferred so we are encouraging the continuous and aggressive vaccination of our students as an additional layer of safety precaution,” Malaluan said.