SENATOR Francis Pangilinan on Thursday urged the Department of Education to provide protection and assistance to teachers who put their life on the line in the distribution of learning modules to students.

“Ang daming sakripisyo ng ating mga titser. Our public school teachers are staking their lives to ensure that the learning process of Filipino students will not be interrupted by the pandemic,” Pangilinan said.

“The best thing for DepEd to do is to provide enough protection and assistance for our teachers as they perform their job,” he added.

Pangilinan made the call following reports that 11 teachers in Ilagan City, Isabela province tested positive for the virus after distributing educational modules to students. A 13-year-old boy, one of the recipients of the educational module, reportedly tested positive as well.

Pangilinan urged authorities and other concerned government agencies to enhance the contact tracing efforts to quickly contain the spread of the virus.

“Kailangan ng mabilis na pagkilos upang maagapan ang sitwasyon at mapigil ang pagkalat ng sakit sa mga komunidad,” he said.

The senator also reminded teachers to observe minimum health protocols when they go out to distribute the learning materials to students.

“Mabuti na ang sigurado, kaya magandang tiyakin na sinusunod natin ang health protocols para sa ating kaligtasan pati na ng ating mga estudyante,” he said.