THE SECOND Congressional Commission on Education or EDCOM 2 on Sunday said it is open to the Department of Education’s proposal to adopt a trimester system beginning School Year 2026–2027.

However, it stressed that thorough preparation and consultation are essential before implementation.

EDCOM 2 Executive Director Karol Mark Yee said the commission is not opposed to the shift but underscored the need to ensure that schools, teachers, and learning materials are fully prepared.

“We are not against the trimester proposal. We just need to make sure that the ground is ready, that consultations are properly conducted, that all teachers are asked, and that everyone is truly prepared,” Yee said.

DepEd earlier described the proposed trimester system as a holistic approach aimed at promoting balanced time management for students.

Under the plan, the 201 required school days would be divided into three terms instead of four quarters.

The first term would run from June to September, the second from September to December, and the third from January to March. Each term would feature continuous and curated lessons and tasks.

EDCOM 2 noted that the proposed system could help address the recurring loss of learning days due to class suspensions and mandated school activities.

“In the last three years in EDCOM, we have consistently talked about the loss of learning days. We saw the data on classroom suspensions due to the number of typhoons and high heat index,” Yee said.

He cited estimates showing that between 30 and 50 school days are lost annually because of class suspensions.

Although the law mandates roughly 200 school days per academic year, actual classroom instruction days often fall to 150 or fewer, he added.

Yee said a trimester setup, with longer instructional periods per term, could help schools recover some of the lost time and ensure that required lessons are completed.

“Through longer periods and through a trimester system, we may be able to save some days and ensure that learning is more complete. That is one advantage,” he said.

However, Yee emphasized that any shift would require adjustments in curriculum guides, which are currently structured on a quarterly basis.

“The important thing is that if we are going to do this, teachers must be ready and materials must be ready. The DepEd curriculum guide right now is still quarterly,” he said.

EDCOM 2 reiterated that while the proposal has potential benefits, its success would depend on careful planning, teacher preparedness, and extensive stakeholder consultation before rollout.