TO ENSURE the quality of education for tertiary students, the Commission on Higher Education is considering recommending other degree programs for limited face-to-face classes.

CHED Chairman Prospero De Vera III said the commission plans to recommend to President Rodrigo Duterte to allow in-person classes for programs such as Engineering, Information Technology, Industrial Technology, Maritime, and among others.

“The best argument that we will have is the compliance of those that were already allowed to hold limited face-to-face classes. But it has to be data-driven, so we are constantly monitoring the compliance of those that were already allowed to hold limited face-to-face classes at this time,” De Vera said.

He added that deans and other concerned officials should start meeting and prepare for the possible resumption of physical classes.

“The deans of Engineering courses, for example, can hold meetings to craft specific details of the guidelines. We are asking Engineering and IT associations to do what associations of medical schools did. They do not have to wait for the guidelines, they can start crafting the details now,” the CHED chief said.

Last January, President Duterte approved the holding of limited in-person classes for medicine and allied health sciences courses in universities and colleges in areas under modified general community quarantine.

So far, seven HEIs which offer medical programs have been allowed by CHED to conduct limited face-to-face classes.