The Department of Education (DepEd) recently released the suggested screen time for basic education learners amid concerns on online learning system and calls for an academic freeze.
The proposed daily screen time for students include one hour for kindergarten, 1.5 hours for grades one to five, two hours for grades six to eight, and four hours for grades nine to 12.
Data from the DepEd show that 4,992 private schools have already opened their classes for School Year 2020-2021 as of August 31. Public schools are yet to start classes on October 5.
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) also assured that it is continuously coordinating with colleges and universities on the welfare of their students.
“Ang patakaran ng IATF ay payagan sila depende kung kailan sila handa. So, ito iyong pagbubukas. May mga iba na nag-adjust ng kanilang pagbubukas dahil hindi pa sila handa, mayroon hanggang Oktubre. (The IATF protocol is to allow school opening when they are ready. Some of them adjusted their opening until October because they are not yet ready),” CHED Chairperson J. Prospero De Vera III said in a previous briefing.
Meanwhile, Sen. Christopher Go in a separate statement called for the prioritization of mental health among learners.
“Marami pong nade-depress dahil sa sitwasyon ngayon. In fact, mayroon nang documented case ng isang batang estudyante na nagpakamatay dahil sa hirap na dala ng pandemya. Ayaw na nating madagdagan ito (Many get depressed due to the current situation. In fact, there is a documented suicide case of a young student due to the difficulties brought about by the pandemic. We do not want any more of these),” Go said.
– Report from Mela Lesmoras
