The Department of Education (DepEd) announced that early registration for school year 2021-2022 will be from March 26 to April 30.

“The month-long activity is initiated to ensure that incoming learners are registered for the school year and help the department better prepare for possible issues and concerns that may arise,” the DepEd said on Monday, March 15.

Education Secretary Leonor said that due to pandemic, the conduct of early registration shall be done remotely in areas under general community quarantine (GCQ).

“In-person registration through parents or guardians may be allowed in areas under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) provided physical distancing and health and safety protocols are strictly observed,” Briones added.

Last year, remote registration was also adopted due to the pandemic. The DepEd even coordinated with local government units to aid families who didn’t have access to technology needed for remote registration.

The DepEd said that early registration also aims to “identify and register out of school youth and children who may be identified as living with disabilities.”

“The early registration campaign ensures the right of all school-aged learners to enroll and be equally provided with quality, accessible, relevant, and liberating basic education,” it added.

Last year, schools opened using distance learning – a mix of online, printed modules, and TV/Radio lessons – following President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to suspend face-to-face classes until a COVID-19 vaccine becomes widely available.

School Year 2020-2021 will end on July 10. It’s not yet certain if the next school year will also use the distance learning system, which has been criticized, as the country appears to be not fully prepared for it, as shown by the difficulty of teachers to cope with it, lack of access of a number of students to needed gadgets, and reports of erroneous learning modules.

Several lawmakers and groups have been pushing for the resumption of limited face-to-face classes to “fine-tune” the system. – Rappler.com