While classes for the coming school year will be done remotely, the Department of Education (DepEd) assured students and parents that holidays and class suspensions will still be followed. (READ: FAST FACTS: DepEd’s distance learning)

“So there would be Christmas break and we would also declare a semestral break, mid-year break after the second quarter,” Education Undersecretary Diosdado San Antonio said in a Rappler Talk interview on Friday, September 25.

“I think this is sometime in February 2021 and we will still observe the holidays,” he added.

Classes may also be suspended in case of typhoons, San Antonio said.

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San Antonio, however, could not give the exact dates of the breaks as they are still finalizing the academic activities for the coming school year.

DepEd shifted to distance learning for the coming school year to comply with President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive for schools to delay face-to-face classes until a coronavirus vaccine becomes available. Local experts said in a best case scenario, the earliest that the country may have access to a vaccine is the second quarter of 2021.

As of Friday, a total of 24,633,586 public and private schools have signed up for school opening. This is 3 million lower than last year’s 27.7 million enrollees.

Public schools are set to open on October 5, while some private schools began their classes in August. – Rappler.com