Manila: Education Secretary Sonny Angara announced ongoing efforts to assess the impact of missed school days caused by Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (International Name: Trami) to prevent learning loss among students.
According to Philippines News Agency, Angara emphasized the growing concern over frequent typhoons disrupting the education system, potentially leading to an irreversible amount of missed academic time. In an ambush interview, he highlighted the importance of addressing these disruptions to prevent significant learning loss. To mitigate the impact, school heads have been given the authority to implement make-up or Saturday classes, ensuring flexibility for principals and teachers to adapt to local conditions.
Angara also mentioned that the Department of Education is exploring the possibility of blended, online learning setups, or hybrid schedules as potential solutions to address classroom congestion and ensure continuous learning.
As of Thursday afternoon, approximately 19,100,262 learners
across 37,375 schools have been affected nationwide. In addition to students, 773,739 teaching and non-teaching personnel have also been impacted, as schools suspended in-person classes at all levels due to the storm’s effects. The storm has resulted in flooding and landslides in 144 schools across several regions, including the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Cagayan Valley, Mimaropa, Bicol, Western Visayas, and Eastern Visayas.
The Bicol region reported the highest number of affected schools, with 90 institutions in 23 municipalities experiencing flooding and landslides. The total damage to infrastructure has escalated to PHP1.06 billion, with 322 classrooms completely destroyed and 504 partially damaged. Reconstruction efforts are estimated to require PHP805 million, with an additional PHP252 million needed for major repairs.
Currently, 352 schools are being utilized as evacuation centers in nine regions, including CAR, Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol, Central and Eastern
Visayas, and Soccsksargen, further complicating the educational disruptions.