The Senate, on 3rd and final reading, approves a bill authorizing President Duterte to postpone the school classes beyond August.
Voting 23-0, the Senate approved during a “hybrid” session Senate Bill No. 1541, which is looking at the move to amend Section 3 of Republic Act (RA) No. 7797 or “An Act to Lengthen the School Calendar from Two Hundred (200) Days to Not More Two Hundred Twenty (220) Class Days.”
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said that the immediate effect of the piece of legislation is to move the start of the school year to September 2020 or even later in the event that public health authorities would recommend the postponement of the school year in order to contain the spread of Covid 19.
If the measure will be passed, it will give Duterte and the Department of Education (DepEd) more flexibility to start the school year if the Covid cases surge and threaten the health of not just the students, but also the teaching and non-teaching school personnel.
The bill is covering all basic education institutions in the country, including foreign or
International schools.