DepEd asks LGUs to limit class suspensions to specific areas

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) on Thursday urged local government units (LGUs) to be more specific when announcing class suspensions to prevent the loss of learning time while keeping students and school personnel safe.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara made the appeal ahead of the expected issuance of an Executive Order (EO) that would establish an updated and more flexible system for suspending and resuming classes and work in schools, with the safety of learners, teachers and personnel remaining the top priority.

“Our request is simple: Be specific when you suspend. If the risk is limited to certain areas, identifying those areas can help schools in unaffected areas continue learning,” Angara said in a statement.

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READ: ‘Inconsistent class suspensions disrupt learning’ – youth group

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Under the proposed EO, which the DepEd earlier submitted for approval to the Palace, class suspensions could be automatic, localized or granular, depending on the extent of the risk.

LGUs would also retain the authority to suspend classes while being encouraged to coordinate with disaster officials and education authorities to ensure their decisions reflect actual conditions.

The proposed executive order was crafted after consultations with education, community, national and local government stakeholders. It was approved by the Social Development Committee Cabinet Cluster on Sept. 3.

The DepEd said provinces could name affected municipalities while cities and municipalities could identify the specific barangays or schools where classes need to be suspended.

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Inconsistent cancelation

Earlier, progressive youth group Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan criticized the government’s inconsistent cancelations of classes which have disrupted learning for thousands of students amid monsoon rains.

As of Sept. 11, schools nationwide had lost an average of four learning days although some areas recorded much higher figures.

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Central Luzon (Region III) had an average of nine lost days, while Pampanga recorded 26. Soccsksargen (Region XII) averaged 8.4 days with Sarangani reporting 28.

In the National Capital Region, the average was 8.2 days, while Caloocan City recorded 25.

As of Sept. 10, class suspensions had affected 34,775 schools or 72.49 percent of public schools nationwide.

“The national average does not tell the whole story. Conditions can be very different even within the same region or local government. This is why the proposed Executive Order provides a more responsive framework for decisions based on actual conditions,” Angara said.

Real-time data

A Second Congressional Commission on Education (Edcom 2) report on Tuesday said that public elementary schools lost about 20 teaching days to hazard-related suspensions in the school year 2025–2026, or one out of every 10 days in the school calendar.

Class suspensions and resumptions should be guided by real-time data and clear authority, with canceled days recorded and forecasts compared with actual conditions, the committee added.

Edcom 2 executive director Dr. Karol Mark Yee also said that “school heads are often in the best position to know whether their classrooms are flooded, their buildings are damaged, their access roads are passable, and their learners can travel safely.”

Under the draft EO, school heads may initiate class resumption after a suspension based on a documented site-specific assessment, subject to the concurrence of their mayors.

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“In a system already confronting a learning crisis, each day in school is critical. Sparing safe schools from unnecessary suspensions should not be a choice, but an imperative,” Edcom 2 said in a statement. /cb