Bill seeks return to old school calendar

MANILA, Philippines — The Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives is pushing for the school calendar to revert to June to March from the current August to July.

In House Bill 8550, party-list representatives France Castro of ACT-Teachers, Raoul Manuel of Kabataan and Arlene Brosas of Gabriela said the “traditional school calendar” has been “derailed” in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Castro, Manuel and Brosas recalled that the school calendar was “repeatedly pushed back,” starting in September that year with the declaration of the “no vaccine, no classes” policy to control the spread of COVID-19.

After two years of the blended learning program, in-person classes resumed in August last year, the start of the post-pandemic phase.

The lawmakers explained this “deviation from the traditional school calendar has caused confusion and immense hardships for students and parents, especially teachers, who lost their time for rest and recuperation since they are made to work – mostly without remuneration – even during the months when they are supposedly on vacation.”

“Apart from these effects is the odd yet dangerous phenomena of a tropical country adopting a school calendar ill-suited to its climate,” their bill read.

The measure underscored that the April-to-May school break long observed in the Philippines was lost with an August school opening, and the results included “temperatures sweltering, blood pressures rising and children and teachers fainting.”

Under the proposal, the school calendar shall start on the first Monday of June, but not later than the last day of August, “with a particular provision for a June opening for School Year (SY) 2024-2025.”

In consideration of the welfare of public school teachers in the transition, the bill shall mandate for an “early” close of SY 2023-2024 in the fourth week of May 2024 and the grant of service credits.

The first mandate will cut the school year a few days shy of the 180 days of “non-negotiable contact time” set under Department of Education regulations, but will give teachers at least a week of rest in between the two school years.

On the other hand, the second mandate will ensure that teachers will receive some form of remuneration for the work done during their lost vacation months.

Public school teachers under the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) have expressed their support for HB 8550.

“We call upon our legislators to give high priority to this bill and recognize the urgent need to revert to the pre-pandemic school calendar that is more suitable and beneficial to education, given the detrimental impacts of summer classes to education quality and health of learners and teachers,” ACT chairman Vladimer Quetua said yesterday.

Quetua cited the extreme heat that teachers and students endured during the in-person classes last dry season, when several incidents of students fainting or getting dizzy were reported.

The ACT also called for better compensation for teachers and timely release of their service credits and other benefits. — Elizabeth Marcelo