EDITORIAL - No face-to-face classes for now

Classes in Central Visayas are set to begin today for those in senior high school and below.

Thankfully, there are still no face-to-face classes.

“Still, there are no face-to-face classes in all schools in Central Visayas unless President Duterte will approve it,” said Department of Education-7 Director Salustiano Jimenez.

We say thankfully because we are aware of the risks still out there. We know what our children will be exposed to if face-to-face classes are approved at this time.

We cannot expect to do this in a city where restrictions are still in force and the risk of getting infected and dying from COVID-19 is still a reality. And considering the Delta variant is now dominant here in the Philippines, we should even be more wary than ever.

If we open a school we will have to allow certain businesses or sectors to operate also. For instance, the stores and surrounding establishments where students, faculty, and staff can buy supplies or food or get certain services like photocopying.

Of course, the transport sector has to be expanded, considering that Passenger Utility Jeepneys can only carry 50% of passenger capacity right now. Then we have to allow the companies providing private school transportation to operate. Not to mention the trisikad drivers and habal-habal drivers for those who cannot afford these.

In short, you cannot just open a school alone; the community around the school will have to come to life too.

If that happens, there will be more risks. Our children will become more exposed to instances where they can come into contact with someone with COVID-19.

We realize that online instruction and other forms of distance learning are not ideal. We hope to end them someday, but for now they are all we have and something we have to make do with.

The consequences of letting our children go on face-to-face classes and possibly catch the virus and transmit it among themselves are far too terrible to consider.