Should face-to-face classes be allowed in all grade levels?
      According to a memorandum dated Dec. 9, 2021, The Department of Education (DepEd) has urged all public and private schools to prepare for the expanded phase of face-to-face classes, which is set to begin in early 2022 and the enlarged phase would include all grades from Kindergarten to Grade 12. This memorandum established the notion that a school can achieve the dual goals of resuming some type of home learning while also ensuring everyone's safety. This strategy aims to strike a compromise between the dangers of COVID-19 spreading and the advantages of residential schooling. Each school will pursue safety goals and the resumption of residential education in a unique way. Testing, social distancing, and de-densification are all part of the plan to keep children and the surrounding community safe from COVID-19. Students may be evaluated at home before returning to college in specific instances. The majority of students will be tested when they first arrive on campus and at random throughout the semester. Prior to the start of any campus educational or co-curricular activities, students must quarantine in their classrooms for two weeks. During this pandemic, the meals will be served in grab-and-go bags to the students in their classes. Some institutions are moving toward having all on-campus students live in singles, and they are doing so by bringing back some of their student bodies. Other schools have begun to use doubles. Schools that are bringing students back to campus will use education, nudges, rules, and enforcement to implement social distance requirements. The teacher must produce online learning materials as well as written pledges on safe COVID-19 behavior that students must sign. If face-to-face components are included in a subject, the number of students in a classroom will be reduced to allow for distancing. Students who exhibit symptoms or test positive will be isolated in their quarantine room or other locations designated for this purpose. Fall breaks will be eliminated in order to improve student circulation. Schools that are sending some of their kids back to campus are assuming that they will be able to predict and prevent the variables that facilitate disease transmission, as well as quickly adapt if students, instructors, or staff test positive. The level of surveillance will be high, and schools will be prepared to quarantine and isolate campus community members if necessary. If this is necessary, schools with students on campus can pivot again in the fall, and if not, online learning will resume.
