Students advised to wear school uniform or proper clothing during online classes- DepEd

Department of Education (DepEd) Region 7 Director Dr. Salustiano Jimenez said students are encouraged to wear their school uniforms or appropriate clothing when attending online classes. This is to prevent incidents of bullying. He said,

To prevent from bullying na mangyayari, ini-encourage na dahil nasa platform ka na online, puwede lang magbihis ng angkop sa klase,

[To prevent bullying to happen, since you are in an online platform we encourage [students] to wear appropriate clothes while in online class.]

According to Jimenez, online classes will still have a classroom setting where teacher and students could all be seen. Students and teachers should wear appropriate clothing, he added.

For online distance learning, the teacher will serve as facilitator and engage learners through video conferencing or live instruction. Learners may download materials, complete and submit assignments online, and attend webinars and virtual classes.

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However, DepEd Undersecretary Anne Sevilla issued a clarification, she said,

Wearing of uniforms is not a requirement for public school learners to do distance learning, 

quoting Education Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instructions Diosdado San Antonio.

DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones said on Monday,“Ang pagbubukas ng eskuwelahan ay August 24. Ito ay blended learning. Walang face to face. At sa mga lugar na may risk assessment galing sa IATF, susundin natin ang kanilang patakaran,” 

[The opening of classes will be on August 24, it is blended learning and no face-to-face. And for places that are at risk based on IATF, we will follow their protocols.] 

The DepEd secretary earlier said school officials in areas with low risk for COVID-19 infections can apply for limited face-to-face classes.

The requests of school officials will be approved by the regional directors and will be under the review of the DepEd, she added.

The starting point of the application for limited face-to-face classes will depend on the assessment of Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF), if the concerned areas are classified as low risk, Briones noted.

Briones reiterated that classes must continue even during calamities because children have the right to education. And studies showed that if classes are disrupted by more than two months, learners tend to forget past lessons.

Meanwhile, DepEd 7 has yet to verify reports of some students selling their nude photos and sex videos online to raise funds for their online classes.

Jimenez said they have yet to determine whether the sellers are in K-to-12 or in college.