Online Classes in Public Schools Only ‘Supplemental’ in First Grading Period – DepEd

MANILA – Online classes in public schools may have to take a backseat in the first grading period due to infrastructure “capacity issues” and “household preference,” Department of Education officials said Wednesday. Education (DepEd).

“In the first quarter, the internet, television and radio are complementary,” said the undersecretary of the DepEd, Nepomuceno Malaluan, to the members of the Senate Committee of Basic Education, Art and Culture.

“Technology use also has a combination of capacity issues, as well as a household preference issue,” he said.

While some local governments, especially in Metro Manila, have been distributing free tablets and laptops to students, Internet connectivity continues to be a problem in the country, Senator Pia Cayetano said.

“Those who have invested in digital technologies have found na wala din talagang (that there really isn’t) connectivity for their constituents right now,” he said.

“Anything beyond the National Capital Region, more broken connection pa ‘yung. The infrastructure of the telecommunications companies, the national government and private industries to put the necessary infrastructure has not happened, ”he said.

Average Internet speed in the Philippines ranges from 3 to 7 Mbps, while neighboring countries in the region enjoy up to 55 Mbps, according to data from the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

The DICT said that the lack of telecommunications infrastructure in the country was to blame for the low internet speed, as numerous fiber optic cables and cell sites are needed for a faster connection.

Malaluan said the tablets distributed by local governments would not go to waste as students residing in areas with good internet connections could still use the devices to download learning materials from DepEd Commons, the agency’s online module repository.

“It won’t be pure online [in public schools] as private schools can do, but even a component of blended learning with asynchronous online learning [activities] It will be very helpful, “said the official.

DepEd officials said the department has printed 98.83 percent of the self-study modules required for the first quarter of the school year and is ready to distribute about 1 million devices to public school students.

The 1 million devices represent just 2 percent of the nation’s total student population.

DepEd said they expect 15 million students to access online modules through personal devices.

Education officials have yet to say when they will finish printing the self-study modules for the second grading period.