COVID-19’s consequences to students ‘enormous,’ VP Sara tells US VP Harris

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte on Monday gave a glimpse to United States Vice President Kamala Harris on how the Filipino students' shift to distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected their education.

Information provided by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) to reporters stated that the two female leaders discussed education-related issues during their bilateral meeting at the Aguado House earlier in the day.

Duterte then shared that the COVID-19 pandemic’s negative impact on the education of Filipino children was “enormous.”

The sudden shift to remote learning modes resulted in learning losses specifically among younger children, she added.

The Philippines was earlier tagged as among the countries with the highest rates of learning poverty in East Asia and the Pacific, as the World Bank found that nine out of 10 Filipino children struggle to read simple text by age 10.

The same report found that as much as 91% of Filipino children at the late primary age “are not proficient in reading,” with learning poverty higher for males than for females in the country.

The Department of Education (DepEd), for its part, started crafting a learning recovery plan to address the problem of learning losses.

Duterte also told Harris that she is looking forward to the institutionalization of the blended learning modality in the Philippines.

In August, Duterte said that DepEd has been studying the implementation of blended learning as a permanent mode of instruction.

Since November 2, all public schools have been mandated to return to full in-person classes, except those that were granted exemptions.

Private schools, on the other hand, could continue holding either five-day face-to-face classes, a blended learning modality, or full distance learning.

Further, OVP said Duterte also shared to Harris that the country is currently implementing the K-12 program and is working with the Technical Education And Skills Development Authority (TESDA) on skills training for senior high school learners.

The two leaders also discussed training that could create more jobs for Filipinos.

The OVP said that Harris was “impressed” by Duterte’s work and responsibilities as the country’s second highest official and Education secretary.—AOL, GMA Integrated News