Education Undersecretary Nepomuceno Malaluan said the call for "academic freeze" was an unpopular position considering that over 24 million students have enrolled for the coming school year, where they will learn through distance learning modalities.

"We believe that this call for academic freeze is a populist position that is not popular, because we already have the support of as many as 24 million learners and their parents who have enrolled and are ready to participate in distance learning," Malaluan said in a virtual press briefing.

"This position is also a short-sighted position. It does not take into consideration the trade-off of prolonged interruption in the learning process of the children," he added.

Malaluan called the proposal "ill-informed" as he reiterated that online classes would not be the sole distance learning modality to be implemented, contrary to arguments of the proponents.

Under DepEd's distance learning plans, learning will be delivered via printed and digital modules, online classes, television and radio.

Education Secretary Leonor Briones said distance learning dry runs are underway in schools to ensure a smooth start to the school year on October 5.

"It's not as if biglaan na lang tayo magbukas ng ating mga eskuwelahan by October 5, dahil, more or less, alam na natin kung ano ang mga challenges at atin na itong tinugunan," she said.

(It's not as if we will suddenly open our schools by October 5, because, more or less, we know what the challenges are and we'd have addressed them by then.)

More than 31,000 schools have accomplished their dry runs before August, while 11,698 schools are set to hold simulations before classes start, according to DepEd data.

Social media was recently abuzz with calls for an "academic freeze," with the hashtag #AcademicFreezeNow topping the list of trending topics on Twitter Philippines.

Students are not the same. Not everybody has the means to adapt to the new normal type of schooling. Having online learning as an alternative to educate learners is proven to be uneffective and insufficient.

The academic freeze is vital in this time wherein there is a pandemic, mainly because of the following reasons:

1. Not every students in the Philippines have stable internet connections at home. Also consider that the Philippines are one of the countries that have the slowest internet connection worldwide.

2. Not all of the students are privileged to own the materials that they would be needing on the online based education that DepEd wants to implement this school year. E.G, laptop, computer, mobile phones, etc.

3. Even though that there would be printed materials that will be delivered to the homes of the students through courier service, the parents would be obliged to use their money for the courier fees instead of using that amount for their necessities in the middle of this pandemic.

4. I've read an article before wherein the Director of DepEd in Bicol said that the pause of education for this year would lead to produce "mangmang na mga estudyante." What's the point of pushing the students to continue their studies this year if their healths would be at risk? Especially that there are no vaccines yet for the COVID-19.

5. Even though that students before the pandemic are attending their classes in schools, facing their teachers face to face in a daily basis, not all of them can comprehend their lessons and are still having a hard time to focus on their lessons. What more that they would be studying through screens only? How can we be sure that they would be able to learn?

It may not be the best solution, but an academic freeze can be adopted until the digital divide is fully resolved or results of mass testing and curve-flattening are already evaluated empirically. This will require a flexible academic term, calendar, and curricula to lessen the school days required, lower the number of course requirements, and reduce tuition and other fees usually projected for the use of school facilities.

Source: https://www.change.org/p/deped-suspend-the-academic-year-2020-2021

Education Secretary Leonor Briones rejected an academic freeze, reiterating that delaying the school opening further would be very detrimental to children. She also noted that Filipino students will “be left behind” when classes are cancelled this year.

Source: https://mb.com.ph/2020/09/17/academic-freeze-pushed-rejected/#:~:text=Academic%20freeze%20refers%20to%20the,19%20crisis%20in%20the%20country.

"All it takes is for Duterte to sign his name once, and millions of students and their parents will be alleviated from the burden of online classes until January," said John Lazaro, chairperson of activist organization Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan (SPARK).

Lazaro said that Duterte "paid much lip service to the idea of postponing classes until a COVID-19 vaccine was found."

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"He must put his pen where his mouth is, and act on it," he added.

SPARK staged a protest action on Monday in front of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) building in Quezon City to amplify its call for an "academic freeze," including the increase of capacities for distance learning of both students and teachers.

Asked what exactly the group was asking for, Lazaro told Rappler: "Further procurement of laptops for students and teachers, and public consultations on the composition of modules and broadcast content."

The decision to open classes in the middle of a pandemic was met with criticism. Students and parents pointed out that their household finances have been affected by almost 6 months of lockdown, and they could not afford to buy the tools needed for the revamped education system. (READ: No student left behind? During pandemic, education 'only for those who can afford')

Recently, the Department of Education (DepEd) postponed the opening of classes for school year 2020-2021 from August 24 to October 5.

This was not the first time that school opening has been moved this year. As COVID-19 cases continued to rise, the usual June opening of classes was first moved to August 24. But the almost two-month extension appeared to be inadequate for DepEd to transition to the overhauled education system, prompting a second postponement to October.

Meanwhile, colleges and universities are not covered by RA 11480, the law that moved the school opening for basic education students. (READ: Colleges, universities not covered by law that moved school opening – CHED)

CHED Chairman Prospero de Vera III earlier said that a total of 731 colleges and universities have opened classes in August, while 186 more will open classes in September and October.

Source: https://www.rappler.com/nation/youth-group-urges-duterte-issue-academic-freeze-until-january-2021

 
Classes and schoolwork are often the first things affected when there’s a disaster. The first question most households ask when there’s a typhoon is whether classes are suspended. Parents and students wait for the official, often coming from the heads of local governments. 

 In the age of virtual learning, that system is unchanged, only this time, students wait in their homes for the official notice whether they should log-in or not for the day’s lessons. After the triple whammy of Typhoons Siony, Tonyo and Ulysses, there was a clamor to institute a so-called academic freeze or the cessation of formal education activities. The thinking is that students today have become overwhelmed—by the pandemic, by the consecutive disasters and the pressures of an educational system clearly unprepared to deal with this type of situation. 


But the same educational authorities have time and again said no to calls for the academic freeze. There are breaks, sure, especially in the areas most severely affected by the heavy rains, but the Department of Education has flatly rejected calls for canceling the school year and insists that it will do more harm than good. 

 

At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon, I’m going to have to side with the oldies at DepEd on this one. In areas that are still flooded, where power is still a problem and, where internet connectivity is nonexistent, academic breaks are not only  understandable, but should be automatic. Priorities ought to be clear in extraordinary cases. 

 But to call for a halt to formal education everywhere else in the country is taking it a step too far. No one is downplaying the effects of the coronavirus pandemic and natural disasters on students’ physical and mental health, but it’s the height of arrogance not only to assume to know the hardships other people are going through, but to impose our own imagined solutions to a highly complex issue. We are facing an unprecedented crisis in our lifetime, upending almost every aspect of everyday life. The DepEd might have its faults, and lord knows there’s massive room for improvement in how they are handling things, but I believe its officials are doing their best to ensure that students are getting the education they need given the situation.

 The move to call for a total academic freeze from students aligns with the impression that younger generations are a bit too sensitive and would not hesitate to lift their virtual pitchforks and make their feelings about any topic under the sun known. Online outrage is like cat videos, face masks, and K-pop—they’re inescapable. 

 

1. Suspend alternative learning systems until physical classes are encouraged. 
(e.g. online classes, summer classes, Internship and the likes)

2. Provide efficient psychological services to University stakeholders, 

3. Take into consideration the welfare and capacity of students, faculty, and employees in formulating new adjustments on academic institutions

4. Draft a flexible academic calendar in accordance to students' capacity

5. Prioritize public health and uphold quality education all the time

In these trying times, recovery on a national scale should be our top priority. This includes everyones mental and physical capacity. We call on the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) and the PUP Administration to invoke an alternative education system that does not compromise quality and does not further create wider gap in achieving education for all.

Source: https://www.bataris.org.ph/petitions/no-to-online-classes-and-uphold-quality-education-polytechnic-university-of-the-philippines