MANILA — The Department of Education (DepEd) said Wednesday it supported the return of in-person work immersion in senior high school (SHS), allowing students to gain hands-on experience in their chosen field.

Physical work immersion is a requirement for SHS students under the technical-vocational-livelihood track but it was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now that COVID-19 restrictions have eased and more schools are reopening for limited in-person classes, the DepEd is eyeing to reintroduce the requirement for SHS students.

"We are strongly suggesting that work immersion should be implemented for the senior high school learners as they are nearest to accomplishing their postsecondary goals and dreams," Education Secretary Leonor Briones said in a statement.

"Ngayong may face-to-face classes na, siyempre ibabalik natin face-to-face immersion," said Diosdado San Antonio, DepEd's undersecretary for curriculum and instruction.

(Now that we have face-to-face classes, of course we will also bring back face-to-face immersion.)

"Maaaring magkaroon ng pagkakataon sa aktuwal na karanasan sa industriya ang mga mag-aaral sa senior high school hinggil sa kanilang specializations na napili," he added.

(This will give our students in senior high school a chance to have actual industry experience in the specializations that they picked.)

Students undertaking immersions must abide by the guidelines set by the Inter-Agency Task Force on their chosen industry, said San Antonio.

• DepEd program offers digital literacy training to raise SHS students' employability

REVISED ASSESSMENT TOOL

The DepEd has also released an updated version of its School Safety Assessment Tool (SSAT).

The SSAT is a checklist the determines the readiness of elementary and secondary schools to hold limited in-person classes despite the ongoing pandemic.

• Safety assessment tool revised as more schools resume in-person classes

In a statement, the DepEd explained that it revised the SSAT based on evaluations made following the pilot implementation of limited in-person classes in late 2021 and "in consideration of the schools' present conditions relevant to safe reopening."

According to the DepEd, the new SSAT focuses on four main areas: managing school operations, focusing on teaching and learning, well-being and protection, and school-community coordination.

As of April 22, up to 25,786 elementary and secondary schools in the country have reopened for limited in-person classes, according to DepEd data.

Of the total, 25,122 are public schools while 664 are private schools, data showed.

• Don't mix in-person classes, COVID-19 vaccination in schools: Briones

RELATED VIDEO

Watch more News on iWantTFC