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Parents, teachers urged to continue making kids wear masks inside classrooms

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Rose Carmelle Lacuata, ABS-CBN News

MANILA (UPDATE) - As the Department of Education allowed the optional wearing of face masks inside classrooms, teachers and parents are urged to continue making their children and students wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19.Representatives of teachers&#x27; and parents&#x27; groups said Tuesday that classrooms in the country are too congested, and without face masks, the virus may spread faster.&quot;Sa size ng classroom at saka sa ratio, dikit dikit po ang mga estudyante sa classroom,&quot; Lito Senieto of the National Parents-Teachers Association Philippines said.(With the classroom size and [student-teacher] ratio, students sit close to each other inside the classrooms.)&quot;Sa akin po, dikit dikit kasi ‘yung mga estudyante, so ‘yung hawaan ang iniiwasan natin diyan,&quot; he added.(For me, since classrooms are crowded, then we have to prevent the spread of the virus.)Alliance of Concerned Teachers Secretary-General Raymond Basilio echoed Senieto&#x27;s concern about classroom congestion.&quot;Malaki ‘yung bilang ng class size natin. At walang nurse, at walang physical distancing na mangyayari sa ating mga classrooms. Kaya ang tanging protection na maiiwan sa mga bata at sa mga guro ay itong face mask. Kaya napakahalaga po na nandito pa rin ito,&quot; he said.(We have a big class size. We don&#x27;t have nurses, and we don&#x27;t have physical distancing in classrooms. So the only protection that students and teachers have is the face mask. This is why it&#x27;s important that we still wear it.)&quot;Kung magkakaroon man ng infection sa hanay ng mga estudyante at mga guro, magiging mabilis ‘yung pagkalat,&quot; Basilio warned.(In case some students or teachers get infected, then it will spread fast.)Teachers’ Dignity Coalition chairperson Benjo Basas said that it might be too early to make mask wearing optional.&quot;I would still advise my students to wear face masks dahil ito naman ang protection natin. And take note, hindi pa naman tapos itong pandemic. We are still struggling with this pandemic, and actually, tumataas pa nga ‘yung mga cases, according to reports,&quot; he said.(I would still advise my students to wear face masks because this is our form of protection. And take note, the pandemic is still not over. We are still struggling with this pandemic, and actually, the cases are still increasing, according to reports.)&quot;‘Wag nating sanayin ‘yung mga bata na maging kampante. Dapat nag-iingat pa rin,&quot; Basas added.(Let us not make the children feel complacent. They should still take precautions.)<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2320519" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>In a separate statement, the Kabataan Partylist also urged school officials to &quot;still highly encourage&quot; the wearing of face masks in schools.&quot;100% face-to-face classes for all is long overdue. However, simply requiring such a policy while having no COVID-19 testing, low vaccination rates among young students, and now optional masking can be a recipe for disaster. In limited face-to-face classes, there have been reports of class suspensions and interruptions because of poor COVID-19 response in schools. How much more when schools conduct full face-to-face classes?” Rep. Raoul Manuel said.While there are public officials who reject the advice of health experts to impose masking, we urge school officials to still highly encourage the wearing of well-fitting masks because COVID-19 is an airborne disease. Students must be safe and healthy for them to effectively learn,&quot; he added.The DepEd said earlier in the day it would follow a recent Malacañang order on the voluntary use of face masks in indoor spaces, effectively allowing students to remove their masks while attending in-person classes.&quot;We will follow [Executive Order No.] 7 and issue an amendatory [department order],&quot; DepEd Spokesman Michael Poa said in response to a query on masking in classrooms.&quot;Schools may immediately implement optional masking indoors,&quot; he added.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/01/22/deped-allows-optional-use-of-face-masks-in-classrooms">DepEd allows optional use of face masks in classrooms</a></li></ul>Last week, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. approved the voluntary use of face masks in both indoor and outdoor areas despite the continued threat of COVID-19.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/01/22/deped-allows-optional-use-of-face-masks-in-classrooms">DepEd allows optional use of face masks in classrooms</a></li></ul>The order, however, said the the use of face masks will remain mandatory in health care facilities, medical transport vehicles and all forms of public transportation.Mask wearing is also encouraged for the elderly, individuals with comorbidities, immunocompromised persons, pregnant women, unvaccinated individuals, and those experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. The DepEd had ordered all public schools to return to full in-person classes from Wednesday, Nov. 2, following over two years of distance and blended learning due to the pandemic.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/17/22/distance-blended-learning-allowed-in-private-schools-beyond-nov">DepEd allows private schools to continue distance, blended learning beyond Nov. 2</a></li></ul>The agency has refused to release data on COVID-19 cases in schools, leaving it up to local governments to publicize such figures.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/24/22/deped-urged-to-release-covid-count-in-schools">DepEd urged to release data on COVID-19 infections in schools</a></li></ul><div>- with a report from Jaehwa Bernardo, ABS-CBN News</div>

(UPDATE) As the Department of Education allowed the optional wearing of face masks inside classrooms, teachers and parents are urged to continue making their children and students wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

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Parents, teachers urged to continue making kids wear masks inside classrooms

Rose Carmelle Lacuata,

ABS-CBN News

Published November 01, 2022 09:55 PM PHT

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Updated November 01, 2022 11:40 PM PHT

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