MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education on Wednesday said there are now more than 20 million students enrolled for the new school year which begins next week.
That figure is 76.6% of the 26.22 million who enrolled last year, the first academic year carried out remotely due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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DepEd officials have said they are looking to match the 2020 turnout and have urged parents not to wait for last minute in signing up their children.
Calabarzon has the highest number of enrollees for the new school year at 2.84 million, Central Luzon with 2.05 million, and the National Capital Region at 1.94 million.
More than a million Filipino students opted to forego the school year in 2020, while private schools saw a 50% drop in enrollment as students transferred to public institutions.
Of the 20 million enrolled for the coming school year, 14.47 million students would be in public schools, while 1.04 million would be in private institutions.
In DepEd's Alternative Learning System, meanwhile, the enrollment has remained at 170,545, or 28.45%, against the 599,365 in 2020.
Education Undersecretary Nepomuceno Malaluan told reporters they expect figures to go up until September 13, the last day of enrollment that would also be the official start of the school year.
He added two regions — Cagayan Valley and Caraga — surpassed their enrollment figures in 2020, suggesting a return of students who skipped schooling last year.
"There may be other regions that will show similar development," said Malaluan, who is also DepEd's chief of staff.
Classes in the Philippines would continue to be held online, with President Rodrigo Duterte yet to allow at least a pilot run for schools in areas with low virus transmission.
Teacher and student groups have since criticized the present setup for difficulties that they warned could negatively impact education stakeholders' wellbeing.