Marcos approves return to old school calendar

FILE: FIRST DAY OF CLASSES. Teacher Vivian Ramos leads her kindergarten pupils in prayer during the first day of classes at the Bagong Silang Elementary School in Barangay 176, Caloocan City on Tuesday (Aug. 29, 2023). Ramos said 18 of her 25 pupils in the first batch attended the first day of school. (PNA photo by Ben Briones)

MANILA – President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has approved the country’s return to the old school calendar amid clamors for the immediate restoration of the April-May school break, Malacañang announced Wednesday.

In a news release, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the opening of classes for School Year (SY) 2024-2025 would begin on July 29 this year and end on April 15, 2025.

This would start the gradual return of the school year to June of every year until the end of March the next year, the PCO explained.

Marcos gave his approval during a sectoral meeting with Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte during a meeting at the Palace on Tuesday.

During the meeting, Marcos told the Department of Education (DepEd) to start the return of the standard school calendar days starting SY 2024-2025.

The Vice President presented two options to the President for the school calendar shift.

The first option comprised 180 school days with 15 in-person Saturday classes while the second option was to have 165 school days with no in-person Saturday classes.

Both options will end the SY on March 31, 2025.

The President, however, said the 165-day school calendar is “too short” as such an arrangement would significantly reduce the number of school days and contact time that may compromise learning outcomes, the PCO noted.

He also did not want students to go to school on Saturdays to complete the 180-day school calendar, saying it would “jeopardize their well-being and demand more resources.

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The Chief Executive said that instead of ending on March 31, 2025, DepEd should adjust the SY to end on April 15, 2025 to enable students to complete 180 days without going to school on Saturdays.

“Habaan lang natin ‘yung school days. Para matagal, dagdagan na lang natin ‘yung school days basta huwag natin gagalawin ‘yung Saturday (Let’s just extend the school days. Let’s just increase the number of school days so long as we don’t hold classes on Saturdays). So, school day will remain the same. Standard lang (just the standard),” Marcos said.