Public schools still accepting enrollees as classes begin

On the first day of the new school year on Monday, principals in public elementary and high schools are still accepting students despite the shortage of classrooms. At the Parañaque National High School in Parañaque City, almost 11,200 students enrolled before classes opened on Monday. However, the number of students is expected to reach 11,700 by the end of the week because of "walk-in" students who did not enroll before classes began on Monday. School principal Urbano Agustin told GMA News Online that Parañaque National High School will continue accommodating students until June 17 unless the Department of Education (DepEd) releases a different announcement. Earlier, DepEd released a directive prohibiting public schools from refusing students as long as the schools can accommodate them. Overcrowded classrooms Urbano said each of their 50 classrooms have about 60 students as of Monday after the school accommodated the late enrollees. He said the school will continue to admit late enrollees until the maximum of 80 students per classroom is reached. "Titingnan din namin kung ano 'yung rason kung bakit sila nahuli ng enrollment. Kadalasan, late sila kasi mga bagong uwi sa probinsya o galing sa kamag-anak," Agustin said. Lack of classrooms in urban center Meanwhile, DepEd Secretary Armin Luistro said the department is working closely with the Human Development Cluster of the Cabinet to address the severe lack of classrooms in urban centers like Metro Manila. DepEd data shows that 82 percent of students in National Capital Region are enrolled in schools that are suffering from severe classroom shortage. "Ang talagang problema dito, kulang sa pondo. At kahit may pondo, wala naman na tayong mga lugar, walang lupa para magtayo ng additional buildings," he said. He said most classrooms in NCR public schools have anywhere between 80 to 100 students at a time. "Hindi acceptable na lumampas sa 60 'yung class size," he said. Despite the directive to continue accepting enrollees, Luistro said the DepEd will meet with school principals and superintendents within the week to discuss the problem of overcrowded classrooms. Late enrollees Meanwhile, at the Commonwealth Elementary School in Quezon City, late enrollees will be accepted by the school but they will only be admitted into class starting on June 13. School principal Rodolfo Modelo said the school will first take care of students who pre-registered for the classes. In an interview on Balitanghali, Modelo expressed his dismay that some parents did not enroll their children early. He said the late enrollment of students only adds to the confusion on the first day of classes. "Ang mga magulang naman kasi, kung kailan 'yung mismong pasukan, doon magdadatingan," he said. - VVP, GMA News