ELEMENTARY and secondary schools will have to resume the conduct of five-day face-to-face classes by November 2022, the Department of Education (DepEd) said on Tuesday, July 12, 2022.The DepEd said “starting November 2, 2022, all public and private schools shall have transitioned to five days (per week) in-person classes.”“After the said date, no school shall be allowed to implement purely distance learning or blended learning except for those that are implementing Alternative Delivery Modes (ADM),” it said.The ADM includes homeschooling, modified in-school off-school approach, and night and open high schools that do not strictly follow the regular set-up for regular classroom instruction.The order said the conduct of face-to-face classes is regardless of the alert status of the areas where the schools are located.The DepEd ordered schools to ensure the maintenance of minimum health protocols, such as the wearing of face masks and the observance of physical distancing, to prevent the spread of coronavirus during in-person classes.The agency said the School Year 2022-2023 will start on August 22 and will end on July 7, 2023, consisting 203 school days.It said the number of school days are solely dedicated to academics and related co-curricular activities.“The conduct of extra-curricular activities shall be strictly prohibited,” the agency said.The enrollment will begin on July 25 until the first day of classes.Christmas break was scheduled from December 8 to January 3, 2023.“Private schools and state/local universities and colleges may implement this school calendar, provided they start classes not earlier than the first Monday of June and not later than the last day of August. Any deviation from the school calendar shall be reported to the respective Regional Offices in advance,” the DepEd order stated. (SunStar Philippines)