The Department of Education (DepEd) in Ilocos Region said learning continues amid the implementation of the alternative delivery mode (ADM) due to surging heat index.

Classes through ADM are counted as part of the school year, which will end on May 31, according to DepEd Director Dr. Tolentino Aquino on Friday.

He said the shift in class delivery modes is in compliance with the central office advisory issued in 2022, which explains the guidelines to the shift to online or modular learning during extreme heat or any type of calamity or disaster.

He said some schools suspend classes only in the afternoon when heat is intolerable.

“Maybe it is because they recognize that face-to-face classes still offers a different quality of learning,” he said in an interview.

Some localities suspend face-to-face classes on a daily basis while others, for a week, depending on the forecast of the weather bureau.

Aquino assured the parents that DepEd takes into consideration the well-being and safety of learners. (PNA)