Around 1,779 elementary and secondary learners from Antique are joining the enhancement and remediation programs of the Department of Education (DepEd) Schools Division of Antique in preparation for the school opening next month.

DepEd Antique Curriculum and Teaching Division chief, Dr. Edward Baña, said they started “The Champs Summer Program (TCSP),” a summer learning camp, initiated by their regional office, on May 19 that will run until June 6.

“We hope to develop the reading comprehension, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills of learners,” he said.

He said that 28 elementary schools with 404 learners and 12 high schools with 1,065 junior high school learners are participating in the program.

Since the program is voluntary on the part of the teachers, they only earn service credits for the duration of the program.

The Learning Remediation Program (LRP) implemented by DepEd Antique, on the other hand, is mandatory because it will determine if a Grade 3 learner could be promoted to Grade 4, which requires higher skills.

“There are 310 learners from 129 schools in Antique who are attending the LRP,” he said.

He said that most of the learners have special needs; they are considered to belong to low-achieving groups.

“We aim for these learners to be able at least to identify letters or read a phrase or sentence in English,” he said.

He said that the LRP started on May 13-June 6, with the teachers given meals and allowances of PHP5,000 each for the entire 20-day duration.

DepEd provided a budget for the reproduction of the learners’ materials. (PNA)