Philippines: No school until Covid-19 vaccine is available

Text by: RFI Follow

Millions of Filipino children may not be able to return to school when school starts on August 24. At issue: the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to prevent the return of students to schools until a vaccine against the coronavirus is available on the market.  

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More than 25 million students are affected by this measure, no schools without a vaccine. The risk to children is too great, says President Duterte. The Ministry of Education therefore recommends distance education.

A difficult solution to implement in the Philippines, according to Ernesto Almocera, spokesperson for the NGO Plan International. “  This directive from the president to suspend classes from CP to the terminale worries us. In particular because internet speed is very low, even nonexistent in some isolated islands and provinces. It is an obstacle for distance education. Also, many teachers are not really trained to give lessons over the internet. And the computer remains an inaccessible tool for many parents. The resumption of distance courses is scheduled for the end of August, which leaves too little time for preparation. The Ministry of Education and the government should offer teaching methods to teachers to be able to teach at a distance, and the government should invest more in computers or tablets than it will make available to high school students and students  . ”

Even if a hundred teams of researchers are currently working on the development of a vaccine against the coronavirus, it is still too early to know when it will be available and widely distributed.

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• Coronavirus
• Philippines
• Education
• Rodrigo Duterte

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