TWENTY-SEVEN public schools in Lapu-Lapu City can hold full face-to-face classes starting on Aug. 22, 2022.

Sixteen are elementary schools, most of which are located in the city’s islets, while others are six junior high schools and five senior high schools, according to Dr. Reynold Velos, School Governance and Operations Division chief of the Department of Education (DepEd) Lapu-Lapu City.

Lapu-Lapu City has 81 public schools: 44 elementary schools, 27 junior high schools and 10 senior high schools.

As for the 70 private schools in the city, Velos said he could not say how many will shift to face-to-face classes. He said the majority will implement the hybrid type of learning, or blended learning, from August to October.

Hybrid learning is described as “an educational model in which students spend at least half of their time learning online and the rest of their time learning in physical classrooms.”

However, Velos said it will still boil down to school heads and stakeholders, particularly parents, if they want to make the transition this month.

By Nov. 2, all schools will have to shift to face-to-face classes based on the order of the DepEd Central Office.

Meanwhile, Velos said large schools in the city are worried about not being able to implement minimum health protocol in class.

“Mao gyud lisod nato ron unsaon pag-maintain sa social distancing nga nag-overcrowded naman gani atong mga eskwelahan tungod saka kuwang sa mga classrooms (Trying to maintain social distancing will be a problem, considering the schools are already overcrowded because of the lack of classrooms),” he said.

Data from DepEd Lapu-Lapu City showed that 101,128 students were enrolled in private and public schools in the city as of Aug. 10,

Dr. Wilfreda Bongalos, Dep-Ed Lapu-Lapu City division superintendent, earlier said they expected about 110,000 enrollees in public schools and 19,000 enrollees in private schools.