DepEd Issues Guidelines on School Calendar and Activities for the Upcoming School Year 2024-2025

By Louise Marasigan

A new school year in the Philippines is approaching more than a week from now, as the long summer season for kindergarten, elementary, and high school students is about to end. This means schoolers will have to prepare a new or updated set of school materials for another year of learning experience.

Aside from students, school staff and officials will also need to prepare for the upcoming academic calendar following a new directive by the nation’s education authority.

Class Days for School Year 2024-2025

On Monday, July 15, the Philippines’ Department of Education (DepEd) announced the implementation of guidelines about the country’s school calendar and activities for the academic year 2024-2025. One of these guidelines include the lengthening of the school calendar or class sessions from the original 200 days to not more than 220 days.

With this, DepEd has scheduled the formal school opening on Monday, July 29, 2024, and closure on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. The lengthening of the class days is in line with Republic Act (RA) No. 7797. The recent announcement also said that private schools, local/state universities, and colleges may adopt these guidelines and follow the required number of class days.

For a complete list of the DepEd guidelines for the school year 2024-2025, please follow this link.

COVID-19 Pandemic Aftermath

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippines and many countries worldwide made many restrictions and changes that affected many structures of the society, including the educational system. In the aftermath of the pandemic, classes have gradually shifted from online classes back to face-to-face learning.

Aside from the easing of restrictions, behavioral experts argue that physical classes are necessary for the social development of children. In a 2022 study, researchers found that face-to-face learning improves the social communication or interaction