THE DEPARTMENT of Education (DepEd XI) has assessed the “Catch-Up Fridays” program for regional schools to be effective three months after the government roll-out.
DepEd XI spokesperson Jenielito Atillo attributed this to the zero reports of students skipping classes and absenteeism every Friday.
“There has been no report of absences associated with the program, aside from normal causes and reasons,” Atillo said during the AFP-PNP Press Corps on March 27.
Effective January 12, the DepEd implemented Catch-Up Fridays nationwide across elementary and secondary schools and community learning centers.
All Fridays throughout the school year will focus on the National Reading Program for the first half of the day and values, health, and peace education for the second half.
“Catch-up Fridays is a learning mechanism intended to strengthen the foundational, social, and other relevant skills necessary to actualize the intent of the basic education curriculum,” DepEd memo no. 001 series of 2024 issued January 10 reads.
The official said the program has rebranded Friday, which used to be feared by students before as long quizzes fall on Fridays.
Catch Up Fridays is not graded according to the DepEd memo on program guidelines, as it aims to reinforce learning and focus on the student’s performance.
Atillo clarified the program is a manageable workload for teachers as it simplifies the teaching-learning process, focusing mainly on three major learning areas: English, Mathematics, and Science.
“Kung maayo ang pagka plastar sa program, then the children will be enjoying Fridays,” he added.
Vice President and DepEd Secretary Sara Duterte said the program “stays” in response to groups calling to halt the program in its third month of implementation due to the additional burden on teachers’ workload.
During the Araw ng Dabaw program on March 17, Duterte said the program is an intervention to the learning poverty in the country and will assist students in coping with the lessons and increasing reading proficiency following the concerning results of international assessments.
The latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022 revealed that Filipino learners still lagged and produced low-level proficiency in mathematics, reading, and science.
To recall, the vice president said during the PISA 2022 National Result Report forum on Dec. 6, 2023, that the PISA results “lay bare an uncomfortable truth” and stressed the result was a “call to action, a call to our collective responsibility as a nation.”
