MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education on Monday confirmed that over 800 private schools will not be operating this coming school year.
Latest data from DepEd shows that of the total 14,435 private schools in the country, 865 will not be operating in School Year 2020-2021.
In addition to this, figures from the department shows that the largest proportion of these non-operational schools, at 374, were forced to suspend operations due to low or no enrollment.
Another 333 schools were cited by DepEd as non-operational due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, 35 schools will not be operating due to their financial status, 15 due to concerns over the safety of learners and school personnel, 25 due to unreadiness, and nine due to their lack of permit, DepEd said.
Another 74 private schools will not be operating due to other reasons not currently listed by the department.
Geographically, majority of private schools suspending operations are in Central Luzon with 141, followed by Calabarzon with 136, Metro Manila with 126 and Western Visayas with 86.
Private schools see enrollment halved
Latest data from the agency shows that only about 2 million students have enrolled in private schools so far, compared to the 4.3 million from last school year.
According to DepEd, this means private schools have reached only 47% of last year's enrollment figures.
The Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA), an umbrella organization of private schools, last Wednesday projected that private schools would only reach 50% of last year's enrollment rates for School Year 2020-2021.
According to COCOPEA Managing Director Joseph Noel Estrada, around 400,000 private school students have transferred to public schools as of August 27.
DepEd on Monday confirmed that the total number of enrollment remains at 24.3 million for the coming school year as compared to the 27.7 million from the year before.
While enrollment in private schools dramatically decreased, the agency said public schools saw 98% of its enrollment rates from the previous school year.
In total, DepEd's data shows that enrollment for the incoming school year is at 87.5% of last year's numbers.
Due to the pandemic, classes for School Year 2020-2021 will be conducted through distance learning modalities such as online learning, modules, television and radio.
While public schools are set to reopen on October 5, private schools and non-DepEd-schools were allowed to open earlier at their discretion. — Bella Perez-Rubio