Class opening smooth, peaceful: Schools report less enrollees

CEBU, Philippines — Despite a generally smooth and peaceful school opening for the 2025–2026 academic year across Cebu and the whole country yesterday, education officials in Cebu City and Mandaue City are still grappling with low enrollment turnout, and classroom and armchair shortages.

In a statement following yesterday's opening, the Department of Education (DepEd) reported orderly school operations while the Philippine National Police recorded no untoward incidents across Central Visayas.

The opening followed weeks of nationwide preparations under DepEd’s Brigada Eskwela and Oplan Balik Eskwela programs, which mobilized local communities, government agencies, and school personnel to ensure classrooms were ready and safe.

DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara expressed optimism for the school year in a statement, citing the strong collaboration among sectors.

“Alam nating mahirap ang paghahanda, pero mas maayos ang pasukan ngayong taon dahil sa tulong-tulong na kilos ng lahat—ni Pangulong Marcos, guro, magulang, LGU, at mga ahensya. Sobrang laki ng naitulong ng Brigada Eskwela at Oplan Balik Eskwela,” Angara said.

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. formally opened the school year during a visit to Epifanio Delos Santos Elementary School (EDSES) in Malate, Manila. There, he reiterated the administration’s push for reforms to strengthen the country’s basic education system.

In a virtual dialogue with school heads across the country, Marcos emphasized a whole-of-government approach to education, noting that agencies such as the Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Trade and Industry,

Department of Transportation, Philippine National Police, and the Department of Information and Communications Technology, among others, are supporting learners’ needs.

Under President Marcos’ directive, reforms being implemented this school year include simplified enrollment processes, free student health assessments, and early delivery of digital tools.

The directive also includes increased allowances for teachers and medical personnel, streamlined workloads, additional teacher and administrative hires, and a pilot program for a strengthened Senior High School curriculum aimed at improving college and career readiness.

An estimated 27 million students are expected to return to classrooms this school year across roughly 48,000 public and 12,000 private schools.

This also marks the return to a June school opening, the first since the shift during the COVID-19 pandemic. The adjustment reflects growing calls from educators and families to avoid the challenges of extreme heat and restore the traditional academic calendar.

DepEd's Oplan Balik Eskwela Public Assistance Command Center logged 1,690 concerns as of June 14.

Of the said number, 1,406 were resolved immediately through coordination with field offices and school personnel. DepEd said its regional command centers will continue monitoring to address remaining concerns promptly.

Further, In Central Visayas, the Police Regional Office-7 (PRO-7) reported a peaceful and orderly first day of classes with no recorded incidents.

PRO-7 regional director Brig. Gen. Redrico A. Maranan said police units were monitoring 3,010

public and private schools across the region.

“The peaceful and orderly opening of classes today is the result of our meticulous preparation and close coordination with schools, LGUs, and partner agencies,” Maranan said in a separate statement.

A total of 7,366 police personnel were deployed under Balik Eskwela operations, with 419 Police Assistance Desks (PADS) set up to respond to any school-related concerns.

To maintain safety, PRO-7 will sustain its police visibility efforts and continue simulation exercises (SIMEX) to test emergency response readiness. These initiatives follow the directive of PNP Chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III to ensure a secure academic year nationwide.

Less enrollees

DepEd Cebu City Division recorded 122,234 students enrolled in both public and private schools as of Monday, June 16—representing just 51.27 percent of the 238,413 enrolled at the end of the last school year.

The division's target is 243,181 enrollees for School Year 2025–2026, a 2 percent increase from last year’s figure.

According to DepEd Cebu City Division Assistant Superintendent Lyra Luyao Illaga, DevEdD, enrollment remains ongoing despite the official start of classes in public schools.

Students may still enroll as long as 20 percent of the total number of school days has not yet passed.

As of 3 p.m. on June 16, Lahug Elementary School had the highest number of enrollees among elementary schools, with 4,529 students. For high school, Abellana National School led with 5,019 enrollees.

Currently, the division oversees 107 school sites with a total of 4,004 classrooms. Classroom capacity varies by grade level: Kindergarten classrooms can accommodate up to 30 learners; Grades 1 to 3 up to 35 learners; and Grades 4 to 6 up to 45 learners per classroom.

On the other hand, even with less enrollees for the whole city, Illaga said some schools have raised concerns about a shortage of armchairs and classroom space.

To address this, the division is reallocating surplus chairs from other schools to those in need.

DepEd Cebu City Division currently has more than 7,000 teachers, the same number as last school year.

For Mandaue City, Schools Division Superintendent Dr. Bianito Dagatan told reporters that while the first day of classes was a good start, noting that schools were no longer as crowded or chaotic as in previous years, enrollment remains incomplete as some students only began enrolling on the first day of classes.

He explained that the division cannot yet confirm if it has reached 100 percent of its enrollment target, as some students have not been entered into the official online system.

Although several schools he visited had nearly full enrollment, the division cannot consider this official until student data is uploaded. The national office bases its figures on the system, not physical attendance.

Dagatan noted that while there are two enrollment methods—early enrollment and automatic enrollment for students progressing to the next grade level—the division requires parents to personally confirm their child’s continued studies before entering them into the system.

If enrollment were based solely on early and automatic enrollment data, the division would have already reached its target, Dagatan said.

But officials are cautious and require confirmation from parents before making it official.

As of Saturday, June 14, Dagatan reported that only about 55,000 out of the expected 67,000 students had been enrolled.

Dagatan said he remains hopeful that enrollment will reach 100 percent, similar to last year’s total. If numbers fall short, the division will analyze the data to determine whether decreases in one school may be offset by increases in another.

If enrollment numbers remain low after the two-week enrollment period, officials will check if students may have transferred to other divisions. If necessary, they will track the students’ whereabouts using social media to understand enrollment trends.

Dagatan said this is a familiar scenario, as many parents still delay enrollment despite repeated reminders from DepEd.

The division expects the most accurate enrollment data after two weeks, when a full assessment can be made.

Dagatan expressed confidence that enrollment figures will meet or surpass targets within two weeks, especially in elementary schools. He cited a new DepEd guideline allowing children who turn five on or before October 31 to qualify for Kindergarten enrollment, which may contribute to a boost in numbers.

As an example, Mandaue City Central School continues to accept late enrollees after recording only 79.13 percent of its student population as of 7 a.m. on the first day of classes, according to School Principal Louwela Guerrero.

“We are expecting enrollees to rise up today, or this week,” Guerrero said.

As of early morning Monday, the school had recorded 2,950 enrollees from Kindergarten to Grade 6.

“Kinahanglan jud mi more than our previous enrollment, so nag sige pa gihapon ta og advocate sa atoang enrollment,” she added.

In line with this, the school is continuing to accept late enrollees—even those with incomplete requirements.

Guerrero emphasized that even students without a birth certificate can still enroll, provided the requirement is submitted later.

She noted that misconceptions about strict documentation requirements may discourage some

from enrolling, which the school is actively trying to counter.

“Dawaton ra gyud unya i-follow up lang gyud namo sa teachers kung na-submit na,” Guerrero said.

As the school expects more students to arrive in the coming days, Guerrero assured there is no classroom shortage and that class sizes remain within the standards set by the Department of Education (DepEd).

According to DepEd guidelines, class size should be 25 students in Kindergarten, 35 in Grades 1 to 3, and 45 in Grades 4 to 6.

“Wala gyud tay problema, wa gyud ta nilapas sa standard,” she emphasized. — Gwyneth Lynn Geonzon  Gianne Kate Pilapil (FREEMAN)