Rules on the Cancellation or Suspension of Classes

Guidelines on the Implementation Of Executive Order No. 66 (Prescribing Rules on the Cancellation or Suspension of Classes and Work in Government Offices Due to Typhoons, Flooding, Other Weather Disturbances, and Calamities)

DepEd Order 43, S. 2012 

To: Undersecretaries Assistant Secretaries Bureau Directors Directors of Services, Centers and Heads of Units Regional Directors Schools Division/City Superintendents Heads, Public and Private Elementary and Secondary Schools All Others Concerned

1. The Guidelines on the Implementation of Executive Order (EO) No. 66 dated January 9, 2012, entitled “Prescribing Rules on the Cancellation or Suspension of Classes and Work in Government Offices Due to Typhoons, Flooding, Other Weather Disturbances and Calamities, ” is issued to streamline the procedure on the suspension of classes and work in government offices in times of typhoons, floods, and other disasters or calamities to spare the pupils, students, teachers and government workers and the general public from unnecessary dangers to their lives and limbs.

2. In compliance thereof, the following guidelines shall be observed by all concerned regional, division, and school officials of both public and private schools:

a. Automatic Cancellation/Suspension of Classes All concerned DepEd officials and personnel are directed to observe the weather bulletins of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) announced through various media outlets (radio, television, and internet).When Signal No. 1 is raised by PAGASA, public and private preschool and kindergarten classesin the affected areas shall be automatically cancelled or suspended.When Signal No. 2 is raised by PAGASA, public and private preschool, kindergarten, elementary and secondary classes in the affected areas shall be automatically cancelled or suspended.When Signal No. 3 is raised by PAGASA, work in all DepEd offices in the affected areas shall be automatically cancelled or suspended.Depending on signal numbers declared at 10:00 p.m. and 4:30 a.m. of the following day, classes in appropriate levels for the whole day are deemed automatically cancelled/suspended.

Afternoon classes in the appropriate levels in areas with signal numbers declared at 11:00 a.m. that day are likewise automatically cancelled/suspended.

Teaching personnel handling cancelled or suspended classes are likewise allowed to leave their stations in consideration of the work they will need to undertake during make-up classes.

Heads of private schools shall exercise discretion on their teaching personnel handling cancelled or suspended classes.

b. Localized Cancellation/Suspension of Classes and Work In the absence of typhoon signal warnings from PAGASA, localized cancellation/suspension of classes in both public and private schools and work in government offices may be implemented by local chief executives in their capacity as chairpersons of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (LDRRMC).

Concerned local DepEd and private school officials are directed to establish effective lines of communications with their respective local government units (LGUs).

Any decision to cancel or suspend classes must come from the local government. A school head (SH) may only cancel or suspend classes in cases where urgent action is needed to prevent loss of life or bodily harm.

As stated in Section 2 of EO No. 66, LGU officials are expected to announce cancellation or suspension not later than 4:30 a.m. for whole day cancellation or suspension, or not later than 11:00 a.m. for afternoon cancellation or suspension.

For this purpose, regional, division and school officials are hereby directed to communicate local situation with their respective counterpart local chief executive.

c. Cancellation/Suspension of Classes and Work During Other Calamities Decisions on and subsequent announcement of cancellation/suspension of classes in public and private schools and work in government offices in areas affected by disasters or calamities other than typhoons, such as but not limited to floods, earthquakes, tsunamis and conflagration, shall be made by the local government executive as chairperson of the LDRRMC, in coordination with the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC), through all forms of mass media available under the circumstances.

d. Maintenance of Work Force Regional and Division Offices shall activate their Regional or Division Disaster Risk Reduction Offices (DRRMO) to monitor the situation and keep lines of communications open.

e. Reporting Standard reporting procedures between Regional and Division DRRMOs with the Central Office DRRMO applies.

Standard procedures in communicating with the LDRRMC and Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (RDRRMC) shall likewise apply.

f. Announcements The DepEd spokesperson, regional directors (RDs), schools division/city superintendents (SDSs), central, regional and division communication officers, in interviews, should only confirm or re-echo automatic cancellation/suspension of classes after it is officially published by PAGASA. No announcement should originate from the Department. If interviewed by media, announcement should always be made in reference to what PAGASA has already announced in areas under a typhoon signal, and to local chief executives in the absence of a typhoon signal.

Based on Section 3 of EO No. 66, announcement of local cancellation/suspension of classes shall be made by the local chief executives. In cases where urgent action is needed to prevent loss of life or bodily harm, the school head is expected to make the announcement and subsequently inform the local executive.

g. Absences of Tropical Cyclones/Storm Signal Warning In cases where PAGASA has not raised any storm signal warning or declared the presence of a tropical cyclone, Regional and Division DRRMOs are directed to communicate with their counterpart RDRRMC and LDRRMC for any decision to cancel or suspend classes in their respective locality.

h. Responsibility of Parents The DepEd still maintains that parents have the ultimate responsibility for determining whether their children should go to school, even if no order for cancellation/suspension of classes has been issued, if they feel that traveling to or from school will place their children at risks.

Parents are advised to check for media advisories coming from PAGASA, NDRRMC, RDRRMCs, LDRRMCs or the Office of the President itself.

3. Parents and teachers are reminded that the required number of school days for the school year shall be considered especially in holding make-up classes to offset the days when classes are cancelled/suspended. These make-up classes shall be held on Saturdays or on weekdays beyond the originally set school calendar in both public and private schools.

4. School officials, members of the DRRMCs in schools designated as evacuation centers are requested to render service even when classes are suspended. They shall coordinate with the local government official on rules, orders, and guidelines prescribed for evacuation centers.

5. All previous orders and regulations relevant to the cancellation/suspension of classes due to any weather disturbance or calamities are rescinded.

6. Immediate dissemination of and compliance with this Order is directed. 7. Reference: DepEd Order: No. 81, s. 2010

Source: DepEd No. 43, s. 2012

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