E. Visayas’ biggest high school modifies class sked amid extreme heat

TACLOBAN CITY – Concerned with the rising heat index, the Leyte National High School (LNHS), the biggest public secondary campus in Eastern Visayas, began implementing a modified class schedule on Thursday.

Under the new schedule, junior high school (JHS) students start their classes at 7:20 a.m. and end at 12 noon, said Bernie Jude Lamoglar, information officer of LNHS in this city.

Senior high school (SHS) learners are required to attend face-to-face classes in the morning and home-based learning in the afternoon.

LNHS has 5,516 JHS enrollees and 3,804 SHS students.

Lamoglar said they do not have to suspend face-to-face classes but instead modify them due to the extreme heat, as students should meet their teachers during the final quarter of the academic year.

“We’re doing the half-day classes, and then we meet them early, so when it’s too hot, the students are already out of school. This schedule will remain until such time that the weather is okay,” he said in an interview.

The teachers recommended the modified schedule, he added.

Grade 11 learner Shawn Dave Loreno welcomed the school’s move to prioritize the welfare of students during hot weather.

“I can now go home early and continue learning in our house. Even if I know what our teachers are talking about, I’m not in the mood to answer questions because it's very hot,” Loreno said.

In 2022, the Department of Education (DepEd) issued Department Order 37, giving school heads the discretion to suspend in-person classes and shift to alternative delivery modes in cases of extreme heat and other calamities that may compromise the health and safety of learners, teachers, and non-teaching personnel.

Tacloban City’s heat index peaked at 41°C based on the weather bureau’s two-day heat forecast as of April 10. (With reports from Daniel A. Panis & Aira D. Mendiola, OJTs/PNA)