DepEd allows private schools to shift to blended learning amid national energy emergency

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) has allowed private schools to adopt blended learning arrangements while the country remains under a state of national energy emergency, a move aimed at helping schools manage rising electricity and operating costs without disrupting instruction. The policy is contained in Department Memorandum No. 024, s. 2026, issued on April 7, 2026.

Under the memorandum, private schools may continue with five days of in-person classes or shift to blended learning, depending on their operational needs and readiness. DepEd said the arrangement is meant to provide temporary flexibility as schools cope with higher energy expenses during the emergency period.

The department clarified, however, that the policy does not automatically place all private schools under online or hybrid instruction. Rather, it gives schools the option to adopt a structured blended learning model, subject to DepEd rules and reporting requirements.

Private schools that follow DepEd’s prescribed blended learning setup do not need prior approval, but they must submit a report to their respective Schools Division Office at least five days before implementation. The report must include a modified class program and a concrete plan showing how the school will continue meeting required learning standards. Schools that intend to go beyond or deviate from the prescribed model must first secure approval from the Regional Office.

A key part of the memorandum is DepEd’s detailed explanation of how blended learning should work.

In this policy, blended learning is not simply a full shift to online classes. Instead, face-to-face instruction remains the primary mode of delivery, while a limited number of class days may be conducted remotely. The remote component may be delivered either synchronously, such as live online sessions, or asynchronously, such as independent learning tasks, depending on the needs of the learners and the school’s available systems.

DepEd’s prescribed model sets different limits depending on the students’ grade level.

For Kindergarten to Grade 3, schools may conduct up to one remote learning day per week. This reflects the department’s position that younger learners still require close teacher guidance and stronger classroom interaction. The memo also indicates that independent or self-paced gadget-based learning is generally not recommended for these learners, emphasizing the need for age-appropriate instruction.

For Grades 4 to 6, schools may also implement up to one remote learning day per week. At this level, learners may already handle some guided independent work, but classroom-based learning remains central to instruction.

For Grades 7 to 10, the allowable remote component increases to up to two remote learning days per week. This gives schools more flexibility to reduce on-campus energy use while still maintaining regular in-person engagement for core instruction and assessment.

For Grades 11 to 12, schools may implement up to three remote learning days per week. DepEd allows greater flexibility at the senior high school level because older students are generally better positioned to manage more independent or digitally assisted learning tasks.

The grade-level structure shows that DepEd is not treating blended learning as a one-size-fits-all system. Instead, the department is aligning the number of remote learning days with the developmental needs and learning capacities of students. In practice, this means younger children will still spend most of their school week in physical classrooms, while older students may have more room for remote sessions. That is an inference drawn from the grade-based limits set in the official memo.

DepEd also stressed that any remote learning arrangement must remain age-appropriate, academically sound, and aligned with curriculum standards. Schools are expected to ensure that blended learning does not weaken instructional quality or compromise learner outcomes.

Beyond classroom delivery, the memorandum also encourages private schools to adopt flexible work arrangements for both teaching and non-teaching personnel, as long as school operations, student support, and learning continuity are not disrupted.

The flexibility granted under the memorandum is temporary and remains in effect only while the state of national energy emergency is in force. Once the emergency is lifted, the special allowance for this arrangement may also end unless new guidance is issued.

For parents and students, the policy means that any shift to blended learning will be decided school by school, not imposed automatically across the entire private education sector. Families are expected to wait for official notices from their schools regarding whether they will retain full in-person classes or adopt a limited blended setup during the emergency period.