The operations of all public elementary and secondary schools in the country under the Department of Education (DepEd) will also commence on the 16th of June, 2025, thus signaling a return to the traditional academic calendar.
In accordance with DepEd Order No. 12, Series of 2025, the return of classes on June 16, 2025, marks the resumption of the June to March school year that most Filipinos were familiar with even before the health crisis set in.
With such a scheme under consideration, the school year 2025-2026 will close on March 31, 2026, and will have 197 school days, inclusive of the end-of-school-year (EOSY) rites. DepEd added that the number of school days may still be amended due to unforeseen circumstances or new directives.
The decision was welcomed by Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, who maintained that returning the June start dates helped restore normalcy to children and teachers due to years of disruption from the pandemic.
He added that shifting back to the original academic cycle would also mitigate the effects of extreme heat, an increasing concern for the Philippines throughout the dry season.
Gatchalian also added that the process of bringing it back in June was not easy, but they made it anyway.
