Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region XII
Division of Sultan Kudarat
District of East Lebak
CHRISTIANUEVO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Christianuevo, Lebak, Sultan Kudarat

COM
MUN
ICAT
ION
PLA
. Background

With the technical guidance from the Department of Health

(DOH) and other child health expert organizations, the Department
of Education (DepEd) formulated the operational guidelines on the
pilot implementation of face-to-face learning modality in preparation
for the eventual school reopening.

The guidelines aim to ensure that students, school staff, their

families, and surrounding communities are afforded the maximum
amount of protection against COVID-19.

The pilot implementation of face-to-face classes will provide

essential insights on the expansion of reopening of schools; hence,
the coordination of the Central Office and schools is critical in this
undertaking.
 Objectives

This communications plan aims to:

• Guide key communicators of the pilot face-to-face classes in developing and crafting messages and interventions to
concerned stakeholders; and
• Provide documentation and media management protocols for the pilot implementation of face-to-face classes; and

• Establish field coordination and crisis management protocol for possible scenarios for the continuation of the pilot face-
to-face classes.

Key Messages

Bayanihan para sa Ligtas na Balik-Eskwela. Anchored on the shared responsibility framework, the Department of
Education is gradually reintroducing face-to-face classes with stringent measures and protocols in place and with the help
of various education stakeholders.
a. Consultative. - the Department of Education consulted the Department of Health and medical and pediatric experts in
developing the guidelines.
b. Collaborative. - collaboration of DepEd, DOH, local government units, teachers and non-teaching staff, parents,
learners as well as the community.
c. Community-Based. - the pilot implementation will only take place in low-risk areas and be participated only by schools
and individuals that passed certain requirements
 Stakeholder Mapping

As long as the threat of COVID-19 exists, education stakeholders face daunting challenges in the reintroduction of
physical classes. Communication will play a big role in establishing interventions to identify issues that may hamper the
pilot implementation and its eventual expansion.

Communication Strategies

CONCERNED PERSON POSSIBLE COMMUNICATION INTERVENTION RESPONSIBLE

PERSON/OFFICE
• Posting of child-friendly IEC materials in school common areas.
• Conduct of Orientation School Heads,
1. Learners • Coordination with parents Teachers, SIC
• Delegation of student’s health (handwashing, do’s and don’ts).

• Provision of bite-sized information and IEC materials.

• Availability of direct contact to officials. DOH, LGU, CO,
2. Teachers and
• Reinforce of communication efforts for informed decisions on vaccines. RO, SDO, SIC
School Personnel
• Features of schools’ best practices

• Provisions of direct contact numbers to schools and Deped Officials. School Heads,
3. Parents • Features stories of parent’s support to the implementation. Teachers, SIC
• Conduct of parent’s orientation.

• Conduct of community-wide orientation. DOH, LGU, CO,

4. Community members • Feature of stories about community support and preparations. RO, SDO, School
• Development of omnibus TV and radio ad on safe return to schools personnel, SIC
 Communication Materials

1. Vacc2School elements can be retained for consistency purposes.

2. All communication materials must have a localized version.
3. Posters and other outdoor materials must be posted in heavy traffic locations.
4. Printed materials (brochures, flyers) must be distributed to participating stakeholders

Communication Materials
A. Tactics
1. Traditional Media
a. Printed materials (posters, flyers, brochures)
1. FAQs on Implementation of limited F2F Classes
2. Guide on Step-by-step Daily Routine for Learners, Parents/Guardians, and Teachers
3. Contact Numbers of School Officials/Health Officers
4. Handwashing Procedures
5 COVID-19 Benefit Packages for DepEd Personnel

2. Social Media
a. Facebook/Instagram
1. Infographics
2. Informational videos
3. Boosted content
 Communication Materials

3. Production - according to the latest SWS survey, TV and radio are still most used information source of Filipinos.
a. TV ad
1. Containing videos on safe return to school operations
2. Guide on Step-by-step Daily Routine for Learners, Parents/Guardians, and Teachers
b. Radio ad
1. Containing radio news and ads on safe return to school operations
2. Guide on Step-by-step Daily Routine for Learners, Parents/Guardians, and Teachers
4. Giveaways
a.Vacc2School items (shirt, facemask, alcohol spray, umbrella, pen, mug, notebook, calendar, etc.)

Sample IEC materials

C. Audience-specific (pictures from UNICEF)

1. Learners
2. Parents
 Sample printed materials (Localized)
1. Guide on step-by-step daily routine (English and Filipino)
Sample printed materials (Localized)

2. FAQs on pilot implementation of face-to-face classes

Sample printed materials (Localized)
3. Philhealth COVID-19 benefit packages for DepEd personnel
 Coordination
1. An online group composed of PAS members and involved RIOs, DIOs, and SIC’s must be
established.
2. Updates from CO will be forwarded to the group by PAS for alignment.
3. PAS will also collect a list of involved field information officers and their contact numbers for easier
coordination.
4. RIOs, DIOs, and SICs are encouraged to forward field updates or concerns to the group as well.
5. Weekly meetings can be set up by PAS or as absolutely needed.

Documentation guidelines
a. Photo and Video
1. Photo and video recording of the preparations and implementation of the pilot face-to-face
classes maybe used in information and communication materials of the Department and other agencies,
as may be requested.

2. All materials should display compliance to health protocols and standards, such as
wearing of face masks and face shields, and physical distancing.

3. The following scenarios must be included in the documentation of the school:

a. Setup of safety features, physical facilities, signages and markers, WASH facilities and
supplies, personal protective equipment (PPEs), and learning materials in the school
b. Classroom layout and structure, and other areas of the school (designated waiting
areas, school gate, restroom, school clinic, library, school administrative office, etc.)
c. Interface and involvement of external stakeholders and LGUs in the school reopening
process
 d. Orientation of learners, parents, guardians, teaching and non-teaching personnel on
procedures in conducting face-to-face classes
e. Simulation activities among school personnel regarding protocols and routines
f. Official visit of Regional, Division or local DepEd officials and other partners in the school

Documentation guidelines

Social Media Posting

1. Regional, division, and school pages are encouraged to share the posts and IEC materials uploaded
on the DepEd website and DepEd Philippines social media pages. Templates will be provided by the
Public Affairs Service for contextualization of the contents.

2. Schools may share updates or stories on their preparations and actual implementation of the school
reopening. Topics include health and safety protocols, physical arrangement and layout of the
classrooms, orientation of teaching and nonteaching personnel, orientation of parents and learners, and
partnerships with local government units and community, among others.

3. All posts pertaining to the pilot implementation must support to the messaging guide provided in this
document and must be cleared for posting by the head of office before releasing.
4. Photos must be accompanied by a caption in Filipino or English. Use of mother tongue is also
encouraged to further contextualize the content. To ensure conciseness, the recommended length is 2 to
3 paragraphs.
5. Sharing of sensitive information (e.g., learners’ full name, birthday, learner reference number, class
section, etc.) is not allowed to protect the data privacy of learners, parents, and personnel.
6. Posts featuring the photo or personal information of a learner or minor-aged children must have the
consent of the learner’s parents or guardian before posting.

Crisis Management (internal)

a. Incident Reporting

1. Report incident to the group established for coordination with the school personnel and
other involved information officers
2. For monitoring purposes, the SIC/DIO must have a list of contact numbers of participating
teachers and learners.
3. Any health or non-health incident that took place inside the participating school must be
reported to PAS and respective RIO/DIO upon validation of authorized personnel of school.
4. The RIO-in-charge must finalize the incident report and official statement for submission to
PAS.
5. The release of the official statement must be cleared by PAS and OSEC.

b. Scenarios and Procedures

Field offices are instructed to follow the school’s contingency plan and health and safety protocols
stipulated in the DepEd-DOH Joint Memorandum Circular.

In terms of communication crisis scenarios, the following steps must be followed:

Scenario 1: A school personnel/learner showing symptoms of COVID-19

 1. SIC/DIO shall alert PAS and RIO within 24 hours after the incident occurred.
2. Prepare incident report and submit to RIO for validation
3. SIC/DIO must provide daily health monitoring report to PAS of the concerned individual/s

Scenario 2: A school personnel/learner testing positive of COVID-19

1. SIC/DIO shall alert PAS and RIO within 24 hours after the incident occurred.
2. SIC/DIO must provide daily health monitoring report to PAS of the concerned individual
3. Prepare incident report and submit to RIO for validation
4. RIO will then draft an official statement. Remember not to mention affected individuals’
names to protect their privacy.
5. In the statement, provide actions being taken to protect the health and well-being of the affected
individual
6. Once the statement is submitted to CO, PAS will provide further recommendations to handle the
situation.
7. PAS will provide guidance on the release of the statement considering the factors of the incident

Scenario 3: School closure due to rising cases of COVID-19

1. SIC/DIO shall alert PAS and RIO within 24 hours after the incident occurred.
2. Prepare incident report and submit to RIO for validation
3. RIO will then draft an official statement regarding the risk status of the locality.
4. In the statement, provide actions being taken to protect the health and well-being of
stakeholders, learning continuity
5. Once the statement is submitted, PAS will provide further recommendations to handle the
situation
 6. PAS will provide guidance on the release of the statement considering the factors of the
incident.

Scenario 4: Complaints of stakeholders regarding the implementation of the pilot testing

1. SIC/DIO shall alert PAS and RIO within 24 hours after the incident occurred.
2. Prepare incident report and submit to RIO for validation
3. RO/ SDO must provide clarifications and recommendations on the complaint/s.
4. RIO will draft an official statement to answer the complaint/s.
5. Once the statement is submitted to CO, PAS will provide further recommendations to handle the
situation
6. PAS will provide guidance on the release of the statement considering the factors of the
incident.

Scenario 5: Escalation of fake information regarding the conduct of pilot face-to-face classes
1. SIC/DIO shall alert PAS and RIO within 24 hours after the incident occurred.
2. RIO/DIO shall conduct validation of the ‘fake’ information
3. RIO/DIO shall contact the source of the information and provide clarifications about it.
Respectfully request the source to delete the post to avoid public confusion.
4. RIO shall draft an official statement clarifying the ‘fake’ information.
5. PAS will provide guidance on the release of the statement considering the factors of the
incident.
Scenario 6: A participating school personnel/learner dying of COVID-19 complications
1. SIC/DIO shall alert PAS and RIO within 24 hours after the incident occurred.
2. Prepare incident report and submit to RIO for validation
 3. RIO will then draft an official statement. Remember not to mention affected individuals’
names to protect their privacy.
4. In the statement, express empathy to the untimely death of a DepEd family member and provide
actions being done to support the family.
5. Once the statement is submitted to CO, PAS will provide further recommendations to handle the
situation.
6. PAS will secure the clearance of OSEC for the publication of the statement.

Communication plan guide for schools (external)

School Based Contact Tracing

Contact Tracing is a public health tool that is used to help stop the spread of certain communicable
diseases. For schools, it involves identifying others that may have had recent close contact with a
person confirmed to have the virus and giving that information to the local public health department. The
local public health department will provide guidance on how to stay safe, protect others, and
quarantining to prevent further spread of the virus.
Quarantine separates people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they become
sick. This is important because people who are infected with COVID-19 are contagious two days before
they have any symptoms of being sick, so unless they are kept separated from other people, they will
spread the illness without even knowing it. Since close contacts are not yet known to be infected, the
contacts to those contacts do not need to be in quarantine and do not need to be identified or contacted.

Sample Closed-Contact Tracing Form

Prepared by: NOTED:

ROGER D. SAMILLANO ARNOLD A. BALADJAY

School Information Officer School Head

APPROVED:

CHARLIE G. FELIPE
Public Schools District Supervisor