THE Department of Education – Cordillera (DepEd-CAR) has tallied the enrolled population of learners from kindergarten level to Grade 12 in the region and reported a slight dip in learner numbers regionwide.
DepEd-CAR on Monday said it has recorded at least 429,772 learners in public and private schools from Kindergarten to Grade 12 during the first week of classes for School Year 2023-2024.
This is slightly lower than last year’s recorded enrollment population of 437,624 students.
Benguet saw the return to school of 102,379 learners, while the Baguio Schools Division logged 91,599 students. Abra saw 58,724, Kalinga 58,355, Ifugao saw 50,612, Mountain Province recorded 38,280, and Apayao had the fewest registered learners at only 29,823 in the entire province.
For this school year, 362,162 learners came from public primary and secondary schools, while 64,104 were from private primary and secondary schools. State Universities and Colleges, meanwhile, accepted 3,506 learners from Kindergarten to secondary level.
However, the DepEd-CAR is expecting a slight uptick in registration numbers once latecomers are able to enroll in their schools.
DepEd Order 3-2018 states that public schools can accommodate late enrollees provided the learner meets 80 percent of the prescribed number of school days for each school year and the quarterly requirement to pass the grade level as governed by the latest existing applicable DepEd issuances.