The Department of Education (DepEd) is looking to make class suspension and resumption decisions more responsive to the actual conditions faced by individual schools through its newly launched Project LIGTAS+.
Instead of relying solely on area-wide assessments, the AI-enabled platform is designed to provide localized, science- and data-based information that could help education officials determine whether classes should be suspended or resumed.
DepEd Undersecretary for Governance and Operations Malcolm Garma said the agency has drafted recommendations that would allow decisions to be made at a more granular level.
From Area-Wide to School-Level Decisions
Project LIGTAS+, or Learning Institution Geohazard Tracking and Assessment for Safety, is a multi-hazard analytics and risk management platform developed by DepEd’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Service in partnership with the Education Center for AI Research.
“One of the objectives ng Project LIGTAS+ [is] to be able to provide more granular data, more science-based, more data-based decision-making,” Garma said during the project’s national launch in Makati City.
Under the proposed approach, authorities could consider conditions in specific schools instead of relying solely on broader area-wide assessments. The recommendations, however, are still under review, with no timeline yet for their implementation.
Heat and Other Hazards in Focus
Garma said data such as the heat index could help guide decisions on class suspensions.
“For example, yung heat index, na sobrang init sa lugar natin, pwede nating gamitin para mag-suspend,” he said.
The platform could also support decision-making during flooding and earthquakes by providing more localized information about risks on the ground.
Regional Offices to Support Schools
Schools will be able to access Project LIGTAS+, while DepEd’s regional and schools division offices will assist those that encounter difficulties using the system or generating reports.
Garma, however, noted that the platform’s effectiveness will still depend on local conditions and the availability of necessary infrastructure.
Through Project LIGTAS+, DepEd hopes to strengthen disaster preparedness and reduce learning disruptions by helping schools make more informed decisions based on localized risk data.
