The Department of Education (DepEd) is set to offer French classes in selected public high schools nationwide in the next school year.
DepEd Education Secretary Jesli Lapus and French Ambassador Thierry Borja de Mozota inked an agreement to formally introduce French in 13 science high schools starting school year 2010- 2011.
Six science schools from the National Capital Region (NCR) and seven in Region VII () were selected in the pilot phase of the Special Program in Foreign Language, with Tagbilaran City among them.
The program also eyes the development of students’ skills in listening, reading, writing, speaking and viewing as basic skills to acquire communicative competence in a second foreign language.
Last May 2009, selected teachers from the participating schools underwent a month-long intensive training program at the Alliance Française in Manila and Cebu. The teachers are currently in the second phase of their training which runs until March 2010. (DepEd)