Legazpi City, January 29, 2024 – In preparation for the upcoming school year 2024-2025, the Department of Education Bicol has commenced the early registration campaign across both public and private schools throughout the region.

DepEd Bicol Director Gilbert Sadsad issued a regional memorandum instructing strict adherence to central office guidelines for the program, focusing on the early registration of students entering kindergarten, grades 1, 7, and 11. The registration period is from January 27 to February 23, 2024.

Director Sadsad explained that the primary objective of the early registration campaign is to streamline the enrollment process and gather essential information about incoming students at an early stage. This initiative aims to identify potential challenges in the enrollment process and allocate resources efficiently to ensure a smooth opening of the academic year, he added.

Pursuant to DepEd Memorandum dated January 22, 2024, while the preferred method for the early registration campaign is face-to-face, schools may also explore alternative options for collecting registration forms. All public elementary and secondary schools were also directed to consistently update or encode information in the Early Registration facility of the Learner Information System (LIS) using school head or school administrator accounts. Schools were also mandated to utilize either print or electronic copies of the Basic Education Enrollment Form for accurate capturing of necessary information regarding incoming Kindergarten, Grades 1, 7, and 11 learners, among other data.

As of January 28, 2024, a total of 25,917 learners have enrolled early for the upcoming school year. This number includes 5,327 in Kindergarten, 11,052 in Grade 1, 4,396 in Grade 7, and 5,142 in Grade 11.

The Department of Education Bicol projects an overall enrollment of 577,340 learners in kindergarten, grade 1, 7, and 11, for the academic year 2024-2025. The early registration campaign is expected to significantly contribute to accurate forecasting of student numbers and facilitate effective planning for educational institutions across the Bicol region.