<span style="color: #222222;">In Philippines, millions of students across the country have returned to the classroom today, after one of the world's longest school closures due to COVID-19. Local media reported that around 24,000 public schools will implement five days of face-to-face classes. The rest will hold a mix of in-person and online classes until November.<br />''<br />''The Education Department in a statement said that some schools will have to split classes up in shifts because of classroom shortages and to avoid overcrowding. Almost half the country's schools resumed in-person classes after more than two years of distance learning. The Philippines was one of the last few countries to transition back to face-to-face learning after COVID struck. The country saw one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in South East Asia, with close to three million cases and around 50,000 deaths.</span><br />