AT least 63,000 Grade 1 students and 6,000 college students from Metro Manila would benefit from the pilot implementation of the “Tara, Basa!” joint tutoring program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Education (DepEd).
The program was launched yesterday and will run for 20 days initially in Metro Manila.
“Sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay nagsanib pwersa ang DSWD at DepEd upang tulungan ang mga mag-aaral sa elementarya na hirap o hindi pa marunong magbasa; mga mag-aaral sa kolehiyo na may pangangailangan upang makapagpatuloy o makapagtapos sila ng kanilang pag-aaral; at mga magulang at buong pamayanan na may mahalagang tungkulin sa paghubog ng kakayahan ng mga bata sa pagbabasa (For the first time, the DSWD and DepEd have joined forces to help elementary school students who are struggling or non-readers, and college students who have a need to continue or complete their education, and parents and the entire community that have an important role in shaping children’s reading skills),” Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian said.
Vice President and concurrent DepEd Secretary Sara Duterte and Gatchalian signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) yesterday during the kick-off of the pilot implementation of the program held at the Rizal High School in Pasig City.
Under the program, around 6,000 college students from 20 state and local universities and colleges will teach over 63,000 Grade 1 learners who are struggling or unable to read from 490 public elementary schools in the National Capital Region (NCR).
The tutors will also conduct “Nanay-Tatay Teacher sessions” for parents and guardians on effective parenting with topics such as understanding the self as parent, dynamics of the Filipino family, challenges in parenting, child development, and children’s rights, among others.
The college students, who are second to fourth-year college students who belong to low-income families, will receive a fee of P500 per day for 20 days, sourced from the DSWD’s cash for work program.
The parents and guardians of struggling or non-reader elementary learners will also be asked to assist in preparing the needs of their children for learning and reading sessions, assisting them in their after-reading session assignments, and attending parent effectiveness sessions as well as other related activities. They will also receive cash aid worth P 235 per day for 20 days.
Gatchalian said aside from teaching the struggling or non-reader Grade 1 learners to read, the DSWD will also provide hearing and vision screening tests to the students and provide eyeglasses and hearing aids to those who will be assessed with visual and hearing impairment.
He said the DSWD partnered with the private sector in conducting hearing and vision screening for children, acknowledging that vision and hearing impairment could have caused children to struggle in learning how to read.
Duterte said a tutoring program said the program will be pilot tested in Manila Manila starting August 15 but may be expanded across the country later on.
“Ngayong August 15, sisimulan na natin ‘yung Tara, Basa tutoring program. ‘Yung project initially dito lang sa National Capital Region, pero baka sa susunod na taon tingnan natin kung puwede nating ma-expand itong programa
(This August 15, we will start the Tara, Basa tutoring program. The project initially will be in the National Capital Region only, but maybe, next year, we will expand the program),” Duterte told reporters.
Duterte thanked the DSWD for developing the tutorial program, which she said would help hone the reading skills of elementary students.
“We are also grateful to the DSWD for collaborating with DepEd on this endeavor. We acknowledge your contributions to our efforts to correct the wrongs afflicting our education system. Wrongs that badly hurt our children’s education and could potentially damage our future. Sana ang Tara, Basa! tutoring program, ay maghatid ng positibong pagbabago sa ating mga mag-aaral (I hope this program brings positive changes to our school children),” the DepEd chief said, adding that reading issues among poor school children got worse due to school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic. — With Ashzel Hachero