PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. yesterday recognized and acknowledged the dedication, sacrifices and contributions of teachers in honing the Filipino youth to become agents of change and be capable of building a better future.
The President, in his Teacher’s Day message, said education is the bedrock of every prosperous society, and that “those who dedicate their lives to teaching are important drivers of our nation.”
Marcos, however, made no mention of the teachers’ petition for a salary increase submitted to the House of Representatives last Tuesday.
As part of the celebration of World Teachers’ Day, 925,178 teachers will receive an incentive of P1,000 each from the Department of Education, which the ACT party-list dubbed as mere tokenism.
Marcos said teachers mold students and prepare them so they can achieve their dreams in life and provide invaluable service to the nation, especially more so now that schools have resumed face-to-face classes and brought forth a new era of learning amidst the post-pandemic world.
“I trust that, with the help of our teachers, our country will grow stronger with every Filipino becoming more capable of building a better future for all. May this celebration not only inspire present teachers as they continue their efforts in shaping the lives of our young learners, but also motivate those whose dream is to be such agents of genuine unity and empowerment,” he said.
The DepEd said the celebration of the 2022 National Teachers’ Month formally started last September 5 and culminated on October 5, with the National Teachers’ Day and World Teachers’ Day celebration.
Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte and First Lady Liza Marcos led the commemoration of Teacher’s Day in Bangued, Abra yesterday where the latter thanked the teachers who served as second mothers to students for providing quality education and good manners.
Duterte led the distribution of ‘PagbaBAGo’ kits — which contained school supplies, dental kits and food packs — at the Bangued North Elementary School.
SCHOLARSHIP FOR TEACHERS
At the House, Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte filed various measures seeking to institutionalize the grant of scholarships, hardship pay and other benefits for educators.
First among these is House Bill (HB) 4697 which aims to further professionalize the ranks of public school educators by offering them scholarships for their graduate and post-graduate studies and educational cash assistance to their children enrolled in college courses in state universities and colleges (SUCs).
Scholarships under HB 4697 cover teachers, guidance counselors, school librarians, industrial arts and/or vocational instructors, and other persons performing supervisory and/or administrative functions either on a full-time or part-time basis in public schools, colleges, and universities.
Under HB 4697, retired public school teachers are also allowed to avail of educational cash aid for their children, but for only a portion of the full amount to be determined by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), which will implement the bill’s provisions along with the Department of Education (DepEd).
Duterte has also filed House Bill No. 456, or the proposed “Teachers for the Barrios Act,” which aims to amend Section 19 of Republic Act 4670 (Magna Carta for Public School Teachers) to specifically include public school teachers assigned to far-flung communities in the grant of the hardship allowance.
Under HB 456, the allowance shall be equivalent to double the total expenses that the teacher will incur every month in additional public transportation from the nearest capital town or urban center where he or she is assigned.
In the event that the teacher assigned to a far-flung barrio would need to stay in a temporary housing facility, the head of the barangay in that area is mandated to secure suitable and safe housing for the teacher.
Another pro-education bill filed by Duterte is House Bill No. 3542, which seeks to provide communications and internet data allowance to both public and private school teachers in the basic education sector during times of public health emergencies, calamities and other occurrences that would result in the prolonged closure of schools and other learning institutions.
On top of communications and data allowances, the bill proposes that the DepEd, in coordination with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), provide public and private school teachers with computers and other similar “technologically appropriate” devices.
Under the bill, the DepEd, in coordination with the DICT, shall determine the time of execution and amount of broadband data needed for the full implementation of blended or distance learning modes during times of public health emergencies and other analogous cases.
The bill also states that during the period of the declared public health emergency and other analogous cases, access to websites where the blended learning materials are published or posted shall be subsidized by the government and may be accessed free of charge.
To lessen costs, the bill also allows the Department of Finance (DOF), through the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), to possibly grant fiscal incentives to service providers and suppliers needed to provide the data allowance for teachers.
Duterte has also earlier filed HB No. 3543 which will grant a tax-exempt P2,000 “Teaching Supplies Allowance” per month for every public school teacher in active duty in the basic education sector.
A member of the militant Makabayan bloc, Rep. France Castro (PL, Alliance of Concerned Teachers), said that with the country’s inflation rate already at 6.9 percent, it is high time that a substantial salary raise for teachers be implemented.
“Today is World Teachers’ Day but up till now the salaries of teachers are hardly enough to make ends meet lalo pa ngayon na 6.9 percent na ang inflation rate sa bansa (especially now that the inflation rate in the country is at 6.9 percent),” she said.
Castro said the entry level for public school teachers or Teacher I should be Salary Grade 15 or P35,097 and at least P30,000 for private school teachers.
“The government always says that the future of our children depends on our teachers but why is it that they are always overworked yet short-changed,” she said. “What our teachers need now are higher salaries and no amount of flowery words or rhetoric can change that.”
‘NOT ENOUGH FUNDS’
Duterte yesterday said the department does not have enough funds to address all the problems facing the country’s basic education sector.
Duterte’s acknowledgement of the budget shortage came in a sit-down with teachers in Bangued, Abra where she attended the celebration of the National Teachers Day.
Duterte appealed to teachers to understand the predicament facing the department, saying as much as the DepEd wants a much larger pie of the national budget, there are other agencies competing for their share of funding.
“I asked our teachers to understand that the budget allotted for infrastructure development is not enough every year, but the department understands also that there are other agencies who also need a share of the budget to perform their mandate,” she said.
Aside from classroom and other shortages, teachers also raised issues about being overworked and underpaid.
Though she did not directly answer the question on their salaries, Duterte said she fully understood their plight and the important role they play in educating and empowering the next generation of Filipinos.
The department has proposed a P86.5 billion budget for 2023 for the construction of classrooms to address the shortage in the country. The amount could build 34, 551 schools nationwide.
While she said she could not disclose all her plans as DepEd secretary, Duterte said the plight and welfare of the teachers are always on her mind.
But the ACT party-list said Duterte should have disclosed concrete plans on how she will uplift the conditions of teachers and address perennial problems facing the basic education sector.
ACT said no amount of platitude would be able to propel education recovery without resolving the teachers’ problems on overwork, low salaries, and lack of government support.
The group reiterated their demands for the upgrading of teachers’ salaries, additional compensation for teachers’ work outside of regular duties and work schedule, and to junk the 15 days per year limit in granting service credits. — With Wendell Vigilia and Ashzel Hachero
