Gatchalian presses passage of bill boosting Alternative Learning System

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian today called for the immediate passage of a bill that seeks to strengthen the Alternative Learning System (ALS), saying it is key to reaching out to more out-of-school youth ahead of the opening of classes in October.

Gatchalian said the ALS can help the more than four million learners who did not enroll this coming school year and give them a chance to reintegrate back in the formal school once the COVID-19 pandemic is over and the country’s economy bounces back.

“The ALS program can help those who cannot go to school at this time. It’s very important to have a mechanism that will encourage these out-of-school youth to return to school,” said Gatchalian, chair of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, Arts, and Culture.

The senator is principal author and sponsor of Senate Bill No. 1365 or the ALS Act which seeks to institutionalize ALS under the proposed Bureau of Alternative Education.

The measure seeks to put up an ALS Community Learning Center (ALS-CLC) in every city and municipality.

The proposed ALS-CLC, Gatchalian said, aims to ensure that the program would be more accessible to potential enrollees.

Similar to the Department of Education (DepEd) Basic Education-Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP) the proposed measure also utilizes a mix of learning modalities such as digital learning, modular instruction, and radio and television-based instructions.

The Senate and House of Representatives have passed their own version of the measure and a bicameral conference committee will soon convene to reconcile the different version of the bill.

“As our education sector rises from the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s important to give students a second chance to catch up in their studies,” Gatchalian said.

“Through the ALS, we’re not only reaching out to the young generation, we are also providing each Filipino student who couldn’t enroll to have a second chance in education,” he said.