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Learning support aides to reinforce teachers, guide students in distance learning – DepEd
Learning support aides to reinforce teachers, guide students in distance learning – DepEd
The Department of Education (DepEd) on Friday, Oct. 2, clarified that the hiring of Learning Support Aides (LSAs) aims to “augment” its ongoing learning continuity efforts as the education system shifts into blended learning.
Undersecretary for Planning and Bureau of Human Resource and Organizational Development Jesus Mateo explained that the LSAs will assist teachers and parents in the delivery of basic education services in the distance learning set-up.
“The hiring of learner support aides is one way to manage or ease the number of hours that our teachers will spend while teaching,” Mateo said in Pilipino. However, he clarified that LSAs will not replace nor duplicate the functions of teachers, “who will still be the main facilitator of learning instruction in public school.”
Mateo explained that LSAs will only assist teachers this school year. “Since the means of communication by which learning is conveyed to learners has become more complex, our teachers will need help,” he added.
LSAs are individuals who qualify in assisting teachers to provide learning opportunities using various delivery modalities in promoting progression of students.
Mateo said that the school division level will have to come up with a profile of the students and teachers to determine how many LSAs will be hired. “We need to know who are the students having a hard time in their studies or whose parents are not capable to teach or guide them,” he added.
School Division Offices (SDOs) that need to hire LSAs are instructed to offer the position to the existing teacher applicants for SY 2020-2021 who were not given permanent or provisional appointments due to lack of available permanent teaching items.
Other qualified individuals who may apply as LSAs are LET passers in the locality; private school teachers, especially those who have lost their livelihood due to the pandemic; and provisional teachers whose contracts were not renewed, he said.
Meanwhile, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines urged DepEd to hire at least 150,000 new teachers to reduce their workload.
In a protest action in front of the DepEd Central Office this morning, the group also reiterated their call for laptops and P1,500 Internet allowance per month for all teachers under DepEd, the raising of teaching expenses/supplies allowance, and assistance to students in need.