A group of teachers has come up with a list of what they want Vice President-elect Sara Duterte to focus on once she formally assumes her post as the Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd).
“We hope to share with her the concrete experiences and problems faced by our educators,” Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) national chairperson Benjo Basas said in a statement.
TDC is set to send a formal request to Duterte’s office as soon as she takes her oath. “We look forward to the opportunity of presenting our 13-Point Teachers’ Dignity Agenda,” Basas said.
Duterte took her oath as the country’s 15th Vice President on Saturday, June 19. Outgoing Education Secretary Leonor Briones welcomed her and rallied support from stakeholders for the incoming DepEd chief.
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https://mb.com.ph/2022/06/19/for-benefit-of-the-filipino-children-briones-rallies-support-for-incoming-deped-secretary-vp-sara-duterte/
TDC expressed hope that Duterte will “respond positively” to their request for a meeting before she assumes the office.
Teachers’ wish list
The agenda, Basas said is focused both on the welfare of teachers as well as the quality of learning for children that “would require both executive and legislative actions more aggressive than what the country has seen for decades.”
TDC’s list includes:
- better compensation package for teachers and educators both for public and private institutions
- implementation of the 1966 vintage Magna Carta for Public School Teachers, compensation for those affected by Covid-19,
- free postgraduate education, provision of free laptop computers and internet services,
- the creation of a separate insurance system and hospital for teachers, among other benefits.
“We have discussed these advocacies on several occasions with our education leaders and legislators,” Basas said. “Many of them actually proposed some of these measures in the legislature but we always ended up in failure. It is long overdue,” he added.
In classroom learning, the TDC proposes strategies such as:
- reduction of class size
- provision of learning materials
- providing facilities and sufficient funding for the safe return to normal school operations.
“We assume that the desire for resumption of face-to-face classes has been discussed in the transition and we expect both the outgoing and incoming DepEd managements agreed to provide mechanisms for safe return to schools,” Basas continued.
Aside from the welfare of teachers and learners, the TDC also bats for “a change in curriculum that while still catering to the manpower requirements for economic growth, espouses true national development.”
“We want an education system that inculcates patriotism in the hearts of Filipinos and promotes peace and respect for human rights,” Basas said.
TDC is also urging Duterte to push for a curriculum that will produce Filipinos who are “proud of their history, culture and traditional values.”