Manila Bulletin
Philippines
National
What teachers would have wanted to hear from PBBM in his 2nd SONA
Philippines
National
What teachers would have wanted to hear from PBBM in his 2nd SONA
What teachers would have wanted to hear from PBBM in his 2nd SONA
Published Jul 25, 2023 11:50 am
Teachers were among those that were looking forward to the updates by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. especially for the education sector when he delivered his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 24.
(NOEL PABALATE / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
While Marcos mentioned updates on education, teachers' groups were keen on hearing specific solutions to their concerns. The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) and the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC), in separate statements, laid out their “most urgent demands” and outlined some of the issues that they wanted Marcos to address as he delivered his second SONA. For the teachers’ groups, the Marcos administration should “do more” than just recognize the challenges in the education sector. ACT and TDC also underscored the importance of making “decisive and comprehensive steps” to solve the perennial education problems. During the SONA, both groups were looking forward to updates regarding their clamor for teachers’ pay hikes. Both ACT and TDC have been pushing to increase entry-level pay for teachers. ACT has been pushing to raise the salaries of teachers and education support personnel to “livable and decent” levels: P50,000 entry-level pay for teachers and P33,000 for Salary Grade 1 employees. TDC was also looking forward to hearing about the provision of additional benefits that include health services, free post-graduate education, and accessible housing. ACT and TDC were also hoping to hear that teachers would be freed from “excessive clerical and administrative tasks” through the hiring of more teachers and education personnel --- including guidance counselors. The groups were also looking forward to measures that would implement the welfare provisions of the Magna Carta for Public School Teachers. TDC, for its part, was anticipating the announcement of reform for the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) or the creation of a separate teacher insurance system. ACT also agreed to the expansion and improved benefits for members of the GSIS and Social Security System (SSS). ACT, for its part, was hoping to hear from Marcos how to improve the benefits of education workers through “just compensation for extra work, granting of sick and vacation leaves, ensuring timely release of benefits, lowering of optional retirement age for government workers to 56 years.” TDC wanted to hear that the Marcos administration would allocate funds for the needed school buildings and other facilities. ACT said that allocating the higher education budget to as much as the equivalent of six percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) would “address education shortage.” To determine the nature and extent of the learning crisis, ACT said that the Marcos government direct the conduct of a comprehensive learning assessment nationwide. ACT was also looking forward to Marcos’ stand to uphold academic freedom and trade union rights and “stopping all forms of state attacks and repression.” TDC also wanted the Marcos administration to address specific concerns such as the inclusion of Philippine history as a separate subject within the secondary curriculum and a return to the old school calendar in which summer break falls in April and May. The group was also hoping Marcos would give updates on expediting delayed monetary benefits such as the performance-based bonus (PBB); the implementation of an equitable career progression policy; and the restoration of a two-month school break for teachers and students. For ACT, the country’s education sector continues to “deteriorate” after the first year of Marcos. The Marcos administration, ACT added, still needs a “lot of improvement” for failing to include in his address urgent and crucial education issues that required immediate attention. For TDC, the Marcos administration could “think about better ways to respond to people's needs” as promised during the election campaign period.
(NOEL PABALATE / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
While Marcos mentioned updates on education, teachers' groups were keen on hearing specific solutions to their concerns. The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) and the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC), in separate statements, laid out their “most urgent demands” and outlined some of the issues that they wanted Marcos to address as he delivered his second SONA. For the teachers’ groups, the Marcos administration should “do more” than just recognize the challenges in the education sector. ACT and TDC also underscored the importance of making “decisive and comprehensive steps” to solve the perennial education problems. During the SONA, both groups were looking forward to updates regarding their clamor for teachers’ pay hikes. Both ACT and TDC have been pushing to increase entry-level pay for teachers. ACT has been pushing to raise the salaries of teachers and education support personnel to “livable and decent” levels: P50,000 entry-level pay for teachers and P33,000 for Salary Grade 1 employees. TDC was also looking forward to hearing about the provision of additional benefits that include health services, free post-graduate education, and accessible housing. ACT and TDC were also hoping to hear that teachers would be freed from “excessive clerical and administrative tasks” through the hiring of more teachers and education personnel --- including guidance counselors. The groups were also looking forward to measures that would implement the welfare provisions of the Magna Carta for Public School Teachers. TDC, for its part, was anticipating the announcement of reform for the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) or the creation of a separate teacher insurance system. ACT also agreed to the expansion and improved benefits for members of the GSIS and Social Security System (SSS). ACT, for its part, was hoping to hear from Marcos how to improve the benefits of education workers through “just compensation for extra work, granting of sick and vacation leaves, ensuring timely release of benefits, lowering of optional retirement age for government workers to 56 years.” TDC wanted to hear that the Marcos administration would allocate funds for the needed school buildings and other facilities. ACT said that allocating the higher education budget to as much as the equivalent of six percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) would “address education shortage.” To determine the nature and extent of the learning crisis, ACT said that the Marcos government direct the conduct of a comprehensive learning assessment nationwide. ACT was also looking forward to Marcos’ stand to uphold academic freedom and trade union rights and “stopping all forms of state attacks and repression.” TDC also wanted the Marcos administration to address specific concerns such as the inclusion of Philippine history as a separate subject within the secondary curriculum and a return to the old school calendar in which summer break falls in April and May. The group was also hoping Marcos would give updates on expediting delayed monetary benefits such as the performance-based bonus (PBB); the implementation of an equitable career progression policy; and the restoration of a two-month school break for teachers and students. For ACT, the country’s education sector continues to “deteriorate” after the first year of Marcos. The Marcos administration, ACT added, still needs a “lot of improvement” for failing to include in his address urgent and crucial education issues that required immediate attention. For TDC, the Marcos administration could “think about better ways to respond to people's needs” as promised during the election campaign period.