Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara on Wednesday, July 3 vowed to pursue proposals that seek to increase the salaries of public school teachers.

The incoming Department of Education (DepEd) secretary said he will study the proposal increasing the entry-level salary of public school teachers to P50,000, saying he not only wants better working conditions for teachers, but also improved salaries and benefits for them.

Angara, former Senate committee on finance chief, noted it is Congress that sets their salaries of government employees, and has been pushing for that when he was still head of the panel.

“So we will see and study that, but we are hundred percent in support for all of these teachers’ increases because we know that this really affects the quality of education. When teachers are inspired and you attract the best, the best and the brightest,” Angara said in Filipino in an interview on Radio DZBB.

Angara said he will consult the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) in studying proposals to raise these teachers’ salaries.

At the same time, Angara said he aims to provide teachers better working conditions by reducing their non-teaching tasks so they can focus on their primary duties.

Likewise, Angara said he is supporting the proposal to prohibit the use of mobile phones and other gadgets inside classrooms.

“It would really be best if students are not distracted inside the classrooms,” he said.

“It is also better to develop them to be critical thinkers…that is very important in the age of the internet,” he said.

Meanwhile, Angara said he will allow Congress to finish discussions on the proposed mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) before making any move.

He said he would just wait for the Senate and the House of Representatives to decide on whether to revive the ROTC noting that there is still an “ongoing debate” on the issue.

“We are waiting. But for us, we will yield to whatever policy direction Congress sets,” he said.