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From the Department of Budget and Management
Secretary Abad: New hires to fast-track closure of teacher-supply gap by 2015
In view of the Aquino administration’s goal to ramp up education reform in the country, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released P9.52 billion in January to the Department of Education (DepEd) for the creation of 31,335 elementary and secondary teaching positions for School Year (SY) 2014-2015.
Charged against the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund (MPBF) in the 2014 General Appropriations Act (GAA), the fund release will cover the fund requirements for Teacher I positions nationwide. The release gives DepEd the go signal for jump-starting the hiring process immediately, with all positions ideally filled out by April 1, 2014, in time for the beginning of classes.
The P9.52-billion release will support a specific number of Teacher 1 positions per region, as outlined below:
|
REGION |
Proposed Allocation |
||
|
Kinder/Elementary (Grades I to VI) |
Secondary (Grades VII and VIII, and YR III and IV) |
Total |
|
| REGION I |
361 |
668 |
1,029 |
| REGION II |
418 |
309 |
727 |
| REGION III |
1,260 |
2,494 |
3,754 |
| REGION IVA |
2,000 |
2,809 |
4,809 |
| REGION IVB |
672 |
646 |
1,318 |
| REGION V |
1,138 |
1,245 |
2,383 |
| REGION VI |
584 |
910 |
1,494 |
| REGION VII |
1,404 |
2,021 |
3,425 |
| REGION VIII |
721 |
937 |
1,658 |
| REGION IX |
532 |
605 |
1,137 |
| REGION X |
482 |
693 |
1,175 |
| REGION XI |
867 |
698 |
1,565 |
| REGION XII |
736 |
760 |
1,496 |
| CAR |
621 |
522 |
1,143 |
| NCR |
592 |
1,426 |
2,018 |
| CARAGA |
180 |
263 |
443 |
| ARMM |
1,170 |
591 |
1,761 |
| TOTAL |
13,738 |
17,597 |
31,335 |
Of the 31,335 positions, 13,738 new teachers will be hired at the elementary level (Grades 1 to 6), while 17,597 personnel are designated at the secondary level (Grades 7 and 8, YR III and IV). Region IV-A will hire the most number of teachers with 4,809 positions, followed by Region III with 3,754 and Region VII with 3,425 future hires.
“Hiring more teachers is essential to the Administration’s goal of improving the teacher-to-student ratio in our education system. For a long time, Philippine public schools were crippled by a shortage of teachers who can amply guide our schoolchildren in their academic pursuits,” Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad said.
“The P9.52-billion release will give DepEd enough funding legroom to close the 33,194-teacher gap in public schools by 2015. It’s not just a matter of enhancing our public education system, but also of giving our students the chance to learn from qualified instructors who can equip them with skills that will be useful beyond the classroom,” he added.
DepEd has set standards to determine teacher requirements for different levels of education, such as setting the Teacher-Pupil Ratio of one teacher for an ideal number of students per class:
- Kindergarten: 1 teacher to 25-35 students)
- Elementary Multigrade (different levels in one classroom): 1 teacher for less than 30 students (Grades I-II, III-IV, V-VI)
- Elementary Monograde (one level per classroom): 1 teacher for 40-50 students for Grades I-II; 1 teacher for 45-55 students for Grades III-IV; 1 teacher for 45-55 students for Grades V-VIII; and 1 teacher for 45-55 students for Secondary Level Years III-IV
“Education continues to be the government’s best bet in empowering the poor and opening up opportunities for their future employment. Along with the implementation of the extended Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) this year, the Administration’s work of addressing our public education gaps remains key in our bid for swift, sustainable, and inclusive growth, where Filipinos can truly benefit from the country’s economic gains,” the Secretary of Budget added.