MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Magandang umaga, Malacañang Press Corps, and welcome to our press briefing ngayong Martes, August 13.

In today’s Cabinet sectoral meeting, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. approved in principle the creation of a Cabinet Cluster for Education. This is to synthesize a common vision and common direction to reform the education system to have positive long-term effect on every Filipino student and graduate.

The President recognizes the urgent need to address this learning crisis that has crippled our education system for decades resulting in a learning gap of 5.5 years for Filipino students. President Marcos directed the agencies to device a coherent and system-wide national integrated education and workforce development strategy that starts from early childhood education to basic education, senior high school and so on.

The President directed the proposed the Cabinet cluster to ensure that education issues are tackled as a whole system rather than in multi-agency silos.

Joining us to discuss how the proposed Cabinet Cluster for Education will address the learning and administrative gaps are Department of Education Secretary Sonny Angara and EDCOM 2 Executive Director Karl Mark Yee. Good afternoon, gentlemen, and let’s start with Secretary Angara. Go ahead.

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Good afternoon to all our members of the media. We are very thankful to the President for his swift action. Actually, it’s our first presentation on this. The presentation was made by Director Yee of the EDCOM 2. And the President basically sa bandang dulo ng meeting, sinabi na niya na in principle, he approves of it and he’d like us to fast-track some of the actions dahil nakikita niya iyong urgency and it’s a very deep-seated problem. Kumbaga, medyo matagal-tagal na kailangang tugunan so … iyon. At ang sabi niya, talagang kailangan ito, itong cluster. Pero huwag tayong … parang sinabi niya na huwag tayong tumigil diyan because the cluster is just a coordinating mechanism ‘di ba. We need to follow through with the … iyong pangangailangan sa bawat sector from early child development sa mga daycare centers to kindergarten up to K to 12, up to college, up to tech-voc, lahat iyon dapat sabi niya may positive interventions tayo for our learners.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Thank you, Secretary Angara. Executive Director Yee, would you like to walk us through a little bit of what you presented so that the media will know about it?

EDCOM 2 EXEC. DIR. YEE: Right, so iyong proposal po kasi ng EDCOM was to create a Cabinet Cluster for Education. If you’ve seen our report, the miseducation, the failed system of Philippine education, the inside really was all of the agencies are doing their respective jobs but they do it independent of one another with no mechanism of really coordinating, making sure that the plans come together and they deliver an integrated system of education.

Tulad ng sinabi namin kanina, ang isang bata na trineyn [trained] sa early childhood, dapat may maayos na nutrition, may early education at saka stimulation, pupunta iyan sa DepEd. Pagdating sa DepEd, kailangan may literacy and numeracy, tapos kapag nag-graduate ng high school ay dapat employable. Nakikita natin ngayon na kaniya-kaniyang agency, kaniya-kaniyang trabaho pero hindi nagtutugma.

So, for example, iyong learning gap na pinuproblema natin ngayon, 5.5 years ang kulang sa isang bawat Pilipinong graduate. Anong ibig sabihin nito? Sabi nga namin, nagpunta kami sa isang high school during the learning camp ng DepEd, iyong batang pinapanood namin sa learning camp, hirap silang mag-subtract – Grade 8 students sila. Buong buwan, inaral nila addition and subtract, and they struggled to subtract. We asked them about multiplication, and gave examples, which is really what I asked the students. Sabi ko three times three? Zero times zero? Ten times ten? Hindi kaya.

Pagpasok nila noong July 29, ang lessons nila is quadratic functions, Algebra. How will you solve all of those concerns? Hindi lamang siya problema ng DepEd kasi nakita namin sa iba’t ibang issues, for example early childhood, the data show us that if you access to early childhood education, from three to four, iyong score sa PISA, tumataas ng 32 points. So, ang laki ng impact but iyong participation natin in early childhood, 33% lamang. And kapag tiningnan natin iyong daycare teachers and workers, wala palang program sa TESDA or CHEd to train them, but you have 79,000 of them. And na-train ng ECCD Council for the past years, since 2011 ay 1,000 per year; 12,ooo cumulative; 15% out of the universe of 79,000.

Second, we found data that pagdating sa high school teachers natin, the bulk of our Science teachers, 50% of them did not finish a course related to Science, not in Science. How will you teach something you did not know yourself? One hundred seven out of one hundred thirteen SUCs natin ay nag-o-offer ng secondary education – ang maganda sanang magawa, itugma iyon sa pangangailangan ng DepEd schools kung nasaan sila, hindi ba.

And then iyong third natin, iyong guidance counseling. We are the bullying capital of the world based on PISA because the highest prevalence of bullying and then loneliness ay sa Pilipinas nangyayari. Ang gumagawa ng trabaho na ito, based on the anti-bullying act as implemented, is iyong guidance counsellor. Pero iyong vacancies natin sa DepEd, almost 5,000; plantilla positions ng guidance counsellors, wala. Iyon pala, kapag tiningnan mo, wala namang nag-o-offer ng master’s in guidance counselling all over the country. Iyong average graduation numbers, 300 per year. To fill all of the vacancies, it will take us 14 years by the current setup.

S0 malinaw that DepEd, of course, has to do its work in terms of resolving the learning crisis, but it’s not something that it could achieve on its own, kailangan tulungan talaga iyong agencies. Malaki iyong ginagampanan ng CHEd and TESDA, and it’s really the national education and workforce development plan that is long-term that will anchor them all to make sure that there is one coherent direction, and that is what we proposed to the President – a Cabinet cluster that will come together, first and foremost, to formulate a ten-year integrated national education and workforce development plan; and then second, to make sure that the agency targets, and budgets are aligned to support this plan every year. Kasi kapag hindi natin ginawa ito, ten years iyong laban natin eh. Because iyong mga batang pumapasok ng kinder ngayon, kailan pa sila maggi-grade 3? Four year from now. Kailan sila magha-high school? Kailan sila magka-college? Kailangan tuluy-tuloy iyong reforms because if it’s interrupted, bagsak na naman tayo. So mahalagang-mahalaga iyong gagampanan ng cluster.

And we are grateful to the President for really seeing this very quickly. Sabi niya, we don’t have a system. We have different things happening, but not working together. We need to fix that. And we are very grateful for his leadership and putting his support behind this proposal, and his commitment to see this through.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay, thank you. Let’s open the floor to questions. Alvin Baltazar, Radyo Pilipinas.

ALVIN BALTAZAR/RADYO PILIPINAS: Secretary, magandang umaga po. Secretary, ano po iyong magiging komposisyon ng Cabinet cluster, meaning, anu-ano iyong mga areas of concentration na bubuin natin dito sa cluster na ito?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Iyong tatlong ahensiya ng edukasyon – iyong DepEd, Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) at saka iyong TESDA. At saka kasama rin diyan iyong DOLE or Department of Labor; at saka DBM dahil kapag ang pinag-uusapan ay pondo, pondo para sa edukasyon, usually napag-uusapan iyan pero hiwa-hiwalay eh. So ngayon, at least, iyong mga isyu na tagpi-tagpi sa mga ahensiya, mapag-uusapan itong cluster. So iyong nabanggit ni Director KM Yee na iyong sa bullying, iyong sa—iyong mga teachers kasi, iyong mga teaching graduates natin, ang nagsu-supervise niyan is CHEd dahil mayroon tayong … kukuha sila ng college degree sa education at papasa sila ng LET or licensure exam. Pero 90-plus percent niyan ay napupunta sa DepEd, nung graduates.

So iyong sinasabi ni KM na wala tayong Science teachers or kalahati ng Science teachers natin, hindi grumadweyt or walang specialization sa Science, iyon ang isang dapat pag-usapan nitong Cabinet cluster. Iyong kakulangan ng guidance counsellors, halos limanlibo iyong bakanteng posisyon, katulad ng sinabi niya kanina, dahil ginawang licensure—para maging isang guidance counsellor, nasa batas na kailangan ay magka-master’s degree ka doon sa pagiging guidance counsellor.

So, number one, iyon ang problema. So doon sa nakikita natin, sa isang rehiyon lamang, may tatlondaang posisyon sa DepEd na bakante, ang graduates ay zero. So talagang ano iyong mangyayari doon sa mga estudyante natin. So sa ngayon, mayroon tayong temporary solution na pag-uusapan ng Civil Service Commission, ng DepEd, ng Commission on Higher Education na sana punan muna iyong mga bakante, iyong limanlibong bakanteng posisyon ng mga kahit graduates ng guidance counselling, psychology or whatever specialization, pero hindi na kailangan iyong master’s degree. Parang bigyan sila ng palugit o limang taon para makuha nila iyong necessary credentials, at the same time mayroon tayong effort sa mga mambabatas na tanggalin na natin iyon kasi nasa batas iyon eh, iyon ang nagpapahirap dito sa nakalagay na “to be a licensed guidance counselor, you must have a master’s degree”. So, ang hirap noon ‘di ba kasi to be a teacher you only need a bachelor degree, you don’t need a master’s degree.

ALVIN BALTAZAR/RADYO PILIPINAS: Secretary, kailangan natin ng guidance counselor pero magkano iyong budget na pinag-uusapan natin dito?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Ah hindi, ito existing budget na ito, Alvin ‘no. Bakante lang talaga iyong posisyon – ibig sabihin na-budget-an na iyan, wala lang talagang tao na puwedeng mag-fill noong position. So, no additional budget needed here.

ALVIN BALTAZAR/RADYO PILIPINAS: One last, doon sa sinabi ni Director Mark kanina, medyo nakaka-alarm ba iyong kung mayroon tayong job mismatch apparently mayroon tayong teaching mismatch, Direk Mark eh – iyong isang Science teacher, hindi pala ang tinapos ay Science. Kinakailangan ba natin ng realignment or paano natin aayusin ito, sir?

EDCOM 2 EXEC. DIR. YEE: Sa EDCOM naman madalas na kaming nag-uusap ng DepEd and sabi nga nila nilinaw na nila iyong hiring kasi kapag nag-job posting tayo ang nilalagay kadalasan, “Looking for” or “Hiring Teacher 1. Graduate of elementary, secondary.” Hindi nila sinasabi na iyong vacancy pala namin ay Math, vacancy pala namin Science – kailangan ilagay para alam ng graduate, “Ah, ito iyong natapos ko. Puwede akong mag-apply, ako iyong kailangan nila.” Kasi ngayon, generic iyong mga posting, walang emphasis sa specialization.

ALVIN BALTAZAR/RADYO PILIPINAS: Salamat po.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Eden Santos, Net25.

EDEN SANTOS/NET25: Secretary, mukhang nakakabahala po iyong ating learning crisis ‘no, tapos 14 years ba tama po iyong kailangan natin itong mapunan tuluy-tuloy?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Well, tuluy-tuloy at least 10.

EDEN SANTOS/NET25: 5.5 years iyong education gap. Isa po sa nabanggit ninyo iyong mga sinabi ni Executive Director Yee, ano pa po ba iyong mga hakbangin na nakahandang gawin ng departamento sa ilalim po ng inyong pangangasiwa para po itong learning crisis na ito ay matugunan po natin at iyong mga mag-aaral natin ay talagang tumaas po iyong quality education na kanilang nakukuha sa pag-aaral po?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Well, unang-una sa lahat, Eden, iyong learning delivery natin – anong ibig sabihin ng learning delivery? Ano iyong ibinibigay natin sa mga estudyante? Iyong libro ba natin dumadating on time, ‘di ba? Mayroon ba siyang hinahawakan na kung hindi libro, learning sheet? So, iyong quality of inputs sa education – iyong classroom ba natin masikip ba siya, may bullying ba siya? So iyon iyong pinag-uusapan, iyong basics ay gawin natin, ituwid natin iyong mga basic conditions for optimal learning delivery ng ating mga estudyante.

Marunong ba silang mag-computer, ‘di ba? Kasi iyong mga exams, karamihan ay computer na iyan eh. Eh ang nangyari yata sa nakaraan, unang beses makakita ng bata ng computer eh iyong araw na ng exam – so, ma-imagine mo lang ano iyong naging sitwasyon niya, siguro nagkaroon siya nang kaunting panic doon.

At pangalawa, iyong linkup namin with industries for senior high school – iyan iyong bilin ni Pangulo na kailangang maganda iyong tsansa niyang makakuha ng trabaho at hindi lang pangkaraniwang trabaho kundi iyong dekalidad na trabaho na maganda iyong suweldo at makakabuhay ng isang tao at kaniyang pamilya.

Pangatlo, iyong pagti-train noong ating mga teachers, iyong continuing training ng ating teachers, importante po iyan. Mayroon naman tayong trainings pero parang ang comment ng EDCOM is hindi natin sinusukat iyong ating progress, iyong progreso natin, iyong assessment system natin. So, iyon ang isang gagawin ko sa DepEd – maglalagay tayo ng assessment at every stage of programs; sinusukat talaga natin – saan sila sa umpisa, saan sila sa dulo, naging epektibo ba iyong ating interventions.

So, ito lang iyong basics na inutos sa atin ng Pangulo. Pero iyong learning delivery, iyong—and then fourth, is iyong pagra-rationalize noong senior high school curriculum. Sa ngayon, 22 subjects ang kinukuha ng isang senior high school student. Papasok sa Grade 11 kukuha siya kaagad…whether ang pinili niyang…may track kasi iyan ‘di ba – mayroon tayong Technical Vocational Track or TVL Track; mayroon tayong academic track – ibig sabihin, magka-college iyong bata; mayroon tayong arts track; and sports track. Pero lahat noong apat na iyon, kukuha ka ng 22 subjects – iyong Pananaliksik sa Filipino; iyong Earth Sciences. So, siguro ang gusto natin ay medyo bawas-bawasan natin iyon kasi nakikita natin around the world – sa Inglatera, three to four subjects lang iyan; sa Australia, six subjects lang iyan; sa Amerika, six to seven subjects lang ang senior high school; sa atin 22.

Hindi natin sila babawasan ng kukunin nila pero gagawin nating voluntary or elective na lang siya. So, gagawa tayo ng core for all four tracks na common na iyon ang kahit anong gawin ng bata he is well-equipped – may reading and writing skills siya; may communications skills siya; may personal development or soft skills siya; may physical education siya – so, he’s a well-rounded person kahit anong gawin niya at may foundational skills siya. Pero iyong electives niya dapat akma doon sa pipiliin niya. Iyon ang ilan sa mga puwede nating gawin.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Ivan Mayrina, GMA 7.

IVAN MAYRINA/GMA 7: Yeah. Either of the two gentlemen can answer. Iyong sa bullying, are we able to quantify the effect of bullying on academic performance – say, victim of bullying is x times more likely to fail a subject or something like that?

EDCOM 2 EXEC. DIR. YEE: Yes, lumabas naman sa CPLM at saka sa PISA na iyong laging nabu-bully ay talagang bagsak iyong points nila in Math, Science and Reading. Malaki iyong impact talaga niya, and iyong data pa nga natin is not just bullying, tulad nang nabanggit ni Presidente may nabasa siyang article na may Singapore study that says that the loneliest students in the world are Filipinos and that is also in the PISA data. The Filipino students feel that they don’t belong and they are the loneliest. Talagang sabi niya, find nga the study kasi talagang nabasa din niya and it made an imprint on him that we really need to address this. Kasi iyong school environment kung hindi mo feel na safe ka doon, paano ka magpo-focus sa pag-aaral mo ‘di ba kung lagi kang naghihintay ng paraan para madepensahan ang sarili mo.

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: May ibinilin si Pangulo, Ivan, na kahit wala tayo or marami tayong bakanteng guidance counselor dapat sinasalo pa rin noong ibang miyembro ng faculty. Minsan sabi niya, noong ako estudyante ako, may teacher na lumapit sa akin at sinabi, “Oh, ako ang responsable sa iyo, kapag may problema ka puwede mo akong lapitan,” parang ganoon, may toka, may mentoring, may toka, may life coach – so, iyon ang isa rin na tututukan namin going forward pursuant to the instructions of the President na make sure may lifeline sila kumbaga kapag nangangailangan sila they have someone to turn to, may malalapitan sila.

IVAN MAYRINA/GMA 7: Marami din pong nangyayaring bullying sa social media and other digital platforms, are we also exploring the possibility of say perhaps limiting exposure to…I don’t know papaano ho ba na doon din tayo mag-focus sa digital bullying?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Well, bullying whether cyber bullying bawal talaga iyan ‘no. We should…ang problema nga nabanggit ni Director Yee doon sa kaniyang presentation kay Pangulo kanina, is that many schools…ang nakalagay kasi sa Anti-Bullying Law, which we authored noong Congressman pa tayo is that each school is required to have an Anti-Bullying Policy, pero hindi sinasabi ng batas kung how strict they have to be pero kailangan may policy sila pero ang problema on the ground very few schools have their own Anti-Bullying Policy.

So, siguro sa DepEd, we will really track or monitor the compliance dito sa batas na ito. Well, mayroon talaga tayong existing, hindi ako ang nag-issue niyan pero even in the past may policy ang DepEd na bawal ang smart phones and cellphones in the classroom. And part of the teacher’s duty is to explain to students iyong proper use of technology and cellphones – meaning, kasama doon siguro iyong learning to deal critically with news ‘di ba – hindi lahat nang mabasa mo ay tama; tapos, also is observing good manners and right conduct hindi lang sa personal dealings po pati through technology.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Let Narciso, DZRH.

LET NARCISO/DZRH: Sec., iyong classroom shortage matagal na po kasi natin itong problema pero hanggang ngayon, kulang pa rin tayo, may siksikan sa mga klase at ilang shifts iyong klase nila. Ano na po ba ang ginagawa dito?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Tama ka. I think, a decade ago it was siguro mga 75,000, now it’s 159,000. So, whatever we’re doing it’s not very effective. So, I think, there are things that we should look at in terms of speeding up procurement – meaning, ang tawag nila diyan Early Procurement Activities or EPA. Ibig sabihin, hindi pa pasado iyong budget for 2025 for example pero the early procurement for the building of classrooms ginagawa na natin iyon. Ano ang ibig sabihin noon – you are already looking at the school sites na possible na ipa-fund under the GAA or budget of 2025, tinitingnan mo na iyong school sites, what they can accommodate, you’re doing the soil testing if it’s a tall building – sino-soil test mo na iyan, pinag-aaralan mo na iyong legal angles kung titled ba siya sa pangalan ng eskuwelahan kasi may ganiyang sitwasyon sa probinsiya na hindi pala titulado sa eskuwelahan pero nagku-construct na sila doon. So, there are several issues that come into play.

Eh, kasi ginagawa natin in the past, saka lang uumpisahan iyan sa January kapag pasado na iyong budget. So ngayon, we want to fast track it. Siguro kapag alam na more or less may kasunduan na sa Congress na ito iyong pupondohan nila, this is the amount appropriated for this so and so number of classrooms, iyon ay… sana earlier than 3rd quarter ay maumpisahan na namin iyon pre-award.

Iyon ang ginagawa kasi ng DPWH kaya sila mabilis, January nagku-construct na sila because they do all activities short of award in pre-January. So, once na napasa na iyong budget, award na sila and construct. After awarding the contract to the winning bidder, nagku-construct na sila.

Eh, napansin ko sa DepEd, kakapasok ko lang ng Hulyo eh hindi pa kami nagku-construct for the budget of 2024 for certain areas. So, that’s why mababa historically ang tinatawag na obligation rate or disbursement rate or construction rate ng DepEd with classrooms. Because constructing classrooms is a little more complicated than constructing a road – that is more work to be done beforehand – so that’s the first.

Secondly, bubuhayin natin iyong ‘Adopt a School’ kasi iyon talaga, has been proven very effective in mobilizing the private sector kasi may insentibo siya doon, may tax deduction siya doon eh na mababawas niya sa kinita niya or sa income tax niya iyong ibibigay niyang classroom, iyong halaga noong ibibigay niyang classroom, so that’s one.

And, pangatlo, to address nga iyong shifting – tinitingnan natin iyong… kasi hindi naman natin magagawa all these classrooms overnight or in a matter of a few years – some are talagang ang laki noong shortage so we want to do the blended learning. So, i-improve namin iyong blended learning kasi may nababalitaan nga kami, may eskuwelahan na once a week lang pumapasok iyong mga bata. So, paano naman iyon? Kung ganoon, dapat… at least, during the other days of the week, mayroon siyang maayos na blended learning setup.

So, diyan papasok iyong state of internet access noong bata, iyong pagkakaroon niya ng isang device na magagamit niya at mada-download doon iyong kaniyang learning materials; at, maybe, even real time teaching – iyong kahit wala siya sa classroom eh nakikita niya iyong teacher niya at may interaction sila online, oo.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Melvin Gascon, Philippine Daily Inquirer.

MELVIN GASCON/PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER: Hi. Good afternoon, sir. Any of the gentlemen can also respond. Doon po sa bagong create na Cabinet cluster na education, I noticed, I may be wrong, pero hindi ko po napansin iyong participation ng DSWD. Ang context po noon is, we know that a large percentage of our children go through iyong early childcare something development program ng DSWD. Naipasok po ba sa program na ito iyong DSWD for a more holistic approach to education? Thank you.

EDCOM 2 EXEC. DIR. YEE: In our presentation to the President, actually it also included ECCD (Early Childhood Care and Development) Council – of which, kasama doon ang DSWD. And also, in the technical working groups that we proposed, we identified the resource persons that are relevant for each of those – bahagi doon iyong DSWD rin. Kasi as you said, napakahalaga niya and in fact, in our presentation to the President, the best investment you can make in education is in early childhood – and doon hindi lang siya DepEd, pati DSWD at saka DOH at saka National Nutrition Council. Kasi iyong problema mo, hindi lamang edukasyon, pati stunting – dapat magkatugma iyong interventions natin so kasama dapat doon.

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Very good suggestion actually kasi number one iyong gutom ‘di ba, iyong issue ng hunger at pangalawa iyong poverty issue. Kapag ang choice is bibili ng libro o bibili ng pagkain, medyo malala iyon so tama iyon. So, tama, as Director Yee said, kasama iyon sa technical working groups.

And also for DTI for instance, iniisip namin kung isasama namin kasi mayroon silang skills framework, mayroon silang mga new industries na puwedeng bigyan ng courses for the education. Pero kasama sila, and kung hindi sila kasama sa council mismo, doon sila sa technical working group kasama.

MELVIN GASCON/PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER: May mga nari-receive po kaming reports from all over the country, doon po sa exodus ng mga public school teachers, primarily language teachers – ang number one destination po nila ngayon, US. So, ano po ang… or have we recognized this as sort of a problem and what do we intend to do about it? Thank you.

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Yeah, it’s a real problem, Melvin ‘no. Napansin ko or na-report sa akin na maraming nag-iimbita sa ating mga teachers for study tours. Ang problema sa tour, hindi na sila bumabalik [laughs]. So, hindi lang sa US kung hindi sa ibang bansa. So, medyo babantayan namin iyan at pag-aaralan din namin siguro ano iyong factors for them leaving.

I think doon sa initial study namin, one of the factors for our teachers leaving is the lack of maayos na career progression. So nag-issue kami, pursuant to the instruction of the President in his SONA, one of the major memoranda we signed is the Expanded Career Progression. Ano ang ibig sabihin niyan? Iyong Teacher I, Teacher II, Teacher III minsan it takes 15 years, nasa Teacher II or Teacher III pa siya kasi hindi napu-promote iyong mga nasa taas.

So, gumawa kami noong Expanded Career Progression with the help of EDCOM, with the help of Civil Service Commission, PRC and the DBM na we added positions. Nagdagdag kami ng mga teaching positions para mas mabilis iyong pag-akyat noong mga teachers natin. Hindi sila tatagal… Iyong sinabi ni Presidente na wala nang magri-retire na Teacher I, definitely dahil mas mabilis na iyong akyat sa Teacher IV, Teacher V, Teacher VI.

At kahit nag-principal na siya, puwede pa rin siyang magturo kasi iyon ang ibang nangyayari eh – kaya umaalis din dahil nagiging panay admin na iyong trabaho ng isang teacher, hindi na niya nagagamit iyong vocation niya or iyon passion niya for teaching, hindi na niya nailalabas or nai-exercise. So iyon, those are some of the reasons that we tried to address pero we’ll try to do more, oo.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Chona Yu, People’s Journal.

CHONA YU/PEOPLE’S JOURNAL: Sir, iyong Matatag Curriculum, tuloy pa rin po ba iyon at ano iyong mga amendments na gagawin ninyo kung mayroon man?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Yes. Iyong Matatag Curriculum naman is a pilot ‘no, ibig sabihin, dito nasa Grades I, IV and VII na siya; so next year, Grades II, III, V and VIII. So, mayroon tayong inisyu na department order diyan setting forth the curriculum pero marami na rin kaming komento na nari-receive diyan. So, magiging sensitibo naman tayo diyan sa mga comments. Minsan sabi nila, dikit-dikit masyado iyong subjects; masyadong mabilis iyong subject, 45 minutes; some are suggesting six one-hour classes rather than eight 45-minute classes.

So, we’re studying this kasi it’s not easy rin to match the teachers eh – medyo mahirap din iyong human resource aspect niya. But kami, nakikinig kami and whatever the consensus is, we’ll try to adopt the recommendations going forward ‘no, kung maganda iyong rekomendasyon. At saka mayroon naman tayong variation on the ground, kung talagang dikit-dikit iyong klase ni teacher, puwede naman sabihin ni principal, “O, magpahinga ka muna.” Maglagay tayo ng break diyan ‘di ba. Hindi naman tayo tali talaga doon sa nakalagay sa curriculum. We’ll allow certain regions, certain schools, certain divisions and districts na may kaniya-kaniyang innovations din on the ground.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. Tuesday Niu, DZBB

TUESDAY NIU/DZBB: Good morning, sir. Secretary, mukhang masalimuot pa iyong problema ng kakulangan natin sa guidance counselor – five thousand plus po iyong kulang pa considering mayroon naman pong budget kanyo kanina. Pero in the meantime, sir, dahil kailangan natin itong mga guidance counselors na ito, ano po ang immediate na solution na puwedeng gawin? Will you be issuing a department order for school administrators or district supervisors, para mapunan kahit papaano iyong kakulangan?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Yeah. Dati kasi, hindi pumapayag iyong… Civil Service Commission na punuin iyong position nang walang master’s degree dahil iyon ang nakalagay sa batas. Pero ngayon tumulong ang EDCOM, tumulong ang CHEd at ang CSC na magkaroon tayo ng solusyon dahil nakita nila malubha iyong problema ng pagkabakante noong mga libu-libong guidance counselor position. So ngayon, kahit walang master’s degree, may bachelor’s degree ay puwede nang umupo diyan basta in the next five years, makuha niya iyong necessary qualification na master’s degree.

At pangalawa, may recommended amendment naman kami sa batas para hindi naman gaano ka-istrikto iyong rekomendasyon. At pangatlo, siguro sa DepEd, sa panig ng DepEd, gagawa kami ng career path tulad ng ginawa namin sa teachers para hindi mag-alisan din. Kasi sa ngayon, mababa ang item for guidance counselors, nasa Salary Grade 11. So that’s the equivalent of a Teacher 1 tapos magma-master’s degree ka, tapos ang makukuha lang niya ay Teacher 1 position ‘di ba, ang suweldo ay 27-28,000, mga ganoon so eh bakit pa siya nag-master’s ‘di ba.

So iyon ang things on the ground that we’re looking at. We will correct it, aayusin namin iyon at saka siyempre may career path din siya para hindi tayo mawalan ng guidance counselor. Kasi ang nangyayari, iyong ibang guidance counselor, gusto na lang maging administrator or something dahil doon ay napu-promote sila, they will get a bigger salary ‘di ba.

CATHERINE VALIENTE/MANILA TIMES: Good afternoon, sir. Sir, speaking of budget, Vice President Sara Duterte claimed that the 2024 budget was mishandled and she tried daw to correct it but some government agencies didn’t support it. Do you agree with this? And how do we address such issues po? Thank you.

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Well, hindi ko na—wala kasing specific siya so hindi ko sure ano iyong ibig niyang sabihin. Mahirap nang magkomento baka hindi iyon ang pinag-uusapan ‘di ba. So basta ako, nakikita ko iyong efforts ni Presidente talaga dito sa education, and ang bilis nga niyang mag-decide dito sa Cabinet cluster at nandudoon talaga iyong urgency at very specific iyong kaniyang recommendations. So sa tingin ko, on the part of the administration, wala namang pagkukulang especially when it comes to education. Although, ano nga, dapat mas mabilis iyong reporma, I think this is what the President is telling us.

EDCOM 2 EXEC. DIR. YEE: I’ll add lang to what Secretary Angara said ‘no. Kasi sabi nga ni Presidente kanina, ‘Sige, i-create natin itong cluster na ito, pero iyong problema natin, may 68 inter-agency bodies,” based on our report kasi na ina-attend-an ng mga agencies. Imagine mo, 68, iba-ibang councils, iba-ibang groups na kailangan nilang attend-an ng meetings every time na on top of their regular jobs.

Sabi niya, let’s create the cluster but let’s figure out how we could rationalize this because it’s really unrealistic kasi hindi tayo makakapag-focus talaga on education kung ganitong karaming iba’t ibang concerns na iba-iba ang kailangan attend-an pero tig-iisang concern, very siloed instead of coherent.

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Idagdag ko rin doon sa sinabi ni Director. Sinabi pa nga ng Presidente, ‘Siguro lahat ng council na iyan, may budget iyan. So siguro kung hindi na kailangan, luma na iyan, tanggalin na natin iyan; kahit batas pa man iyan, mag-recommend na kayo ng amyenda at para makatipid din ang ating gobyerno at madala natin sa mga kinakailangang mga reporma.’

CATHERINE VALIENTE/MANILA TIMES: Sir, wala talagang mishandling ng budget, sa tingin ninyo po?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Hindi ko na nga alam iyong mga nauna sa akin kasi ano ako, mambabatas ako noon eh ‘di ba. So—

CATHERINE VALIENTE/MANILA TIMES: Pero, sir, titingnan ng Department of Education kung ano ba iyong naging problema bakit—

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Well, makikita natin sa mga COA reports iyan. It’s the COA who really knows if there was mishandling. So pagharap namin sa Kongreso, usually ang mga tinatanong sa amin, sa House of Representatives, sa Senado, tinatanong iyong mga COA reports. Those are the reports that will indicate if there has been any mishandling or not.

JINKY BATICADOS/IBC 13: Hi, sir. Good afternoon po. Sir, si Senator Gatchalian, he pushes po for major revamp of mga NLRP natin ‘no, the National Learning Recovery Program. So how do you answer this one, sir?

DEPED SEC. ANGARA: Itanong natin kay KM, siya iyong bumubulong kay Senator Gatchalian. Tama iyon! Tama iyon, I think, we need to review. Hindi nga natin sinusukat kasi minsan, hindi natin sinukat saan iyong bata before the learning recovery camp tapos after para talagang scientific at evidence-based kung talagang gumagana siya nang mabuti or para ipagpatuloy ba ito or hindi. So, I let KM say more about that kasi that pertains to DepEd, and they reviewed it specifically.

EDCOM 2 EXEC. DIR. YEE: Oo nga eh. So talagang tinutukan kasi ng EDCOM iyong National Learning Recovery Program ‘no, so talagang binantayan namin pati catch-up Fridays, iyong NRP and NMP at saka iyong learning camps over the summer.

I guess iyong pinaka-push kasi sana and request for DepEd to consider is how to treat our learners differently based on their ability. Kasi nakita namin sa learning camp, iba-iba iyong tipo ng estudyante. I think DepEd’s own data – so far ha, estimates – that about 30% of our Grade 7 to 10, ang problema functional literacy and numeracy eh; iba iyon sa grade level ability. Meaning to say, kung kaya mong mag-compute, iyong mga basic na pangangailangan mo sa pamumuhay, kaya mong gawin, kaya mong basahin ang mga texts, okay na iyon – kailangan at least iyon, mayroon. Pero ang question natin, kunwari iyong in-explain ko kanina, Grade 9 iyong bata ngayon, ang kaya lang niya ay subtraction – anong plano natin sa kaniya ngayong taon na araw-araw nasa classroom siya, quadratic functions iyong aaralin niya? Kasi kung may 30 minutes tayo na national math program at the end of each day, sapat ba iyon para maihabol niya iyong multiplication, division at lahat ng iba’t ibang lesson sa pagitan noon which is the five-year learning gap.

Iyong request namin sa DepEd is sana iyong plano natin ay detalyado depende sa pangangailangan ng iba’t ibang bata kasi hindi naman lahat ng bata ay ganoon iyong kailangan; iyong iba kailangan mas focused, mas maraming oras; iyong iba refreshments lang. So, sana mayroon tayong delineation in terms of the interventions.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. We have to wrap up our press briefing.

Thank you so much ED Yee and Secretary Angara for communicating the very urgent directives of the President. Education reforms will take time but we have to continue, it’s an ongoing and long-term process. So thank you for explaining the concept of the Cabinet cluster on education. Thank you.

Thank you, Malacañang Press Corps. Magandang hapon sa inyong lahat.

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