Amid challenges brought about by increasing enrollment, the Department of Education said yesterday that it is ready for the opening of classes for school year 2019-2020 on June 3.
DepEd noted that there are still some “requirements” in terms of basic education resources that the agency continue to address. For instance, DepEd noted that the construction of some 66,000 classrooms – accumulated from the years 2014 to 2018 – are still ongoing.
In terms of providing learning and teaching materials, DepEd said that the cash allowances of teachers as well as the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses of schools are being downloaded. DepEd assured that the hiring of at least 23,000 teachers is still ongoing.
Despite the possible consequences of the delayed approval of the R3.757-trillion 2019 national budget, DepEd assured it is ready to welcome around 28 million students in both public and private schools across all basic education levels.
In an effort to guarantee a smooth opening of classes, the DepEd convened various agencies, institutions, and stakeholders to form the Inter-Agency Task Force for this year’s national “Oplan: Balik Eskwela.”
“Ang konsepto natin dito ay ang edukasyon ay hindi lamang responsibilidad ng DepEd, lahat ng ating government agencies, including the private sector, ay nagtutulungan para sa paghahanda sa pagbabalik-eskwela ng ating mga bata,” said Education Secretary Leonor Briones.
Briones thanked partner agencies in the government for their unwavering support not only during the start of classes but also for the rest of the school year. “This is not just the undertaking of the department, this is the undertaking of the entire community of Filipinos who is interested in, and advocates quality education,” she added. (Ina Malipot)
