MANILA — Vice President and concurrent Education Chief Sara Duterte on Monday said that long-term salary increases for teachers are still being studied.
During the Brigada Eskwela in Victorino Mapa High School in San Miguel, Manila, the Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary said that Marcos had already asked for the review as soon as they took up office.
“When we came in last year, President Marcos asked to procure a study not just for the yearly salary increases but the long-term outlook as to how the salary hikes of teaching and non-teaching DepEd personnel should be,” said Duterte.
While the Vice President did not specify when the study would come out, she said that it would also account for economic indicators.
“We are waiting for the result of that study na nandoon ‘yung increases and then nandoon din ‘yung pagkumpara niya sa inflation at sa mga economic indicators, forecast ng economic indicators sa mga darating na taon,” she said.
Duterte explained, however, that salary increases for teachers are already under the Salary Standardization Law, which mandated four rounds of yearly salary increases beginning in 2016.
Blended learning
Meanwhile, DepEd recommended the implementation of blended learning if classrooms destroyed by Super Typhoon “Egay” (international name: Doksuri) are not repaired in time for the opening of classes on Aug.t 29.
According to Duterte, blended modality has always been the direction of her department.
“The ones hit by typhoon Egay will be the priority in our budget for repair this year,” she said in an ambush interview during a Brigada Eskwela’ program in Manila.
“But if the repairs will not make it to the opening on August 29, we will immediately implement blended learning programs in our schools because there is no longer a learning disruption,” said Duterte.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who was with Duterte in the event, said government is doing what it can to immediately fix the classrooms.
“When the typhoon hit, we said, ‘What can we do in one month?” he recalled.
“So, so far, what we can do together with local government units… we are doing everything to restore what was destroyed, and the school-building programs should continue,’ he said.
“But the weather has really been an obstacle,” he lamented.
“Egay” left 196 schools across nine regions destroyed.
This situation comes a month before public schools open on Aug. 29. (Jean Mangaluz © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
