DepEd downscales teachers

45 admin tasks, only 11 left

CORTES, Bohol Sept 9 (PIA) –From 56 additional administrative tasks piggybacked on their teaching tasks and writing lesson plans, the Department of Education (DepED) is going to unburden the teachers and reduce their admin tasks to only 11.

Speaking before a decent gathering of some 2,000 teachers during the Visayas leg of the kick-off activity for the National Teachers’ Month in 2023, DepEd secretary and Vice President of the Philippines Sara Z. Duterte, who has been criticized internally for being an outsider sitting as the education head, cited that teachers told her they were also made to perform deworming tasks, or cook for the learners’ supplemental feeding.

In her consultations with teachers, Duterte, who shares that she also helps check students’ tests as her mother was a teacher, said she learned that teachers were also told to submit and comply with 56 other tasks.

“Guidelines would be issued to reduce the administrative tasks of teachers,” she announced, narrating further that she has a team studying these additional tasks and taking out those imposed tasks that do not have any legal document supporting it.

“From 56 tasks, we are now down to 11,” hinting also how additional tasks overburden teachers to be effective in their mission.

Taking over the tasks left off by the teachers are some Administrative Officers that DepED is hiring, and another 1500 project development officers, so teachers can focus on teaching, she said.

We have collaborated with the Department of Budget and Management to grant us the 3,500 administrative officers and 1500 project development officers, the second highest Philippine official said.

With DepEd, we are fully committed to train and give continuing education program to teachers, she also remarked.

She said this knowing

She also added, in her administration, she will make sure that teachers will have 30 straight days of rest without being interrupted by any DepED activity that requires volunteering.

And for schools’ division offices that still demand teachers’ presence during the 30 days of rest, Duterte said division officials would be asked to answer why teachers are asked to report during rest days.

Also feeling the difficulty especially in their financial literacy, VP Sara said a memorandum of agreement would be signed between the Deped and Government Service Insurance System, which would allow GSIS to assign a lane to handle teachers loans while the DepED website would open up a link that would provide teachers legal aid, and where teachers can ask for advice on obligations and contracts.

We are doing this to alleviate the problem of teachers, that we will relive teachers of their extra duties to enhance their focus on teaching and get them the extra loads that make them inefficient and too overburdened to be effective in their tasks. (rach/PIA-7/Bohol)

ROCKSTAR WELCOME. Boholanos and the Visayas teachers hand in a rockstar welcome to VP Sara, who has to do an extra walk around the gymnasium to have her pictures taken with the overly eager secretary who promised to also provide an automated system in the objective hiring of teachers.(rahc/ PIA Bohol)