Address systemic understaffing in schools, DepEd told

MANILA, Philippines — Systemic understaffing in schools should be addressed by the Department of Education (DepEd), according to the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT).

Reducing teachers’ paperwork by 57 percent should not result to more administrative tasks for school staff, the group said.

“This initiative to cut down teachers’ administrative workload is a step in the right direction and something we have been demanding for years... (but) shifting the burden from teachers to the limited number of non-teaching staff is not a solution,” ACT chairman Vladimer Quetua said.

On Monday, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said about 57 percent of 174 school forms required from teachers would be cut.

“What we need is the hiring of more administrative personnel dedicated to handling these documentary requirements,” Quetua said.

“Chronic problems in our education system stem from severe underfunding. We need a budget that reflects education as a true national priority, not mere lip service,” he noted.

Funds from “questionable” allocations must be reallocated to the education sector, the group said, referring to the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, debt servicing and projects prone to corruption.

“Billions of pesos are being wasted on militaristic approaches and debt payments while teachers struggle with basic needs in the classroom,” Quetua maintained.

An IDInsight study found that 42 percent of teachers work more than 50 hours weekly, dedicating an average of 17.8 hours to ancillary duties and 8.1 hours to program-related tasks.