In 2010, I had the opportunity to experience first-hand how the Alternative Learning System worked under the Department of Education. It was also the very first time I encountered Persons Deprived of Liberty expressing how the ALS changed their lives altogether while they were serving time in Tagaytay City Jail.
Many of the learners under this program varied in age and it took me a while to understand how the system worked until I was given the chance to collaborate with the bureau in order to fully understand this parallel learning system that is a practical option to the existing formal mode of instruction. I won’t say that I was culture shocked but I will admit that it was a real education for me, considering that part of my life was evolving since being part of the department was my very first government job. Being a teacher in the private sector taught me many lessons, however, seeing the conditions in the public sector is, in all respects, a different ballgame – if one could call it that.
I have on different occasions written about the ALS in my column and I feel that yesterday’s partnership signing between the DepEd and BJMP to expand educational opportunities for Persons Deprived of Liberty under the ALS program is a huge step towards achieving complete reintegration of our brothers and sisters serving time back into the community.
In his speech yesterday at the Department of Education, Secretary Sonny Angara commended the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP)’s “Tagapangalaga ko, Guro ko” program that has been instrumental in bringing continued education closer to PDLs for more than a decade.
The newly signed Memorandum of Agreement between the Department of Education and the BJMP highlights the ongoing commitment of both agencies in recognizing the value of education as the greatest equalizer for all learners in our country through the Alternative Learning System that is responsible for providing basic education for out-of-school youth and adults.
In my experience 14 years ago, the memory of women and young adults who have chosen to undergo the program relayed to me many times how, looking back, had they only received proper education earlier in their lives, it would have given them the ability to make better choices in solving their problems. Hence, I agree with Secretary Angara when he says that the current MOA reinforces as well as strengthens the resolution of the Department of Education and BJMP in making sure that no learner is left behind by providing hope, dignity and a brighter future for all Filipinos.
Over the past three years, 20,000 PDLs have enrolled in ALS. In school year 2023-2024 alone, 5,596 PDLs enrolled in elementary, 9,286 in junior high school and 5,983 in senior high school under the Alternative Learning System program. In initiating meaningful change in the lives of persons deprived of liberty, BJMP chief Ruel Rivera expressed his appreciation and gratitude to the DepEd and in behalf of all PDLs on their longstanding partnership in order to foster a just and humane society by putting a strong emphasis on education.
In expanding educational access, the Department of Education plays a very significant role in the lives of all Persons Deprived of Liberty by developing their skills (life skills for that matter), boosting their self-esteem and helping them reintegrate back into society as valuable citizens who are able to participate in and contribute to nation building.
Taking appropriate measures and making education accessible to all is the promise of the state as it is essential for promoting social justice. Undeniably, education has the power to transform lives as its dynamic process engages all learners in a holistic manner while ensuring that this process includes the most marginalized and underserved populations.