Sarangani gets 133 teacher slots, more funds from DepEd

MAITUM, Sarangani (March 22, 2011) – The Department of Education (DepEd) has allotted beginning this school year 133 slots for new teachers, the largest number of items given to Sarangani, according to local DepEd officials.

In addition, a P61-million fund will be given for the construction of additional school buildings, P3 million for class furniture, and procurement of texbooks.

Schools Division Superintendent Deborah Adrales made the statement during the first quarterly joint Provincial School Board and Local School Board (PSB-LSB) meeting here attended by provincial, local and DepEd officials Monday (March 21).

“133 items will be given by the DepEd for Sarangani for elementary school teachers,” Adrales said.

Adrales said the big number of teachers’ items for Sarangani was the result of the department’s national planning conference last December in order to establish its road map for 2011.

At the PSB-LSB meeting, Governor Migs Dominguez, in his State of the Sarangani Education, stated the present status of elementary and high school education in the province and urged local and DepEd officials to harmonize concerns and set its direction.

“Let us start investing on our people to fight against poverty, overpopulation, and lack of government resources. We cannot expect employment from the government forever,” Dominguez said.

Dominguez reported at present, Sarangani schoolchildren’s performances fall far from what they have to achieve per Education For All (EFA) standards in terms of participation rate (75% versus 95% EFA standard), completion rate (49% versus 81% EFA standard) and achievement rate (65% versus 86% EFA standard).

“We are still a long way… the future of Sarangani will be bleak if we don’t do something for the education of our children,” Dominguez said.

The early enrolment at the province in January helped in determining the need for more teachers this school year, according to Adrales.

Adrales said the province’s actual need for teachers reaches to 1,027 excluding teachers for the new integrated high schools among remote communities.

With at least 18 new integrated high schools in remote areas, Sarangani’s educational innovation through the province’s Quality Education for Sarangani Today (QUEST) in partnership with the DepEd, hopes to improve its completion rate for students to reach college.

Given the said ratio, Adrales said it is now up to the joint PSB-LSB meeting to address the need for more teachers in the province.

The meeting took up challenges confronting district performances, and strategies that would meet the EFA goals for the next three years. (Russtum G. Pelima/SARANGANI INFORMATION OFFICE)