📷: Alliance of Concerned Teachers – Philippines | FB
Less than a week before the official opening of classes, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines announced in a press conference today the activation of Bantay Balik-Eskwela Hotline, which will be open to receive reports reflecting the ‘true on-the-ground state’ of schools nationwide and to seek responses and resolutions from the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Marcos Jr. administration based on gathered information. The group expressed concerns as massive shortages in basic education needs remain unresolved amid worsening education crisis.
“We will sound the alarm as soon as we receive reports of school preparation and opening woes. The government has long reneged on its constitutional duty to protect and promote people’s right to quality education and has failed miserably to make education accessible to all. The chronic and severe shortages in basic education needs paint a grim picture of government neglect and the glaring absence of political will to solve the education crisis,” stated Vladimer Quetua, ACT Chairperson.
ACT underscored the urgent need for 150,000 more teachers to bring class sizes down to the global standard of 35 students. The group also called for over 56,000 education support personnel to meet administrative demands, alongside adequate numbers of guidance counselors, nurses, registrars, security, and utility workers.
ACT further emphasized that over 165,000 classrooms are urgently needed, as only 30% of existing school buildings are in good condition. The group also pointed out that textbooks and learning materials remain critically scarce nationwide, forcing teachers and students to rely on improvised resources like manuals, self-learning modules, and activity sheets. Additionally, only 37% of teachers have laptops and 17% of students have access to gadgets, which hinders effective teaching, limits efficiency due to manual processes, and widens learning gap.
ACT urged education stakeholders to maximize the hotline, which will serve as a platform for teachers, education workers, parents and students to air their woes and grievances, and help provide a clear picture of the opening of the school year. The hotline can be reached via mobile numbers 09569130778 (Globe) and 09684801168 (Smart), email at act.hotline@gmail.com, and Facebook at: fb.com/actph1982.
ACT reiterated its demand for the government to act swiftly and lay out a long-term plan to resolve the severe shortages in basic education needs. The group also slammed yet another ill-conceived revision of the basic education curriculum, which aim to shorten learning years and reduce courses that build historical consciousness, sharpen critical analysis, and foster democratic engagement—effectively molding students into cheap and docile labor force aligned with foreign standards and serving foreign interests.
“While basic education languishes under severe underfunding, our highest officials indulge in discretionary funds and evade accountability. The former education secretary, now tainted by the anomalous use of millions in confidential funds, once boldly promised to solve all basic education problems if given P100 billion. Yet despite a massive P735 billion budget during her tenure, DepEd utilized only P37 billion, even while spending its confidential funds at an inflated efficiency rate of 143%,” Quetua lamented.
“Ilang taong pagkakataon para resolbahin ang krisis sa edukasyon ang nasayang dahil sa kapalpakan ng namumuno habang malinaw na nilustay ang pondo ng bayan. Hindi na dapat i-delay pa ng Senado ang paglilitis kay VP Sara. Kasama ng taumbayan ang mga guro at buong sektor ng edukasyon sa paniningil at pagpapanagot sa mga tiwali at abusado na isa sa mga pangunahing dahilan kung bakit bagsak ang kalidad ng edukasyon at sadsad ang pondo sa batayang panlipunang serbisyo. Hindi lamang pagbubukas ng taong panuruan ang aming babantayan kundi maging ang dapat na kagyat na paglilitis sa mga mandarambong sa kaban ng bayan,” added Quetua.
ACT renewed its call for higher education budget equivalent to 6% of the gross domestic product, urgent resolution of shortages in basic education resources, curriculum overhaul toward a nationalist, scientific, and mass-oriented education, and end to plunder of the public treasury.#
