As President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs into law the Kabalikat sa Pagtuturo Act, which doubles public educators’ teaching supplies allowance, teachers groups have called on the government to take more decisive steps to improve working conditions.
The bill raises the teaching supplies allowance from P5,000 to P10,000 starting this coming school year, saying that teachers have long been spending their own hard earned money for school expenses that should’ve been provided by the government.
The Alliance of Concerned Teachers hailed the passage of the bill they championed, campaigning and lobbying for increased teaching supplies allowance for teachers through the years, pushing to increase the allowance from a measly P700 in 2012. However, they also reiterated their call for salaries of teachers and staff to be raised to a decent and viable level.
The Teacher’s Dignity Coalition also expressed gratitude for the new measure, but stressed how P10,000 would not be enough to cover much of what public school teachers need for teaching supplies. It also vowed to continue campaigning for a salary increase, with more than 30 versions of such proposals pending in both houses of Congress.
Any positive development or improvement is always welcome, especially when it comes to the country’s teachers and health workers who contribute so much to nation building but would do better with more appreciation and support from their own government. Hopefully the increase in teaching supplies allowance is just a start and our country’s teachers get a better deal in terms of salaries, benefits, and opportunities for growth, so they can not only contribute to reversing the learning crisis our youth have to endure, but also have an easier choice to make when they are presented with a chance to leave our country for another.*
