Education is Entire Country’s Concern — Secretary Briones
Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Prof. Leonor M. Briones delivered a lecture on the status of the country’s education system during the 2018 Eminent Persons Lecture Series held January 15 at the Claire Isabel McGill Luce Auditorium.
Secretary Briones started by stressing that “the importance of education is not only the concern of educators and educationists but of the entire country,” as she spoke to an audience from different disciplines.
(Click to watch replay of Secretary Briones’ lecture: “Educational Reform Thrusts in the Philippines”)
DepEd currently has 26.6 million learners from kindergarten to Grade 12, and employs 687,229 teachers both in public and private schools. This makes DepEd the largest bureaucracy in the country and consequently has the highest level of budget allocated from public funds.
Of the P552.52 billion budget this year, Sec. Briones said that 60% goes to salaries; the remaining goes towards the construction of school buildings with complete facilities, and other related operations.
She also tackled the four key deliverables of DepEd: first, to raise the quality of education in the country; second, to make education more accessible, especially to minorities; third, make education relevant to the urgent need and opportunities of our nation; and fourth, make education truly liberating.
The Secretary brought to light other internal and external challenges that DepEd is facing, such as the conflict between the state and various groups, climate change and disasters, budget utilization, procurement, accounting systems, capacity-building, and the salaries and indebtedness of teachers, which is one of their major challenges.
During the 21st Cabinet meeting with Philippine President Rodrigo R. Duterte, Secretary Briones shared that they discussed the possibility of further increasing the salaries of teachers, especially with the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion effective 2018. While she expressed gratitude for this plan, the Secretary said she expressed that the same increases in salaries should not only be for teachers but for all who serve the public.
Every year, Silliman organizes an Eminent Person Lecture, inviting distinguished personalities to speak on issues that matter to national life. Former Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos was the first Eminent Lecturer in 2008.
A renowned professor emeritus at the National College of Public Administration at the University of the Philippines and an internationally recognized advocate for social development, the Secretary served the Board of Trustees of Silliman University as Chairperson before her appointment to the Cabinet. She is an Outstanding Sillimanian in the field of Fiscal and Public Administration who obtained from the University her degree in Accounting magna cum laude.
(Photo: Education Secretary Prof. Leonor M. Briones, left, with Silliman University Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Betsy Joy B. Tan.)
