THE 2nd Congressional Commission on Education discussed issues on scholarship funding and accessibility with Education industry partners.

EDCOM 2 Executive Director Dr. Karol Mark Yee said scholarships need to be reviewed for clarity of guidelines.

“Ang problema sa government, ang daming pockets of funds and scholarships,” Yee said.

Monark Foundation Executive Director Cecil Valencia earlier sounded the alarm on the lack of clear guidelines in availing of the Dual Training System benefits for industry partners.

Companies who participate in the DTS are allowed to deduct from their taxable income 50 percent of the system expenses paid to the accredited institution.

“We keep on saying we have 50 percent incentive for them. But how can we avail of the incentive? I consulted with TESDA a few weeks ago – unfortunately, hindi rin nila talaga mabigyan ng clear guidelines,” Valencia said.

The Commission also discussed the difficulty of updating TESDA training regulations for each industry.

A training regulation serves as a basis for curriculum, instructional materials, and assessment tools for National Certifications.

Training regulations are supposed to be updated whenever there are technical changes to a particular industry but it was learned that these are updated every three years.

“Not all industries have associations, and even if a particular industry has an association, not all associations talk to each other,” former TESDA Director General Irene Isaac said.