SHERWIN Gatchalian assured that tutors under the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program will receive appropriate compensation or incentives following the signing of its Implementing Rules and Regulations.

The ARAL Program, established under the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning Program Act or Republic Act No. 12028, is a national learning initiative aimed at addressing learning losses among students.

The law specifies that teachers, para-teachers, and pre-service teachers are eligible to serve under the program.

“Mahalaga ang pakikilahok ng ating mga guro, para-teachers, at mga pre-service teachers upang mapatupad natin ang ARAL Program na tutugon sa learning loss ng ating mga mag-aaral. Tiniyak nating makakatanggap sila ng omento o benepisyo bilang pagkilala sa kanilang mahalagang papel sa tagumpay ng ARAL Program,” said Gatchalian, principal author and sponsor of the law.

Para-teachers have taken the Licensure Examination for Teachers but were unable to qualify. They have a special permit from the Board for Professional Teachers, indicating their area of assignment. Pre-service teachers, meanwhile, are students enrolled in teacher education degree programs.

Under the ARAL law, teachers who serve as tutors will be compensated in accordance with the relevant provisions of Republic Act No. 4670 (Magna Carta for Public School Teachers) and the existing rules and regulations of the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

However, they first need to render the prescribed six hours of classroom teaching.

The payment they receive will not exceed the compensation for two hours, based on the Prime Hourly Teaching Rate, in line with DBM guidelines.

Para-teachers serving as ARAL tutors will be compensated from the DepEd budget or the Special Education Fund of Local School Boards.

Services rendered by pre-service teachers who serve as ARAL tutors will be considered relevant teaching experience when applying for a plantilla position in DepEd, subject to the agency’s hiring guidelines and the Civil Service Commission’s Merit Selection Plan.