SENATOR Ramon Revilla Jr. disputed the claim of a group of private schools that politicians are spoiling public school teachers by granting them a slew of benefits.

“Public school teachers are not being spoiled but are only given what is due them,” Revilla said.

He was reacting to the statement of the Federation of Associations of Private Schools Administrators that public school teachers are getting perks while the parents who are tasked to monitor their children’s studies at home get nothing.

Revilla said the teaching supplies allowance granted to public school teachers is intended to assist them in performing their responsibilities.

“As they will now employ new learning modalities for teaching, they are now obliged to conduct classes online, they are burdened with the need for, among others, proper gadgets and reliable internet connection. It is only proper for the government to support them in performing these responsibilities,” he said.

He added that the allowance aims to enhance the delivery of public education.

“I doubt that the allowance will even redound to the economic well-being of the public school teacher, as the allowance could hardly cover the huge expenses posed by the challenges of the situation. Even before the pandemic, teachers were forced to shell out personal money to buy chalk, manila paper and other materials for visual aids, even cleaning supplies for their classroom, sometimes providing basic educational tools and even baon for their students, with their desire to ensure that they are able to provide the best learning experience for the children,” Revilla stressed.