THE ALLIANCE of Concerned Teachers called on the Department of Education to resolve “old normal” problems such as lack of funds and shortage of teachers to ensure that the opening of schools and implementation of face-to-face classes will be safe and smooth.

“How are we going to achieve the better normal education if old problems remain unsolved? Mga guro pa rin ang nag-abono sa repairs and naglinis ng mga klasrum. Bumigat pa ang non-teaching duties dahil tungkulin nila ang daily health check sa mga bata at pagdisinfect ng eskwelahan, habang nagtuturo sila kapwa sa face-to-face classes at distance learning modalities,” Raymond Basilio, the group’s secretary general, said.

He cited the result of the survey conducted by the Movement for Safe, Equitable, Quality, and Relevant Education that showed that students are happy to go back to school and they learn more during in-person classes than online.

However, Basilio said that the DepEd has to hire more teachers so that schools can hold more face-to-face classes.

“Walang mass hiring ng teachers so paano makakapasok ang lahat ng bata sa cut down class size kapag binukas na ang 100 percent face-to-face sa August? Ni walang nationwide student assessments para sukatin ang learning loss, walang gabay kung ano ang dapat habulin na competencies at ano ang dapat pokus at adjustment sa curriculum,” he said.

SEQuRe Education, a network of education experts, teachers, parents, and students, conducted the month-long survey in March among teacher respondents from 63 out of the 13,692 basic education schools nationwide that opened for limited face-to-face classes from November 2021 until April 2022.

The survey revealed that majority of the respondents said that students were happy to be back in schools.

“As it is, though, the Deped and the incoming administration has a long way to go if they are to open all the schools for 100 percent face to face learning because based on the survey, government funding and support were ‘insufficient’, which compelled 59 to 83 percent of teacher-respondents to spend out-of-pocket to prepare schools and classrooms for safe reopening, while some important safety measures were still not sufficiently installed,” Basilio said.

SEQuRe Education pointed out that families of learners also had difficulties in providing for their children’s distance learning needs.

The survey also found that efforts and strategies for the implementation of limited in-classroom learning were “heavily decentralized and school-dependent.”

This, the group said, “put into play the initiative and resourcefulness of teachers and school heads who find ways to operate their schools and teach under blended learning modalities” despite “lacking guidance” from the higher offices of the Department of Education.

“The biggest responsibilities are upon the national government and the DepEd central office. To safely reopen 100 percent of our schools, the most important steps to take are significantly raising the funds for school reopening; mass hiring of teaching and non-teaching personnel; and conducting student assessments nationwide to guide the crafting of an evidence-based evidence-based education recovery program,” Basilio said.

Basilio added that schools also need nurses and utility personnel to free teachers from clinic and sanitation duties.

“We need to hire more teachers to give all learners a chance to in-classroom learning while still ensuring the implementation of health protocols by keeping the class size at 20 students,” he said.