SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian on Monday said that teaching education institutions (TEIs) must give aspiring teachers quality education and training to boost their professional development.

The Senate Committee on Basic Education, Arts and Culture chaired by Gatchalian proposed reforms on the teacher education system. It acknowledged that there is a crisis in the education sector as shown by  the poor performance of Filipino students in international assessments.

Gatchalian said that it is important to pursue and implement reforms that will address the crisis.

The senator pointed out that most of the graduates of TEIs in the country have performed poorly in the Licensure Examination for Teachers.

From 2010 to 2019, only 35 percent passed the LET for the secondary level, while only 28 percent passed for the elementary level.

Readiness to teach the K to 12 curriculum is another challenge, the senator said.

To improve the quality of teacher education and training, Gatchalian sponsored Senate Bill 2152 or the Teacher Education Excellence Act, which seeks to empower the Teacher Education Council and make it a responsive coordinating body.

“Sa pagreporma natin sa sistema ng edukasyon, hindi na tayo pwedeng bumalik sa nakasanayan na nating gawin, at isa sa mga dapat nating tutukan ay ang pag-angat ng kalidad ng edukasyon ng ating mga guro. Kung magagawa natin ito, mapapaigting natin ang kanilang kakayahan at kahandaang maghatid ng dekalidad na edukasyon sa ating mga mag-aaral,” Gatchalian said.