Educ panel chair to DepEd: Not all subjects need to be taught daily

A lawmaker on Tuesday urged the Department of Education (DepEd) to revisit its policy on the time allotment of subjects under the revised Kindergarten to Grade 10 (K-10) curriculum, saying that not all of them have to be taught five times a week. 

Pasig Representative Roman Romulo, House basic education committee chairperson, said the policy causes physical, mental, and emotional strain to teachers who have to teach these subjects for six hours per day. 

“Gusto namin matanong sa DepEd, bakit nila binago ‘yung pagbibigay nila ng number of subjects na parang ngayon every day kailangan ituro ang isang particular subject. Dati po hindi ganoon,” Romulo said. 

(We want to ask the DepEd why they changed the number of subjects that have to be taught everyday. It wasn't like that before.) 

“Di ba nga kaya tayo nagkaroon ng review para ma-decongest, mabawasan ng subjects. Tama po, binawasan nga nila 'yung subjects, pero ang ginawa naman po nila ay ginawang araw-araw. Dati hindi araw-araw lahat ng subjects,” he added. 

(We had a curriculum review to decongest and reduce the number of subjects. We already did that, but they noted that these subjects have to be taught daily. Subjects before were not being taught everyday.) 

Based on DepEd Order (DO) No. 10 signed by Education Secretary Sonny Angara, learning areas like Filipino, English, Mathematics, Science, Araling Panlipunan, MAPEH (Music, Arts, Physical Education and Health), GMRC (Good Manners and Right Conduct), and TLE (Technology and Livelihood Education) are allotted 45 minutes of instructional time daily for five days a week for Grades 4 to 10. 

Some of these subjects also have to be taught for at least 40 minutes five times a week in Grades 1 to 3. 

Romulo said that DO 10, along with DO No. 5 which set the guidelines for the workload of teachers, should be revisited, considering that some schools still need to implement “double shifting” in the morning and afternoon.

“Hindi naman kasalanan ng teacher o student na kulang tayo ng classrooms. Pero kailangan siguraduhin natin, pangalagaan natin 'yung mental wellness po ng lahat. So pagka ganon po, adjustments muna tayo habang hindi pa tayo nakakahabol sa tamang sapat na number of classrooms,” he said. 

(It is not the fault of teachers or students that we lack classrooms. But we need to make sure that we take care of everyone's mental wellness. Let's make adjustments first while we haven't reached the sufficient number of classrooms.) 

GMA News Online reached out to the DepEd and Angara for comment on the matter but has yet to receive a reply as of posting time.

Teachers' groups on Monday also called on DepEd to reconsider its policy requiring public school teachers to render six hours of actual classroom teaching in their eight-hour work per day, saying that it poses a “physical challenge.”

Under the DO 5, which was signed by former Education secretary Vice President Sara Duterte, public school teachers need to render eight hours of work daily—of which six hours will be devoted to actual classroom teaching and the remaining two hours for teacher ancillary tasks which may be spent within or outside school premises.

DepEd is expected to submit next week its position paper on the proposal to suspend the regular school schedule for 8 to 12 weeks to implement an effective learning recovery program.—AOL, GMA Integrated News