COMPLEMENTARITY BETWEEN PUBLIC, PRIVATE EDUCATION

ELIZABETH P. VARGAS

The Department of Education (DepEd) recently highlighted the various reforms and accomplishments of the Department, including the graduation of the first batch of Senior High School completers of the K to 12 Program.

DepEd also emphasized the complementarity between public and private education, as well as public and private school teacher.

Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones said it is not correct to believe that the public school teachers are less in quality than those in the private sector. It is provided in the Constitution, she added, that public and private education should complement each other.

In a recent forum, the DepEd chief added that the Department is continuously prioritizing and expanding the teachers’welfare by initiating significant developments in their compensation and benefits, and helping them gain financial stability through financial literacy programs.

In addition to providing them with opportunities for their professional growth, DepEd shall also conduct research on the motivation of teachers aimed at maximizing their full potentials towards excell en ce.

Meanwhile, the Rotary Club of Manila, in partnership with DepEd, shall embark on a joint project dubbed as the “Nationwide Chorale Group Competition and Song Writing Contest” aimed at giving award and recognition to outstanding choral groups and encouraging songwriting.

According to Briones, culture and history should never be neglected. She believes in music, which she says is the language of the soul. A lesson can be most effectively taught through music, she said, adding that history makes us know ourselves.

Briones expressed her appreciation and gratitude to the RCM for their generosity and for embarking on the said project.

According to her, the difference is that the group is going to reward and recognize outstanding choral groups and song writers, which shall, likewise, give the opportunity to move forward and bring choral groups to other places.

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The author is Teacher III at Sulipan Elementary School