Lawmakers for a party-list claiming to represent teachers and educators have filed a proposed legislation in Congress pushing for the modernization of elementary and secondary education to enable the Philippine educational system to cope with the global change.
?A Teacher? party-list Reps. Julieta Cortuna and Mariano Piamonte filed House Bill 3512, which mandates the provision of computer laboratory in every school campus, the computerization of teaching modules and the equipping of teachers through training programs.
Cortuna, the principal author of the bill, noted how modern technology has swept the old ways of people’s living. She cited the social media, which “has changed the way people communicate and is bringing the old snail mail is close to extinction.”
“Since modern technology needs to be dealt with at a pace to match its progress, it is necessary for the schools to be equipped and modernized in order for them to cope with the challenges of today’s computerized world,” Cortuna said.
Under the bill, the Department of Education (DepEd) is mandated to provide every elementary and high school campus nationwide with a computer laboratory consisting of at least 20 desktop or laptop computers that will be used to incorporate modern technology in the delivery of basic education.
The DepEd shall also computerize manual instruction modules and lessons in math, science and other relevant subjects.
To equip the teachers with the technological knowhow, they, together with the administrative staff, shall undergo the necessary training programs.
The DepEd shall keep a computerized database that contains, among others, information on the students’ percentage of passing in every class and every subject.
The budget necessary for the implementation of the proposed law in public schools shall be included in the annual allocation of the DepEd and of the State Universities and Colleges (SUCs).
Private schools, meanwhile, will have to shoulder the expenses necessary for the implementation of the measure.
