Marcos urged to create Cabinet cluster for Education
Both the Senate and the House of Representatives had jointly passed a concurrent resolution calling for President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. to create a Cabinet Cluster for Education in order to address the country's education crisis, the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) said Saturday.
In a statement, EDCOM 2 said it passed the concurrent resolution last June 11, the last day of the 19th Congress, to resolve the prevailing issues of functional illiteracy, lack of access to quality early childhood education, the obvious mismatch between graduate skills and industry needs, and significant gaps in teacher development, as identified by the commission in its Year 1 and 2 reports.
EDCOM 2 co-chairpersons Senator Win Gatchalian and Pasig City Roman Romulo urged for the adoption of the resolution in both houses during the 19th Congress that led to a landmark consensus on the significance of the cluster to institutionalize coordination of education agencies amid the country's learning crisis.
'Most of the issues reported by EDCOM2 - functional literacy crisis, challenges in senior high school, job-skills mismatch, and gaps in teacher specialization - stem from a lack of coordination among the various education departments," Romulo said.
"The Cabinet Cluster for Education will serve as a vital platform for these agencies to collaborate more closely, ensuring aligned efforts and unified direction under the leadership and guidance of the President,' he added.
The call for a Cabinet-level cluster aligns with President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos's directive last August 2024 for education agencies to create a comprehensive 10-year education and workforce development strategy, an essential next step to assure the effective implementation of the strategy.
'With the persistent job-skills mismatch, underwhelming outcomes in senior high school, and the learning crisis revealed by EDCOM 2, a high-level, coordinated approach is crucial to help our students. This cluster will provide the strategic direction and coherence needed to ensure that every Filipino learner—whether bound for college or the workforce—is equipped with the right skills, knowledge, and opportunities to succeed,' said EDCOM 2 Commissioner Rep. Pablo John Garcia.
According to EDCOM 2, the initiative had received endorsement from key government agencies, education stakeholders, and experts, who backed the call for increased alignment within the education sector and the strategic allocation of resources toward urgent national goals.
Meanwhile, the Senate's version of the resolution was endorsed by EDCOM 2 commissioners, including senators Sherwin Gatchalian, Allan Peter Cayetano, Joel Villanueva, and Loren Legarda. Senators Pia Cayetano and Risa Hontiveros, meanwhile, highlighted its significance in improving education quality, saying that the establishment of such a body has been long overdue. —VAL, GMA Integrated News
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