AUG.

30, 2013

NR # 3211B

Solon wants volunteer educators given plantilla teaching positions for their selfless service
A lawmaker has proposed the creation of plantilla teaching positions for volunteer educators with at least five years of continuous service in the countrys public school system as recognition for the selfless service they have rendered. Rep. Eulogio Magsaysay (Party-list, AVE) said his proposal would not only give qualified volunteer educators adequate income but also accord them the dignity they truly deserve as practitioners of the noblest profession. Thus, it will strengthen the spirit of volunteerism as inherent goodness of the Filipino race. A volunteer educator may be the pivotal influence that sets the student on a course for a better future, said Magsaysay. Since volunteer educators are not under the plantilla of the Department of Education (DepEd) or by a particular local government unit (LGU), he said they normally get only a meager allowance of about P1,500 each per month for their services. Its a chilling injustice to a noble deed, in fact a far fetch to complement equal pay for equal work as such amount makes it hard for them to be able provide for the family needs considering the present high cost of living. It indeed corresponds to an undue recognition of their nobility. Despite such meager amount, volunteer educators still persist in serving the community, the lawmaker said. Magsaysay said volunteers have played and will continue to play an important and valuable role in education. He said volunteer educators freely share their knowledge, skills and talents as they provide assistance in the education of students. A volunteer educator who reads to teach a young child may be the spark that ignites a love for reading. A volunteer educator who teaches skills, information and opportunities can expand the classroom walls and prepare the learners for a world of possibilities. More significantly, the presence of volunteer educators who portray positive adult role models, sends an important message to learners the value of caring for othersthat in turn, can affect the learners attitude toward education and their academic outcomes, Magsaysay said. In the Philippines, he said the ratification of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on April 10, 2007 of Republic Act 9418 otherwise known as the Volunteer Act of 2007 institutionalized volunteerism as one of the strategies for national development. Magsaysay said his proposal; House Bill 292 seeks to mandate the DepEd to create plantilla teaching positions for volunteer educators with at least five years of continuous service in the countrys public school system. The volunteer educator must conform with Republic Act 7836, otherwise known as the Professionalization of Teaching Act, to meet the criteria for recruitment and hiring of teachers set forth by the DepEd, and possess the appropriate civil service eligibility requirements, the bill provides. (30) rbb