SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian hailed presumptive President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s decision to appoint presumptive Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio as Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd).

Citing Duterte-Carpio’s landslide win in the vice presidential race, Gatchalian said she has the political capital to ensure the much-needed reforms in the education sector –including a review of the K to 12 system – will be implemented.

The chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, Arts and Culture reiterated the urgency of addressing the crisis in the education sector, considering the dismal performance of Filipino learners in international assessments like the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).

Gatchalian also noted Filipinos’ dissatisfaction with the K-12 program.

A Pulse Asia survey done in December 2019 revealed that only 38% of Filipinos are satisfied with the K to 12 program while 47% are dissatisfied.

The same survey revealed that among those dissatisfied with the program, 78% said that parents had to shell out more money for education, food, and transportation.

“She is given more than 60% of the votes. In terms of political capital, that’s huge. That’s a lot of political capital she can use to reform our education system,” said Gatchalian.

“We cannot do business as usual in the next six years. Someone should take charge and reform many of our processes and systems in order to improve our education system, so I will recommend her to the Department of Education,” the senator said before Marcos Jr.’s announcement.

Last night, the presumptive president told reporters that his vice president will serve as DepEd Secretary once elected.

Gatchalian ran on a platform of improving the quality of education in the country. He vowed to ensure that reforms like the Excellence in Teacher Education Act (Republic Act No. 11713), which he sponsored and authored, were adequately implemented.

The Excellence in Teacher Education Act aims to improve the quality of teacher education and training.

Gatchalian also sponsored the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM).

The proposed EDCOM II will be mandated to undertake a comprehensive national assessment and evaluation of the performance of the country’s education sector, including a review of how DepEd, CHED (Commission on Higher Education), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) observe their mandates under the law. By CAMILLE BALAGTAS-SARMIENTO & MARLON PURIFICACION