Classes resume amid teacher shortage

CLASSES open today, but an official of the education department admitted there is a great need for elementary and secondary public school teachers in Central Visayas.

The Department of Education (Deped) 7 said they are almost 100 percent prepared for the opening of the school year, although there are some things to improve on, such as personnel.

At least 671 elementary and 5,339 secondary public school teachers are needed, in addition to the 42,000 teachers, said Dr. Recaredo Borgonia, DepEd 7 director.

However, Borgonia said they have not counted teachers hired by local government units (LGUs), who are “crucial” in preventing extreme teacher shortages in public schools.

These teachers are hired on a contractual basis and paid about P5,000 to P 6,000 a month, he said.

Borgonia hopes the LGUs will remain supportive by hiring more teachers. LGUs are mandated to set aside one percent of realty tax collections, for the Special Education Fund.

DepEd expects a 10 percent increase in student enrollment this year, given a tuition increase in some private schools.

Last year, Central Visayas had 1,678,524 students from pre-school to high school.

At least 300 personnel from the Cebu City Traffic Operations and Management (Citom) will be deployed today, particularly in major intersections, as classes begin.

Citom will now strictly implement the traffic plan designed for the construction of the Mambaling flyover project.

The P160-million flyover project started last month and is expected to be completed in March next year, when the school year ends.

Citom Executive Director Arnel Tancinco said he has recalled personnel who were detailed in different offices. They will enforce road rules, as traffic is expected to worsen as the school year starts.

Tancinco anticipates heavy traffic on Natalio Bacalso Ave. starting today and advises motorists to take the alternative routes, like Katipunan St. in Barangay Labangon and F. Llamas St. in Punta Princesa. (JKV/With ETB)

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