TO ADDRESS the growing student population and prevent a shortage of teachers, the Department of Education (DepEd) Mandaue City Division recently hired 36 new teaching staff.
This move is part of its continuing efforts to meet the city’s educational demands, especially with the recorded 60,000 enrollees for School Year 2025–2026, said Mandaue Division Superintendent Bianito Dagatan.
As of mid-June, DepEd Mandaue has recorded around 61,750 enrollees, or 95 percent of last school year’s total number of 65,000. The division expects the number to further increase in the coming weeks.
Although classes in public schools nationwide officially opened on June 16, 2025, DepEd said late enrollees are still welcome.
Under DepEd’s policy, schools may still accept students as long as the learner can complete at least 80 percent of the remaining school days and meet the required performance standards for their grade level, including quarterly assessments.
The city’s current teaching force includes over 2,300 teachers, supported by more than 180 non-teaching staff.
Shortage
Despite a national shortage of teachers estimated at 16,000 items—DepEd Mandaue has secured the 36 new teaching positions from the initial 16,000 items released nationwide by the central office.
Dagatan explained that teacher deployment is based on the Registry of Qualified Applicants (RQA)—a ranked list of candidates who passed all the necessary requirements and evaluations.
However, he clarified that being ranked number one does not guarantee automatic hiring.
“There are several considerations beyond ranking. We follow the Localization Law, which gives preference to applicants who reside near the school,” said Dagatan.
“We also prioritize DOST (Department of Science and Technology) scholars, who are graduates of teacher education programs under government scholarship. These applicants are pre-identified by the central office and are given priority placement,” Dagatan added.
For junior high school, positions are usually fixed and school-based. For senior high school, items are assigned based on subject needs, student tracks, and current staffing levels, making placement more dynamic and dependent on planning data.
“We need to determine which schools receive new teachers, analyze enrollment trends, subject offerings, and classroom loads to ensure proper distribution,” Dagatan said.
He added that teacher hiring will remain a top priority for the division as the student population continues to grow.
With enrollment numbers rising steadily each year, DepEd Mandaue is working closely with its partners and the national office to meet future staffing demands and maintain quality education in all public schools. / CAV