MANILA, Philippines – SINABI ng Department of Education (DepEd) na magde-deploy ito ng mahiit sa 15,000 qualified passers ng National Qualifying Examination for School Heads (NQESH) bilang school principal sa bansa.
Layon ng desisyon na tugunan ang kakapusan ng school heads, may 55% ng public schools ang nago-operate ng walang school principals, ayon sa Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II).
Tinukoy ng EDCOM II ang ilang dahilan, kabilang na ang “mababa sa kasaysayan na passing rates para sa NQESH, high personnel turnover, kakulangan ng mga kandidato, napakahirap na qualification processes, at kawalan ng structured mentoring, coaching at formal induction programs.”
“This pressing issue is an eye-opener. So many of our schools operate without brains —because that’s what our principals are, the brains of our schools. Rest assured, DepEd is taking swift action to address this problem,” ang sinabi ni DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara.
“At least 7,916 NQESH passers in 2024 can help fill vacant principal positions,” ang sinabi naman ng DepEd.
Kabilang din sa ilang pagsisikap ang pagbabalik ng mga school principal sa kanilang assigned schools; reassignment para sa mga lugar na may surplus o oversupply ng mga kuwalipikadong school principal; at maging ang reclassification ng Head Teachers I sa V bilang School Principal I items sa ilalim ng Expanded Career Progression policy.
Tinatayang 14,761 Head Teachers I sa V ay maaaring i-reclassify bilang School Principal I; habang 954 Head Teachers VI at Assistant School Principal II ay muling bibigyan ng titulo bilang School Principal I, na may acting school heads na ipa-prayoridad bilang “on-stream candidates.”
Sa taong 2026, may 5,870 additional School Principal I items ang nakatakdang likhain para tulungan na makamit ang 1:1 principal-to-school ratio sa bansa.
Sa kanyang huling State of the Nation Address (SONA), sinabi ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. na ang kalidad ng edukasyon ay “rests on the quality of our teachers.”
“Every classroom that we build will be but an empty and lifeless structure without its moving force —the teacher, but our teachers are not just perfunctory figures in our schools. They are the very foundation of our educational system,” ayon kay Pangulong Marcos. RNT
