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By Efren L. Danao, Senior
Reporter
A Malacañang think-tank’s
proposal that encourages teachers to use powerpoint presentations
rather than the conventional chalk and blackboard for a more
effective method of instruction has earned the irk of opposition
Senator Francis Escudero.
Escudero questioned how Malacañang
could make such a proposal when all it could afford was a P500 worth
of chalk allowance for teachers for the whole school year.
“Teachers use the money not
only to buy chalks but also papers, cartolinas, lesson plans, pen
and other instructional supplies for 210 class days. How on earth
can you teach effectively if you’re given P2.50 a day for these
things? Much more
demand the teachers to utilize powerpoint presentations!” he said.
“The measly chalk allowance is
like handing out a few bullets to a soldier going to war,” he
added.
Escudero has proposed to increase
the chalk allowance to P2,000 a year, citing that the government can
easily fund it through the value-added tax collections windfall
caused by higher oil prices.
“It is also a speck compared to
the P26 billion that government planned to spend for the now-shelved
Cyber-education project,” Escudero said.
For years, the annual chalk
allowance was nailed at P300, until the 2008 budget passed by
Congress raised it to P500.
The Education department’s
budget is worth P140 billion this year, including the P2-billion
school-building fund, which is treated as a separate item in the
budget.
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