Education is at the forefront of the administration’s plans to strengthen the minds and skills of the Filipino youth, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday.
The President said that the Department of Education (DepEd) has been tasked to focus on literacy and numeracy, the virtue of good citizenship, and the sense of community, as integrated into the new K-10 curriculum.
“We have renewed hope in giving our best to the next batches of students especially the 28.4 million learners who begin this year. Learning will be at the forefront of our education agenda,” the President said.
Mr. Marcos also emphasized the DepEd’s “MATATAG” agenda which focuses on relevance of curriculum and rapid delivery for learners and teachers.
Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte thanked the President for addressing the issues in the respective sector in his address.
“His unremitting support of the reforms introduced by the Department of Education to the education system through the MATATAG Agenda will benefit not only our learners but also the teaching and non-teaching staff of the department,” she wrote in an open letter to the President.
The DepEd in an official statement expressed support for the President’s goals for education.
“President Marcos Jr.’s statements on basic education, made in his second State of the Nation Address (SONA), demonstrate his dedication to improve the lives of every Filipino, as he vows to continue his outpouring support for the MATATAG Education Agenda,” The statement reads.
The DepEd has also begun institutionalizing relevant and innovative reforms to recalibrate the curriculum, provide rapid and responsive delivery of education services, and ensure the welfare of our learners and teachers especially with the newly launched K-10 program.
Duterte also commended the President for his Mindanao development agenda, saying that the peace-building initiatives of the past administrations are strengthened to bring about meaningful development for the region and its people.