Celebrating Teacher’s Month: Beyond Words and Hollow Acts

Friday, 09 September 2011 00:00

Written by Aaron Benedict De Leon

Last August 24, 2011, President Benigno Aquino III, through Executive Secretary Jojo Ochoa, signed Proclamation No. 242, declaring the period from September 5 to October 5 as National Teacher’s Month, “to revitalize the image of teaching as a vocation by increasing public awareness on the value of teachers in Philippine society and national development.” Occasional, thematic, symbolic… We have always done the commemoration through cards, program tributes, write-ups and even through movies.

But one thing remains the same… Teachers remain underpaid and economically undervalued. It is this very fact which tells me society can only reward our teachers and educators with words and hallow praises, yet society fails to pressure government to act on extending their economic lifeline through reasonable wages and benefits.

We expect teachers to produce economically productive students. We expect teachers to be the second parents of our children. We expect teachers to safeguard our votes during the elections, for the future of our country. We expect so much from them, yet we do not repay them rightfully.

We must realize that teachers too have families. Yes, teachers too have their own personal and familial needs. Teachers deserve more than the monument of praises they receive from all of us.

If the theme for this year’s celebration is indeed “My Teacher, My Hero”, we ought to extend the life of the good teachers we have in society today. If they are indeed a hero to all of us, we ought to preserve their lives so that they can continue to be an inspiration to our generation. No amount of words, cards, programs and even movies can feed their mouths, can shelter their needs and help them build their own future in our country.

They cannot do the latter with a pay of less than 5 figures.

How many good teachers have migrated from our country? Much more, how many competent and qualified teachers have jumped from public to private schools?

The response from the government, civil society and the general public on this phenomenon of brain drain has been lackluster, at best.

Party-list representation has been nothing more than a token empowerment given to teachers by the general public. Representation does not equate to outright legislation of benefits for our teachers. Fiscal conditions should also not absolve government from investing in our teachers, in the future of our next generation.

This is symbolic of how we appreciate and value the teaching profession. Yes, we see it as noble. Yes, we see it as an honorable profession. But do we see teachers, educators in the same light as the managers, supervisors of private companies? For all we know, the managers, executives and head honcho’s of these companies we’re speaking of were also guided by teachers during the course of their younger years. So why can’t we elevate the way we see teachers in the same light as that of corporate officers? Why can’t we put them in the same platform as these people if we really are bent on dignifying the way we value teachers and if we really are serious in investing in the future of our country?

To add insult to injury, some have even compared teachers to call center agents, and that they should receive the same level of wages call center agents receive. No offense meant to call center agents, but the competencies of teachers are more comprehensive and demanding than that of call center agents. Teachers should not even be mentioned in the same breath with call center agents, when professional competence is concerned.

These and many more are cultural notions we have to overcome.

Teachers are not just instruments for the growth of our children. They are the engine for economically productive societies. They are more than heroes, for they are the eternal lifeblood of societies and generations.

At this time and age of civilization, teachers should not just be given symbolic and appreciative tokens, but they should also receive economic and socio-political appraisals.

Our response must be encompassing and widely concrete, moving past societal biases and breaking social gaps.

Civil society should help party-list organizations in lobbying for higher wages for public school teachers. This calls for a review of the Salary Standardization Law, to make increase in wages more equitable amongst all levels, amongst all classes, regardless of grades/levels. Our laws should promote equity, and not be discriminative and not create further social gaps.

I would also like our lawmakers to explore on passing an “Educators’ Assistance Mechanism” which would allow teachers develop their competence further, and to avail of financial aid, during special circumstances. This should be explored and made into reality.

At the end of the day, we all say that education is an investment for the future of our children. This just doesn’t include providing all logistical and technological investment in the education infrastructure. This also should equally prioritize improving and elevating the lives of our teachers so that they would become fully competent and rewarded for the services they render for our children and our country.

Teachers deserve better than words, letters, cards, programs and movie tributes. They deserve a better quality of life, better than what we society is giving them, in 21st century life.