Education Assistant Secretary and Alternative Learning System (ALS) Program Task Force head G.H. Ambat
MANILA -- True to its mission not to leave any learner behind, the Department of Education (DepEd) continues to offer quality basic education to inmates through the Alternative Learning System (ALS).
“On the part of DepEd, we believe once you get quality education, no matter the circumstance, eventually, you're able to contribute to your community and to nation-building. So, we reach out to those in prisons, drug rehabilitation centers, or juvenile delinquency centers,” DepEd Assistant Secretary and Alternative Learning System (ALS) Program Task Force head G.H. Ambat told the Philippine News Agency (PNA).
Ambat said the DepEd partners with the Bureau of Corrections to empower inmates through education and help them have a second chance in life.
“Even in the maximum security, no one will stay there forever because 40 years is maximum years of imprisonment and it could be cut short according to the good conduct allowance. So, they study as they prepare to go out,” she added.
To avoid discrimination, Ambat said inmates’ diplomas would not include the names of prisons and rehabilitation facilities where they completed their basic education.
"For example, the Perpetual Help System has an extension program inside the Bureau of Corrections, and the learners' diplomas and even their transcripts won't say Camp Sampaguita Maximum Security, rather it will include the name of the school or university, and so they're not deprived of chance,” she added.
Ambat also urged inmates to take the ALS since it is "free and life-changing".
"Hindi masasayang ang oras nila sa loob, ang iba nagiging teacher sa loob kapag natapos na nila ang pag-aaral (Their time spent studying while in prison won't be put to waste, some even become teachers themselves when they finish their studies)," she said.
For the school year 2018 – 2019, Ambat reported that DepEd’s ALS has served 843,000 learners.
“There were those who took Accreditation and Equivalency (A&E) test, there were about 240,000 passers both in elementary and high school and those who finished high school can go straight to college,” she said.
“Among the inmates, there were 139 A&E passers, 43 passed the A&E Elementary Test, while 96 passed the A&E Junior High School Test, with a passing rate of 91.48% and 98.96% respectively,” she added.
To ensure that ALS learners become employment-ready, Ambat said they have started with the improvement of the ALS curriculum.
“We teach life skills for community engagement and work readiness before we teach them basic education. We work on the attitude first,” she said.
Ambat added the DepEd is looking into providing ALS learners national certification for the skill they have learned.
“This is because the demands of the times are now different because of the industrial revolution. Apart from basic literacy, they need to have advanced computer skills, analytical thinking, soft skills and, technical skills,” she said. (PNA)
