Supervised by their teachers, students of Pinyahan Elementary School initiates their Catch up Fridays’ by reading storybooks.
MANDAUE CITY – The Department of Education (DepEd) is seeking higher budget allocation and investments for national mental health and child protection program after a sharp budget decrease in initial program proposals.
DepEd’s initial financial proposal experienced a significant net decrease during budget deliberations, with the child protection program that suffered roughly a 50% decrease compared to its initial proposed budget, leading to the urgent appeal.
With higher budget allocation, DepEd plans on increasing investments in mental health and child protection to deter school violence, and to build on past-year gains where stakeholders (learners, parents, teachers) were taught to better understand rights and responsibilities.
The department also plans on conducting Teacher Training/Psychological First Aid programs, where Teachers are trained to act as a “first line of defense” to spot behavioral “red flags” in students and “nip violence in the bud” and “Caring for the Carers” Initiative that Involves deploying personnel to provide psychological support during emergency situations (e.g., recent earthquakes in Sarangani and incidents in Tacloban).
Approval for the appeal is still pending, with DepEd hoping to address a severe shortage of mental health personnel, mitigate school violence, and protect both learners and teachers.
