ALS enrollees up 57% under Duterte

MANILA, Philippines — The number of out-of-school youth and adults who enrolled in school increased 57 percent under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, the Department of Education (DepEd) said Friday.

Through DepEd’s Alternative Learning System (ALS), Education Secretary Leonor Briones said opportunities to pursue higher education became more possible for the poor and marginalized.

“Three years after the President approved the Alternative Learning System program and gave his full support, the average number of out-of-school youth and adults under the Duterte administration is now 57 percent higher compared to all the past administrations,” Briones said in a speech during the Duterte Legacy campaign.

The ALS, according to the DepEd, was established to provide all Filipinos the chance to have access to and complete basic education in a mode that fits their distinct situations and needs.

“So the poor, the marginalized, the younger who has to raise a family at the age of 10 or a mother or a baby, we give them the chance to pursue education. So we give them this chance to learn, to develop their capacities, pursue higher education and land better jobs,” Briones said.

Briones said there is a yearly average of 130,000 learners who complete either their elementary or secondary education through the ALS.

“We have ALS programs in prisons, drug rehabilitation centers, in farms, city centers, and local government barangay halls, wherever those who need to go and achieve and take advantage of education, we give them that opportunity,” she said.