MANILA, Philippines — Senator Win Gatchalian on Sunday urged the Department of Education (DepEd) to conduct a nationwide assessment of all learning materials produced by its divisions to correct those with errors, following reports on discriminatory remarks about Igorots that were found in books and modules.
“I am strongly urging the Department of Education’s Bureau of Learning Resources to conduct a nationwide assessment of all learning materials produced by divisions to identify and correct erroneous materials before they are even distributed,” Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, Arts and Culture, said in a statement.
According to Gatchalian, the discriminatory language used in describing Igorots regarding their physical appearance and clothing shows the urgent need for DepEd to revamp its quality assurance process to ensure that it does not tolerate discrimination.
Gatchalian said that while the DepEd has already recalled the learning materials in question, reports of errors since the beginning of the school year expose the “weaknesses in the department’s quality assurance process.”
“DepEd has found itself in a cycle of printing and distributing erroneous modules that end up drawing criticisms and being recalled,” the senator also said.
“This adds to the confusion of our learners who are already struggling amidst the distance learning setup. Worse, these exercises which provoke outrage perpetuate stereotypes that have long hounded different sectors of our society,” he added.
The DepEd earlier launched its Error Watch system where the public can raise concerns on errors found in learning materials.