MANILA – The Department of Education said it has come up with new guidelines in hiring hundreds of volunteers to better respond to the learning needs of out-of-school children, youth and adults across the Philippines.
Education Secretary Armin Luistro said the revised guidelines provide the criteria for selection, hiring and deployment of at least 700 Alternative Learning System (ALS) volunteers, as well as their functions and fund allocation.
“We really have to improve the guidelines because of the growing importance of ministering to the learning needs of non-formal learners who are away from the ordinary classroom setting,” Luistro said.
He said to qualify as an ALS volunteer, the applicant must be a licensed teacher, a resident of the target community, and has the ability to speak the local language.
Moreover, an applicant must be in good physical condition, has good public relation skills and is willing to go through ALS training, he added.
The duration of the contract is 10 months, according to Luistro. An ALS volunteer receives a monthly stipend of P5,000 and a transportation allowance of P2,000 and a provision of P5,000 for teaching aids.
The volunteer is expected to coordinate with community leaders to identify learners and organize learning groups of 50 learners or more. Further, volunteers must be able to determine the learning needs of learners and conduct evaluation to determine the entry and exit level of learners.
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