ACT cites gaps in the ‘ill-prepared’ ARAL program rollout

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines on Wednesday called the 2026 Summer Remediation Program (SRP) under the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) program “ill-prepared”, citing gaps in implementation, training, and funding.

“They have become accustomed to throwing teachers into policies and programs that lack preparation and support, while we are left scrimping for proper compensation and benefits for additional workload,” ACT Chairperson Ruby Bernardo said in Filipino in a statement.

SRP, which runs from May 6 to Jun. 3, aims to provide reading and mathematics support to about 2.7 million learners from Grades 2 to 11 and ensure students achieve grade-level proficiency.

One of the key components of the remediation program is ARAL, which delivers “structured, targeted interventions through a network of tutors composed of teachers, para-teachers, pre-service teachers, and qualified volunteers.”

“For every child who improves, there are teachers and tutors who persevere and devote their time – we recognize this sacrifice,” Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said in Filipino in a news release yesterday.

“We continue to ensure that our teachers and tutors are supported, respected, and well taken care of,” he added.

However, ACT noted that teachers were forced to take on tutoring roles due to the late release of the SRP guidelines. It also called out the earlier pronouncement of the agency on hiring a “dedicated tutor” for the program.

“Teachers—supposedly on break after a grueling 10-month school year without sick and vacation leaves—were instead compelled to attend rushed online orientations, prepare materials out of pocket overnight, and report physically to schools for the program rollout,” the group said.

Ms. Bernardo also questioned the program’s budget, expecting allocation for volunteer tutors’ salaries and allowances, necessary learning materials, and support for learners.  

“Last year, teachers who served as tutors were unpaid,” she said. “We cannot survive on charity work, especially if our salaries are insufficient, increases are meager, benefits are minimal and delayed, all while the crisis is worsening.”

“The quality of education will continue to decline if we are constantly squeezed in service while being underpaid and denied a decent, livable wage,” she added.

DepEd received the lion’s share of the national budget for 2026, amounting to P1.015 trillion. Of which, the ARAL program acquired a P9 billion budget to hire about 448,000 tutors for learners lagging in reading and mathematics. — Almira Louise S. Martinez