Youth group to Ched: We dare you, guarantee quality education

A YOUTH group challenged the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) to go on record ensuring quality education for the coming semester amidst the move to online learning.

Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan (Spark), an activist youth organization, says it made the challenge due to the confidence of Ched Commissioner Prospero de Vera III in schools’ readiness for the coming semester.

“With all the difficulties and uncertainty surrounding the coming academic year, we need more than ever for De Vera to reassure students, parents, teachers, and school employees that the coming school year will be worth all the trouble,” John Lazaro, Spark national spokesperson, said in a statement.

“Otherwise, De Vera’s words will simply prove to be all bark and no bite,” Lazaro added.

The group says the claim of readiness made by the Ched commissioner last month was baseless since they continue to receive multiple reports from students who have encountered difficulty in the enrollment procedures, absence of guidelines on how the blended learning will proceed and most prominently, the lack of gadgets and a stable internet connection.

“Ched must address the elephant in the room. De Vera keeps on mouthing their ungrounded readiness but they have failed to make the same pompous assertion on the quality of education students will receive under their distance learning schemes,” he said.

The activists assert that if the Ched could not guarantee quality education, then they have no right to allow schools to increase tuition and other fees.

Spark had previously slammed Ched over issues such as the continued increase of tuition and other school fees, the continuation of online classes, and the agency’s inaction to compel schools to refund unused fees last semester and reduce miscellaneous fees for the coming semester.

It has consistently claimed that Ched and De Vera were enabling the thirst for profits of the capitalist-educators, and not for the welfare of their students, teachers, or school workers.

However, Ched failed to respond to most of Spark’s criticism against it and even criticized the youth group for “sensationalizing” the incident that caused the death of Capiz State University student Kriselyn Villance.

Spark is the leading youth and student organizations calling for an “academic freeze” until January to allow students, teachers, and school workers to look after themselves first during the pandemic. (Spark)