Philouise’s Weblog

BAGUIO CITY – Baguio City jail inmates must be afforded the opportunity to avail of the Alternative Learning System (ALS), a non-formal education programs of the Dept. of Education (DepEd).

The city council approved a resolution authored by Councilor Philian Louise Weygan requesting the DepEd and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) to facilitate the ALS program annually among the inmates.

“An inmate should not be deprived to avail of the educational opportunity that the government offers to its people particularly in the BJMP as a coping mechanism service that the bureau can provide to its inmates,” the resolution noted.

Weygan noted that the DepEd in the past had conducted ALS programs in the city jail but this was not done on a regular basis.

The ALS program allows less fortunate and needy individuals “into the mainstream of the educational system” where it offers the following educational opportunities: enrol in post secondary courses (technical/vocational, two/four/five-year course) of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and PASUC; access to MFI and TESDA skills programs; and acquire eligibility for government employment positions.

“The ALS is an effective training that is enabling and trains people outside the formal schools but at the same time prepares people for better opportunities, whereby an inmate’s learning capability maybe developed because we believed that their ability to absorb information and thinking logically and creatively continue to be harnessed even in their situation,” the resolution noted.

Under the measure, the jail warden will be tasked to recommend inmates who can be qualified to the program. – A Refuerzo