Marawi City (1 July) -- "In terms of education, one of the most significant contributions of the Department of Education (DepEd) to the Muslim population was the institutionalization and mainstreaming of Madrasah education as a component of the national system of education."
Thus the statement of Education Secretary Jesli A. Lapus during the DepEd Day in celebration of the Lanao del Sur 50th founding anniversary.
He said mainstreaming Madrasah education in the system of basic education will give Muslim schoolchildren an education that is culturally-sensitive.
According to him, Madrasah Education prescribed two types of curriculum, the Enriched Curriculum for Public Elementary Schools and the Standard Curriculum for Private Madaris.
The Enriched Curriculum, Lapus said, has been implemented in all DepEd regions nationwide and is known as the Arabic Language and Islamic Values Education (ALIVE) Program.
"Subjects in the ALIVE program are taught by asatidz or Muslim teachers who underwent a 23-day training program," he added.
"While the ALIVE Program is integral to their education, we also recognize the need for them to learn the standard subjects taught in public schools such as Mathematics, English, Science, Filipino, and Makabayan," Lapus noted.
Lapus further said that the Standard Curriculum for Private Madaris, on the other hand, integrates basic subjects with their religious subjects such as Qur'an, Aqeedah, Fiqh, Seerah and Hadith. It was approved in 2004 aimed to put in place an educational system that is appropriate for the Muslim population.
The Education Secretary stressed that through this curriculum, the Filipino national identity is promoted even as the Muslim cultural heritage is preserved.
He also pointed out that aside from the lessons regularly taught in Madaris, Muslim schoolchildren will adopt the standard curriculum to give them equal chance in employment opportunities.
"To encourage Muslim educators to adopt the Standard Curriculum, DepEd extends assistance to private madaris and Muslim schools in Mindanao that will integrate basic subjects in the ALIVE Program," Lapus said.
He disclosed that some 37 private Madaris qualified for the financial assistance, 27 of which came from DepEd-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) which includes Marawi City and Lanao del Sur I and II Divisions.
"The financial assistance benefits 3,834 pupils at P5,000 each," Lapus added. (Apipa P Bagumbaran / PIA)
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