Marcos, Angara lead National Teachers’ Day celebration

MANILA, Philippines — The celebration of National Teachers’ Month, which started on Sept. 5, culminated on Monday, National Teachers’ Day, in festivities at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Education Secretary Sonny Angara.

The National Teachers’ Day event, which was also attended by several national and local government officials, gathered some 10,000 educators from Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon, according to a statement issued by the Department of Education (DepEd).

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The festivities, which also highlighted the 10th anniversary of the implementation of the Indigenous Peoples Education (IPEd) Program, capped a month-long series of activities nationwide, which were supported by private partner organizations and government agencies

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Key celebrations were held in Cagayan de Oro City for Mindanao educators and in Tacloban City for those in the Visayas, under the theme “Teacher, Ikaw Naman!” — focusing on supporting teachers’ welfare, celebrating their achievements, and honoring their dedication.

In his address, Marcos expressed his deep gratitude to Filipino teachers for their vital role in shaping the nation’s youth and encouraged them to keep seeing opportunities for professional growth and skill development.

READ: Marcos urges teachers to form principled, discerning Filipinos

Fast-tracking of bonus

He also announced that he has ordered the fast-tracking of the release of the fiscal year 2024 performance-based bonus (PBB) for qualified DepEd personnel, affirming the government’s continued recognition of their valuable contributions to basic education.

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“And we will not stop there. We will continue to find ways to improve the support, benefits, and opportunities for our teachers,” Marcos said in Filipino.

“You are our children’s companions as they are growing up. You’re the ones teaching their lessons. But you’re also the ones teaching them discipline, caring, and confidence in their own abilities. With your guidance, we are preparing a generation ready to dream, ready to serve, and ready to lead our country,” he added.

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For his part, Angara emphasized that teacher welfare remained central to the Marcos administration’s agenda, attributing the country’s gains in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2025 to the dedication and hard work of Filipino teachers.

“We thank President Bongbong Marcos for all his initiatives and support for the benefit of our teachers. So in today’s celebration, we say, ‘Teacher, it’s your turn!’ The success of our students, which includes our historic performance in PISA 2025, would not have been possible without the sacrifice, dedication, and competence of our teachers,” he said.

A highlight of Wednesday’s program was the Recognition of Exemplary Teachers in Indigenous Peoples Education, honoring 16 educators who have served from eight years to as long as 30 years in remote IP communities. Beyond classroom instruction, the awardees have partnered with community elders and culture bearers to produce indigenized learning resources tailored to ancestral domains.

READ: Teachers’ groups demand anew P50,000 pay, more funds

IP Education Month

The tribute formally launched the Department of Education’s (DepEd) 2026 IP Education Month, marking a decade of milestones in expanding basic education in IP communities.

In a show of support for teacher welfare, Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) President and General Manager Jose Arnulfo “Wick” Veloso turned over a P1 million ceremonial check to DepEd. Educators were entertained by performances from top celebrities, including Piolo Pascual, Aegis, Ariel Rivera, Pops Fernandez, Jona, Michael Pangilinan, Donny Pangilinan, Raymond Lauchengco, and Alex Calleja.

Corporate partners — including China Bank Savings, Metrobank, Banco De Oro, EastWest Bank, Nestlé, Jollibee, Gokongwei Brothers Foundation, McDonald’s, and PLDT-Smart Foundation — sponsored major raffle prizes, including brand-new vehicles.

The event provided a platform for DepEd to highlight major welfare and administrative reforms aimed at easing teacher workloads and enhancing benefits. To reduce administrative strain, DepEd slashed mandatory school forms from the previous 174 to just five regular forms.

Benefits were also expanded, including doubling the annual non-taxable teaching allowance to P10,000, establishing an annual medical subsidy of up to P7,000, and introducing five days of paid annual wellness leave. The P1,000 World Teachers’ Day Incentive Benefit will be released to public school teachers starting Oct. 5.

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To support career advancement without forcing teachers out of classroom roles, 82,105 teachers and school heads have been promoted to date under the Expanded Career Progression (ECP) System, with an additional 135,000 targeted for promotion under the proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget.

To ensure educators can focus on instruction, DepEd created thousands of support roles for FY 2026, including 10,000 School Counselor Associate positions, 6,000 School Principal items, 11,268 Administrative Officer II roles, and 5,000 Project Development Officer I positions to handle non-teaching administrative duties. /atm