29 June 2022 – Hon. Secretary of Education Leonor Magtolis-Briones led the Philippine delegation to the Pre-Summit of the Transforming Education Summit held on 28-30 June 2022 at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France. The Pre-Summit aims to harness the evolving discussions on transforming education and elaborate initial content and recommended actions for the Summit which will be held in September 2022 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

 

Sec. Briones participated in the Ministerial Roundtables where the consequences of the pandemic to education was discussed. She conveyed that “we did not only have learning losses… we also had learning gains, very significant learning gains and this is because we had to innovate, we had to create, we had to respond, and we had to continue the process of education whether Covid was there or not.”

On the topic of identifying key elements in transforming education, she shared that there is a need to (a) assess the responsiveness of the organizational structure of the ministries in charge of education; (b) ensure that all segments of the society are engaged in transforming education and (c) ensure that there is respect for the cultural uniqueness of all learners. She concluded with emphasizing that sustainable funding, deeper engagement of local government units and strategic planning to ensure coordinated response and direction are imperative to transforming education. She concluded her intervention with a statement that “education is not the sole and exclusive responsibility of the ministries of education. It is the responsibility of societies, of local government units, of parents, of communities and all those who believe that our learners deserve the future that they want.” END