DepEd, Australia launch ALS handbook

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd), in partnership with the Australian government, launched last week a handbook that will help implementers of the Alternative Learning System-Education and Skills Training (ALS-EST) Program in the country.

Consisting of 14 chapters, the handbook provides a summary of the challenge to reach out-of-school youth and adults who were not able to complete basic education; a discussion of the ALS-EST Program, including its learners, curriculum, learning resources, learning delivery, learning facilitators, assessment and certification; and other aspects of the program.

“The ALS-EST handbook is one of the many testaments to our partners’ unwavering support for the ALS and to       quality basic education as a whole. It gives our implementers the convenience of understanding the program and how to effectively deliver it to our out-of-school youth and adults,” Education Assistant Secretary for public affairs service and ALS Program and Task Force G.H. Ambat said.

The ALS-EST is a complementary program to the mainstream ALS, the parallel learning system in the Philippines that provides a practical option to the existing formal instruction. 

Currently in its pilot implementation, ALS-EST aims to holistically prepare learners for various exits, such as higher education, middle-level skills development, entrepreneurship and employment by integrating a skills training component with the basic education component.