Classroom shortage still at 165,000 — DepEd

The country still faces a shortage of 165,000 classrooms, largely due to the growing population, Education Secretary Sonny Angara disclosed yesterday.

- By BELLA CARIASO

"The deficit has been growing. Twelve years ago, the deficit was 55,000 classrooms. Now it's 165,000. We really can't keep up. That is a factor of population growth," Angara said.

To address the gap, Angara said the Department of Education (DepEd) is working to revive the public-private partnership (PPP) program, which had previously facilitated the construction of 12,000 to 15,000 classrooms.

Under this arrangement, classrooms would be built promptly, with payments spread over 10 years. He also noted that double and triple class shifting continue to plague public schools.