PARENTS of preschoolers now have a reason to rejoice.

Starting school year 2007-2008, the Batac campus will open a Grade I class which will commence the opening of elementary classes on staggered basis.

This developed as the Board of Regents in its 74th regular meeting on March 16 at the CHED Central Office in Pasig City approved the College of Teacher Education’s (CTE) proposal to offer elementary education at MMSU-Batac and to shift the Laboratory Elementary School (LES) administration to the MMSU Foundation, Inc.

Rationale

The proposal came about as a result of the relentless demands of parents to have their children educated at MMSU which is widely known for offering quality education not only in the tertiary level but also in the elementary and secondary years. 

Likewise, with the present thrust of state colleges and universities to train learners for quality basic education, MMSU, particularly the CTE, now has more reasons to widen its doors so that pupils can have access to quality education. 

Moreover, CTE, being CHED’s center of excellence for teacher education in Region I, is mandated to train quality teachers in the elementary and secondary levels. Every year, however, there is an increase in the number of teacher education students such that when they go for Practice Teaching, more than five student-teachers are assigned to the teacher-training instructor.  Far from the ideal, such situation hinders full actual teaching experience of student-teachers, thus affecting the quality of their training.  The opening of additional classes in the LES will also address this problem, the proponents from the CTE said.

Enrollment

One section with 30 pupils will be opened in the Batac campus while two sections with 40 pupils each will be offered at the Laoag campus.

The approval of the Student Development Fund by the Board of Regents opens the avenue for the elementary school to operate as a self-liquidating institution.

Operational expenses

An annual development fee of P1,000 and a tuition fee of P5,000 shall be charged each pupil which will be used to pay for the salaries of teachers and staff, to fund the repair and improvement of existing classrooms and facilities, and to procure equipment, supplies, and materials.  The same amount will be used for staff development such as in-service trainings, seminars, and workshops.  A certain amount will be allocated also to finance pupils joining contests and other legitimate activities.  Fees shall be adjusted to cope with the demands of time upon proper consultations in proper forum and completion of legitimate steps.

Implementation of the program

Starting school year 2007-2008, 110 Grade I pupils will be admitted with the employment of three teachers.  The same number will be admitted the following year in a span of six years to complete the 660 pupil-enrollees and 15 additional faculty members.