The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has approved the creation of 16,000 new teaching positions in public schools for the 2025–2026 school year, in line with government efforts to strengthen the country’s education system.
The approved posts are part of the 20,000 target positions for this year and will be funded through the Department of Education’s allocation under the 2025 General Appropriations Act, the DBM said on Sunday.
Of the new positions, 15,343 are for Teacher I (Salary Grade 11), 157 for Special Science Teachers (Salary Grade 13), and 500 for Special Education (SPED) Teachers (Salary Grade 14).
Budget Secretary Mina Pangandaman said the move supports the president’s directive to boost the basic education workforce, covering kindergarten to senior high school and the Alternative Learning System.
For added flexibility, senior high school positions will be created at the division level, enabling school superintendents to reassign teaching slots based on local needs—an arrangement originally approved by the DBM in 2016.