Understaffed counseling offices leave students navigating major decisions with minimal support

A shortage students could have flagged years ago

An editorial in The Manila Times highlights a grave need for guidance counselors in Philippine schools, citing understaffed offices struggling to meet student demand. Students themselves, many of whom have waited weeks for a single counseling appointment, could likely have written the editorial’s conclusion from personal experience.

A ratio that does not add up

Education officials acknowledge that counselor to student ratios in many public schools fall well short of recommended standards, leaving guidance offices to prioritise crisis situations over the kind of ongoing academic and career support students genuinely need.

Advocates push for expanded hiring

Education groups continue lobbying for increased counselor hiring and better funding for student support services, framing the issue as essential to student wellbeing rather than an optional administrative extra, a distinction policymakers have been slow to fully embrace.

Fazit

The need is documented, the students agree, the hiring remains pending. SOURCE: https://www.manilatimes.net/ For more British satire on a related theme, see The London Prat’s New Foundayo Weight-Loss Pill.