I.

Synthesis:
Education is very vital for all of us. It facilitates quality learning all through the
life among people of any age group, cast, creed, religion and region. It is the
process of achieving knowledge, values, skills, beliefs, and moral habits.
Educational system will not run properly without finances. In this case financial
management is a very important factor that every educational system needs to take
into consideration. Financial management is fundamental to the improvement of the
efficient and effective use of finances in schools. If principals and school governing
board chairpersons and members are well trained on their roles and responsibilities
regarding financial management, they will be able to effectively deal with financial
matters of schools.
When it comes to financial management pressure on school budgets brings real
challenges especially nowadays since expectations on educational standards are
increasing. It is crucial therefore that school leaders engage with these challenges
now.
School Acts from different countries prescribes how a school should manage
its funds by providing guidelines for the school heads and school governing body
on their roles and responsibilities in managing the finances of the school. However,
some of them have a little knowledge of the contents of the School Act and some
are misinterpreting it that led to many schools being victims of mismanagement or
misappropriation of funds in the form of misuse, fraud and theft.
Many ask who is really accountable for the management of the school's
finances. Is it the principal or the school governing body?
According to Onyango (2001), head teachers must ensure the budget is properly
administered especially when incurring different form of expenditure .He argues
that the head teacher is held responsible for financial accounting and auditing. This
accounting is useful in order to control the already approved budget .It is his/her
responsibility to ensure proper documentation of all financial transaction in
different books of accounts e.g the ledger ,journal, inventories ,cashbook etc. He
further notes that, with the assistance of the bursar or the accounts clerk, the head
teacher should ensure internal auditing of school accounts is done. The condition of
expenditure and receipts should be clearly shown.
UNESCO (2000) notes that education system nearly everywhere are managed
poorly and administered inefficiently despite the enormous expectations of school
principals, many are not fully prepared for the task.
Mestry and Grobbler (2006) confirmed that head teachers who lacked capacity
to handle financial issues leading to massive corruption and financial
mismanagement.
 A study by Mutembei (2013) further established that head teachers had
inadequate financial training subsequently faced challenges in financial
management.
On this note the next issue being queried by many is if classroom teachers need
skills in developing program budgets to help the school head on financial
management. In our present educational system although the school is the fiscal
manager at some point teacher become responsible for part of their school’s
finances – from simple handling of petty cash to an even greater role in monitoring
school finances. Here in the Philippines at present most teachers (members of the
Bids and Awards Committee) are involved in the liquidation process of the school’s
MOOE (Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses).
We are all aware that education is a vital component in the making of a great
and strong nation. The government should step into the issue arising on the
budgetary constraint faced by public schools.
Here in our country, our constitution has mandated the government to allocate
the highest proportion of its budget to education but in reality Philippines still has
one of the lowest budget allocations to education among the ASEAN countries.
The Philippines has a big gap behind its neighbors in the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) with regard to spending portions of its gross
domestic product (GDP) for education.
In his presentation during the Senate budget hearing, Tirso A. Ronquillo,
Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (Pasuc) president, said
only 3.4 percent of the country’s total GDP are allocated for education funding. He
further noted that the funding woes are even made worse for state universities and
colleges (SUC) since they usually only get 11 percent of the government education
budget.
Another concern is the challenges and alternatives of financial management
using modern technology. Handling finances used vast information and it is very
helpful if the one who acts as fiscal manager knows the technicality of using
modern technology to assist him in his responsibility.
Computer literacy on an electronic spreadsheet will enables him to easily
construct a budget, cost out alternatives, and monitor revenues and expenditures.
But some teachers and school leaders often see technological experimentation as
outside the scope of their job descriptions. This mentality hinders them in managing
the finances of the school in an easiest way. Resistance to technology comes in
many forms, but one of the key resistance challenges identified in the report is
"comfort with the status quo."
Based on the study made by Francis Muema (2015) the successful integration of
ICTs in financial management leads to enhanced efficiency, transparency and
accountability. ICTs in financial management also act as a deterrent to corruption
 and fraud. His Research findings reveal that ICTs facilitate management of finances
in a number of ways. ICTs facilitate financial transactions and the use of money,
enhance budgeting and budget control, and reduce chances of fraudulent loss of
school funds. Furthermore, research shows that while ICTs are necessary,
technology leadership is even more important for effective utilization of technology
in managing school finances.

II. Issues and Concerns

1. Financial accountability: the principal or the school governing body?
2. Do classroom teachers need skills in developing program budgets?
3. Budgetary constraint faced by public schools.
4. Philippines still have one of the lowest budget allocations to education among
the ASEAN countries.
5. Integration of ICT in school financial management.

III.Criticisms/ Reflection/Reaction
Head teachers are the chief custodians of school finances and are instrumental
in the implementation of approved budgets thus they play a crucial role in the
education sector as they are responsible for the successful implementation of school
curriculum, and also the supervisors of the whole school program. For quality to be
realized in the education sector, the school principals need not only be qualified as
seasoned teachers, but also have sound managerial, communication, team building,
financial management, community relations and interpersonal skills.
However, some of the means by which principals are identified, appointed and
trained do not prepare them adequately to become effective managers and deal with
the challenges they face while undertaking their job.
Management of the school finances involves the task
planning(budgeting),organizing(coordinating), leading(communicating) and
motivating as well as controlling(auditing) and school head must have full
knowledge of these tasks since they are the fiscal manager. But as observed by
many some of the school head lack the capacity to execute financial accounting and
reporting functions. Thus the burdens of doing these tasks are delegated to teachers
more specifically to the members of the Bids and Awards Committee (in case of
DepEd). In that case, there job as classroom teachers are being affected because
doing paper works regarding financial matters get much of their time.
Education is a human right is embodied in various international instruments
including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the Convention on the Rights of the
Child.
 The Philippines, as a State Party to these instruments, is duty-bound to provide
free, quality, and accessible education to all. This is reflected the 1987 Constitution
which orders the State “to protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality
education at all levels and to take appropriate steps to make education accessible to
all.” (Art XIV Sec 1).
But given the present depressing situation of the Philippine education system
and the government’s priorities and stop-gap measures to improve it, it certainly
looks like “free, quality and accessible education for all” is at best compromised
and even ignored.
Based on its budget priorities, debt servicing and not education gets the highest
annual budget allocation even as our Constitution clearly states that education
should be given the highest budget. The education department is aiming to provide
quality and excellent education towards it learners but how can it happens if there is
a constraint in budget. Finance is an important factor when it comes to quality and
excellent.
Another issue concerning fiscal management in the education system is the use
of modern technology. As we all know, ICT has made a great change and leap in
our modern world today. It is an enabling tool which opens up processes and
channels of communication, creating a global village where all stakeholders are
able to access information easily. Many societies have undertaken essential changes
due to an increased pace of globalization and rapid developments in ICTs
transforming sour societies from industrial to information.
Despite the wide use of ICTs in financial management in the business world,
many schools have failed to tap the potential of ICTs into financial management.
Most schools primarily use ICTs in curriculum delivery, or to teach ICT studies as
a subject. These schools would benefit more if they deployed such ICTs in
managing their finances.
If all school will adopt the wide used of modern technology school instantly
accessed detailed computerized records that facilitated the school’s budgeting
process, and balances involved without having to flip through many manual book
records.
IV. Conclusion/Recommendation(s)
School head faced serious challenges when it comes to fiscal management like
lack of financial resources, frequent changes in policy, poor procurement
procedures, doubling roles given to classroom teachers by the head teachers
As with many courses of action, there has to be a strategic approach if longer
terms goals and financial sustainability are to be achieved. From a financial
perspective, this starts with a vision and an understanding of how the role of
finance can help support school leaders.
 The role of finance is to enable the delivery of educational objectives in an
efficient and effective way.
Given that, accounting challenges were the real financial management facing
the school head and classroom teacher as well they should try to attend some in-
service training so as to properly equip themselves with financial skills if the
department couldn’t give them one.
In terms of budget, it is very obvious that we cannot expect quality, accessible
education if the cost of education is beyond the reach of an ordinary Filipino family
due to lack of government subsidy. The government should allot budget is
accordance to the mandates of our constitution.
With regards to the use of modern technology in managing finances of the
school the head must have advanced ICT skills and knowledge such as proficiency
in spreadsheets to be able to use ICTs in managing finances and to inspired
classroom teachers to learn the same by showing them how helpful it was in the
management of their finances.
For it to be successful they should set more flexible structures within which to
accommodate recurrent ICT needs like breakdowns and training. This will ensure
that staffs are kept abreast with new ICT developments through recurrent trainings.
Additionally, school leaders should develop clear ICT monitoring and evaluation
strategies to help address difficulties and anxieties that staff experience in the
integration process.

V. Bibliography
Robina, Wasiche Nasenya (April 2018). Financial Management Challenges Facing
Newly Appointed Head Teachers in Public Day Secondary Schools in Siaya
Sub County, Kenya. Retrieved from www.noveltyjournals.com
Muema, Francis (2015). Integrating ICT in School Financial Management: A Case
of a Secondary School in Tanzania. Retrieved from
https://www.academia.edu/17239351/Integration_ICT_in_School_Financial_M
anagement_A_case_of_a_Secondary_School_in_Tanzania
Paglinawan James L. Problems and Issues in Education (Philippine Context): A
Topic Presented in the course Educ. 303 (Economic Foundation of Education).
Retrieved from https://www.slideshare.net/jlpaglinawan/problems-and-issues-
in-the-philippine-educational-system?from_action=save
Crampto, Faith E. (1990). Fiscal Policy Issues and School Reform. Retrieved from
https://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9216/policy.htm
Mestry R. (2006). Financial Accountability: The Principal or the School Governing
Body?. Retrieved from
https://www.ajol.info/index.php/saje/article/view/24977/20661