Manila: The Department of Education (DepEd) is weighing the possibility of broadening its team of allied education professionals to enhance socio-emotional support for students in public schools. Education Secretary Sonny Angara announced that the department is collaborating with relevant government agencies to revise guidelines on this initiative. According to Philippines News Agency, Angara emphasized the necessity for professionals who can guide students towards success during his keynote speech at the Philippine Association for the Gifted (PAG) Conference on Tuesday. He highlighted the need for both cognitive acceleration and socio-emotional support for gifted and talented students. The department aims to relax existing regulations to allow psychometricians to temporarily fill the current shortfall in student support staff. The country currently faces a significant gap in support resources, with only around 4,000 guidance counselor vacancies available in basic education. Angara pointed out the dire shor tage of development pediatricians, with just 96 serving 5.1 million learners with disabilities nationwide. He stressed that this is insufficient to meet the diverse needs of these learners effectively. To tackle these challenges, Angara stated that the department has proposed an increased budget to address the shortage of guidance counselors and related professionals. He also expressed gratitude to the PAG for its efforts in supporting public school teachers in enhancing their skills. Angara concluded by emphasizing the collective responsibility of progress and thanked PAG for its commitment to helping train public school teachers. He reiterated the goal of equipping schools and teachers to better assess and nurture gifted and talented learners.