SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday urged the Department of Education to implement the Good Manners and Right Conduct Law in the basic education sector in an apparent bid to stop bullying in schools.
He said RA 11476 or the GMRC and Values Education Act was signed into law in 2020 but the DepEd apparently has not fully implemented it, which explains why school bullying persists.
“What we demand is a full rollout of GMRC come school year 2025-2026. We cannot anymore. Hindi na tayo puwedeng mag-antay pa ng isang mamatay diyan na bata dahil hindi natin naturuan sila nang maaga (We can no longer for another learner being killed because we have not taught them at an early stage),” Gatchalian said during the Committee on Basic Education hearing on bullying and violence in schools recently.
Gatchalian said that under the law, GMRC should be taught as separate subjects from grades 1 to 6, which will be extended from grades 7 to 12, but is not being fully implemented.
“Of course, this is long-term , but we want to start now. Gusto nating mag-umpisa kasi nga 2020 pa itong batas na ito, 2022 ‘yung IRR, 2025 na ngayon (We want to start with it now because this became a law in 2020, the IRR came out in 2022, and it is now 2025). So, I’m now urging DepEd to fully implement it this coming school year,” he said.
Dr. Leonisa Romano, principal of Moonwalk National High School, said she observed that learners have apparently lost their sense of respect towards school officials and their fellow students.
She said gone were the days when learners used to greet school officials “good morning or good afternoon” each time they saw them on campus.
“Ngayon po nawawala na po, kaya po siguro tama ‘yung sinasabi ninyo, Senator, ‘yung GMRC. Actually, hindi lang po sa elementary. Dapat po din sa secondary. Napakahalaga po nun, ‘yung paggalang, especially ‘yung pagmamahal sa pamilya, sa kapwa, kailangan maituro po natin. Hindi po natin kailangan ng subject na pagkahirap-hirap na hindi naman po nagagamit sa buhay ng tao (We have observed that respect is gone. What you said, Senator, was right. Actually, GMRC should not only be taught in elementary but also in secondary level of education. It is important to teach students to show respect to others. We need to teach them that. We do not need subjects which are very hard to understand and yet we cannot use them for our everyday lives),” Romano said.
Although GMRC is included in school subjects, Gatchalian said it is better to teach it as a separate subject from grades 1 to 6.
“Diyan kasi nag-uumpisa. At during their hearing talagang lumalabas na dahil ito nga ay nakapasok sa ibang subjects, hindi siya naituturo nang mabuti, hindi na-e-emphasize (It starts with it (GMRC). During past hearings, it appears that GMRC is included in other school subjects, hence, it is not taught well, it is not given emphasis),” he said.
Gatchalian said the Progamme for International Student Assessment (PISA) said the Philippines has the highest incidence of bullying across more than 70 countries in 2018 and 2022.
He said that’s why the committee held its first hearing to address bullying on February 13, 2023, adding that the Mental Health in Basic Education Law must also be addressed.
“So, two PISAs in a row na tinagurian tayong bullying capital in the world (We are the bullying capital in two PISAs in a row). So, we need to do more in addressing bullying,” he added.
DepEd assistant secretary for operations Dexter Galban said, “We’ll hold this as a high-priority intervention for school year 2025 to 2026.”
Galban said that on the DepEd’s Enhanced Basic Education Information System (EBEIS), there are two types of bullying – physical and cyber.
EBEIS records show that there were 48,868 physical bullying cases reported in school year 2019 to 2020; 3,560 in school year 2020 to 2021; and 12,733 cases in school year 2021 to 2022 for a total of 65,161 reported cases.
Galan said cyberbullying cases were recorded at 7,758 in school year 2019 to 2020; 2,123 in 2020 to 2021; and 4,777 in 2021 to 2022, for a total of 14,658 reported incidents.
He said the “hotspot areas” for bullying cases from November 24, 2022 to April 7, 2025 were the National Capital Region with 253 reported cases; followed by the Southern Tagalog region with 115; and Central Luzon with 87 reported cases.
“Although these are densely populated locations, we also take into consideration the emergence of other factors, possibly the existence of gangs and other influences that affect the way that our learners conduct themselves… We also see a similar trend that may be emerging on the part of violence, more so that it’s being amplified in social media,” Galban said.
Galban said the DepEd has put in place measures to prevent bullying, including the signing of the implementing rules and regulations of the Basic Education Mental Health and Well-Being Promotion Act last month, which will prioritize the establishment of Mental Health and Well-Being Offices in high-burden areas.
The DepEd earlier said it will also prioritize the placement of one school counselor or school counselor associate in large schools, and is working alongside with the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) to review and update the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013 to make the law more responsive to current school situations and ensure more effective enforcement.
