DepEd wants requirements for guidance counselors eased

Metro Manila, Philippines – There is a move to ease requirements for school guidance counselors to address personnel shortage and student bullying, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said on Tuesday.

In a press briefing, Angara said the agency is working with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and others to relax the master degree requirement to hire school counselors.

The education chief said the agency couldn’t fill over 5,000 positions for counselors because of the hiring demands.

“Pag-uusapan ng Civil Service Commission, ng DepEd, ng CHED na punan muna iyong 5,000 na bakanteng posisyon na kahit ng mga graduates ng guidance counselling, psychology, or whatever specialization. Pero hindi na kailangan iyong master’s degree Bigyan sila ng palugit ng limang taon para makuha nila iyong necessary credentials,” said Angara.

[Translation: We will discuss with the Civil Service Commision and the Commission on Higher Education if we can fill the 5,000 vacant positions with graduates of guidance counseling, psychology or whatever specialization. But the master's degree will not be required. We can give them five years for them to obtain necessary credentials.]

Based on the Guidance and Counseling Act of 2004, those who want to practice the profession must pass a licensure exam. But to be able to do this, they must first hold a Bachelor's Degree in Guidance and Counseling or in allied disciplines, and a master's degree in Guidance and Counseling.

Second Congressional Commission on Education executive director Karol Mark Yee said it will take the government 14 years to fill the vacancies under the current setup.

“We are the bullying capital of the world based on PISA…Ang gumagawa ng trabaho na based on the Anti-Bullying Act as implemented ay guidance counselors…Iyon pala kapag titingnan mo, wala namang nago-offer ng Masters in Guidance counseling all over the country,” he said.

[Translation: We are the bullying capital of the world based on the Programme for International Student Assessment. Guidance counselors should be the one addressing this based on the Anti-Bullying act. But if you’re going to look at the data, no one’s offering a master degree in guidance counseling all over the country.]

Yee also noted how bullying impacts academic performance.

“Lumabas naman sa SEA-PLM at PISA na iyong laging nabu-bully talagang bagsak iyong points nila in Math, Science and reading” he said.

[Translation: Data from the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics and PISA showed that those who are always bullied fail in math, science, and reading]

Angara said these matters will be tackled by a Cabinet cluster tasked to address the learning crisis. The cluster is composed of agencies including CHED and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.