Department of Education (Philippines)

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Department of Education

Established:	1947
Secretary:	Jesli Lapus
Budget:	PhP102.584 billion (2005)
Website:	www.deped.gov.ph

The Philippines' Department of Education (Filipino: Kagawaran ng Edukasyon), abbreviated as DepEd, is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for the management and upkeep of the Philippine system of education. It is the chief formulator of Philippine educational policy and is responsible for the Philippine primary and secondary school system. Higher education is managed by the DepEd in coordination with another body, the Commission on Higher Education The DepEd is also known by its old name, the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (Filipino: Kagawaran ng Edukasyon, Kultura at Palakasan), or DECS.

[edit] History

During the Spanish period, education in the Philippines was religion-oriented and was primarily for the elite, especially in the early years of Spanish colonization. Access to education by Filipinos was later liberalized through the enactment of the Educational Decree of 1863, which provided for the establishment of at least one primary school for boys and girls in each town under the responsibility of the municipal government; and the establishment of a normal school for male teachers under the supervision of the Jesuits. Primary instruction was free and the teaching of Spanish was compulsory. It was also through this decree that the Superior Commission of Primary Instruction was established, the seminal agency of the Department of Education.

The defeat of Spain by American forces paved the way for Aguinaldo's Republic under a Revolutionary Government. The schools maintained by Spain for more than three centuries were closed for the time being but were reopened on August 29, 1898 by the Secretary of the Interior. The Burgos Institute in Malolos, the Military Academy of Malolos, and the Literary University of the Philippines were established. A system of free and compulsory elementary education was established by the Malolos Constitution. An adequate secularized and free public school system during the first decade of American rule was established upon the recommendation of the Schurman Commission. Free primary instruction that trained the people for the duties of citizenship was enforced by the Taft Commission per instructions of President William McKinley. Chaplains and non-commissioned officers were assigned to teach using English as the medium of instruction.

A highly centralized public school system was instituted in 1901 by the Philippine Commission by virtue of Act No. 74. Act No. 74 also established the Department of Public Instruction, which was headed by a General Superintendent. The implementation of this Act created a heavy shortage of teachers so much so that the Philippine Commission authorized the Superintendent of Public Instruction to bring 600 teachers from the United States to the Philippines. These would later be popularly known as the Thomasites. The Organic Act of 1916 would reorganize the Department of Public Instruction, mandating that it be headed by a Secretary. This act also mandated the Filpinization of all department secretaries, except that of the Secretary of Public Instruction. During World War II, the department was reorganized once again through the Japanese's Military Order No. 2 in 1942, which established the Commission of Education, Health, and Public Welfare. With the establishment of the Japanese-sponsored Republic, the Ministry of Education was created on October 14, 1943. Under the Japanese, the teaching of Tagalog, Philippine History, and Character Education was given priority. Love for work and the dignity of labor were also emphasized. On February 27, 1945, the Department of Instruction was made part of the Department of Public Instruction.

In 1947, by virtue of Executive Order No. 94, the Department of Instruction was changed to Department of Education. During this period, the regulation and supervision of public and private schools belonged to the Bureau of Public and Private Schools.

In 1972, it became the Department of Education and Culture by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 1 and subsequently became the Ministry of Education and Culture in 1978 by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 1397. Thirteen regional offices were created and major organizational changes were implemented in the educational system. The Education Act of 1982 created the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, which later became the Department of Education, Culture and Sports in 1987 by virtue of Executive Order No. 117 of President Corazon C. Aquino. The structure of DECS as embodied in EO No. 117 has practically remained unchanged until 1994, when the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) was established, and in 1995, when the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) was established to supervise tertiary degree programs and non-degree technical-vocational programs, respectively.

The trifocal education system refocused DECS’ mandate to basic education which covers elementary, secondary and nonformal education, including culture and sports. TESDA now administers the post-secondary, middle-level manpower training and development, while CHED is responsible for higher education.

In August 2001, Republic Act No. 9155, otherwise called the Governance of Basic Education Act, was passed renaming the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS) to the Department of Education (DepEd) and redefining the role of field offices, which include regional offices, division offices, district offices, and schools.

[edit] List of Secretaries of Education

Month started	Month finished	Name	Position
Secretaries of Public Instruction
1935	1940	Sergio Osmena
1940	1941	Jorge Bocobo
Secretaries of Public Instruction, Health, and Public Welfare Commonwealth War Cabinet
1942	1944	Sergio Osmena
Commissioner of Public Instruction Philippine Executive Commission
1942	1943	Claro M. Recto
Minister of Public Instruction 2nd Republic
1943	1945	Jorge Bocobo
Secretaries of Education, Culture and Sports
February 1986	December 1989	Lourdes Quisumbing
January 1990	June 1992	Isidro Cariño
July 1992	July 1994	Armand Fabella
August 1994	December 1997	Ricardo Gloria
January 1998	June 1998	Erlinda Pefianco
July 1998	January 2001	Br. Andrew Gonzalez
February 2001	August 2001	Raul Roco
Secretaries of Education
August 2001	August 2002	Raul Roco
September 2002	July 2004	Edilberto De Jesus
July 2004	July 2005	Florencio Abad
July 2005	September 2005	Ramon Bacani	OIC
September 2005	July 2006	Fe Hidalgo	Acting
July 2006	present	Jesli Lapus