R.A. No. 6655, AN ACT ESTABLISHING AND PROVIDING FOR A FREE PUBLIC SECONDARY EDUCATION AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 

CAMBALIZA, JOSEPHINE JERIC

TORRES, SHARENZ RISNNY

The Public Secondary Education Act (Republic Act No. 6655)

Establishes the free provision of secondary education

It is the policy of the State to provide for a free public secondary education to all qualified citizens and to promote quality education at all levels

“The students enrolled in secondary course offerings in national high schools, general comprehensive high schools, state colleges and universities, specialized schools, trade, technical, vocational, fishery and agricultural schools, and schools established, administered, maintained and funded by local government units, including city, provincial, municipal and barangay [village] high schools, and those public high schools which may be established by law, shall be free from payment of tuition and other school fees.”

o 2 February 1987. New Constitution for the Philippines was ratified. Section 3, Article XIV of the 1987 Constitution contains the ten fundamental aims of education in the Philippines.

o 1987. By the vue of Executive Order No. 117, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, became the Department of Education, Culture and Sports . The structure of DECS as embodied in EO No. 117 remained practically unchanged until 1994.

o 26 May 1988. Congress enacted Republic Act 6655, the Free Public Secondary Education Act of 1988, which mandated free public secondary education commencing in the school year 1988-1989.

o 26 May 1988. Congress enacted RA 6655 which made free public secondary education to become a reality.

o Approved by President Corazon C. Aquino

Section 1. Title.

 This Act shall be known as the "Free Public Secondary Education Act of 1988."

Section 2. Declaration of Policy.

It is the policy of the State to provide for a free public secondary education to all qualified citizens and to promote quality education at all levels.

Section 3. Definitions.

(a) Free Public Secondary Education. — Means that the students enrolled in secondary course offerings in national high schools, general comprehensive high schools, trade, technical, vocational, fishery and agricultural schools, and in schools established, administered, maintained and funded by local government units, including city, provincial municipal and barangay high schools, and those public high schools which may be established by law, shall be free from payment of tuition and other schools fees;

(b) Tuition Fee. — Refers to the fee representing direct costs of instruction, training and other related activities and for the students' use of the instruction and training facilities;

 (c) Other School Fees. — Refer to those fees which cover the other necessary costs supportive of instruction, including but not limited to medical and dental, athletic, library, laboratory and Citizens Army Training (CAT) fees.However, fees elated to membership in the school community such as identification cards, student organizations and publications may be collected, provided that non-payment to these fees shall not in any case be a bar to the enrollment or graduation of any student.

Section 4. Implementation of Free Public Secondary Education.

The system of free public secondary education as provided in this Act shall commence in School Year 1988-1989, and that the students enrolled in secondary course offerings in national and general comprehensive high schools, state colleges and universities, specialized schools, trade, technical, vocational, fishery and agricultural schools and in schools which may be established by law, shall be free from payment of tuition and other school fees, except fees related to membership in the school community such as identification cards, student organizations and publication which may be collected: Provided, That nothing in this Act shall cause or authorize the reduction or removal of any benefit which the national or local government may have granted to the students, teachers and other school personnel of these public high schools prior to the enactment of this Act.

Decs Order No. 49 S. 1988

Clarificatory Guidelines on Free Public Secondary Education, Particularly in Fees as provided Republic Act 6655

Free Authorized but Voluntary Fees

What is Free?

Tuition Fee

Other School Fees

What are Voluntary Fees?

Fees related to the school community such as:

Identification card

Membership fee

School publication

Subscription

Fees covered by president proclamation or executive orders, authority fund and educational campaign

Red cross

Boy scout

Girl scouts

Anti-TB

PTCA Contributions

The amount of the contribution for a school year is purely voluntary and decided by the PCTA.

Are not collected during the enrollment period but during the fund campaign by the PTCA itself.

Maybe paid on installment basis.

Shall be collected of the PTCA treasurer and/or the designated parent representative who shall make arrangements with the school principal on the schedule and manner of collection.

Section 5. Formulation of a Secondary Education Curriculum.

The Department of Education, Culture and Sports shall formulate a secondary education curriculum in order to upgrade its quality, efficiency and access. In addition to providing the high school students with general skills, knowledge and values, such a curriculum must include vocational and technical courses that will give the students gainful employment.

DECS Order No. 44 S. 1988

1) Cognitive, affective, manipulative based, i-e. humanities, science and technology shall form the cognitive dimension; moral, spiritual, social, political, aesthetics and work values, the affective dimension; and work skills and psychomotor dimension.

2) Consists of core subjects

3) Includes the study of constitution

4) Adheres to the bilingual policy

Section 6. Limitation. 

The right of any student to avail of free public high school shall terminate if he fails for two (2) consecutive school years in the majority of the academic subjects in which he is enrolled during the course of his study unless such failure is due to some valid cause.

1. Failure in (1) 180 minutes and one (1) 300 minutes a week yearly subject or three (3) 180 minutes or two (2) 300 minutes a week yearly subjects means failure in that curricular year.

2. Due to some valid cause means that the circumstances foe such failures may be attributed to the reasons beyond students’ control such as illness, family, instability or environmental disturbances.

DECS Order No. 44 S. 1988

Section 7. Nationalization of Public Secondary Schools.

To effectively implement the system, the establishment, renaming, conversion, integration, separation, administration, supervision and control of all public secondary schools and public secondary school teachers and other school personnel, including the payment of their salaries allowances and other fringe benefits as well as those already provided by local governments are hereby vested in the Department of Education, Culture and Sports.

Section 8. Priority in Admission.

Graduates of public elementary schools in a municipality shall be given priority in admission when the present facilities in the same municipality cannot accommodate all of those applying for enrollment in the public high schools.

No. 6 Enrollment period shall be from June 1-15

a.First year enrollees should be admitted on a first-come first serve basis giving priority to the graduates of public elementary schools who are residents of the local community until the maximum capacity for the first year students has been reached as determined by the school principal.

b.The public school will continue to enroll seeking admission within the prescribed enrollment period. However, some of those who cannot be accommodated may be shifted to the cooperating private schools under the education service.

c.Students who cannot be accommodated shall be placed in a waiting list.

DECS Order No. 44 S. 1988

Section 9. Implementing Rules and Regulations.

The Secretary of Education, Culture and Sports shall issue the necessary rules and regulations to implement this Act.

Benefits:

Education is therefore not a privilege, but a right.

Secondary education will be accessible to all since it will be free of charge (except for the fees mentioned above.)

Through this, there will be a probability that the country will produce more manpower.

CASE STUDY(RA 6655)

CASE 1

CAGAYAN de ORO CITY, Southern Philippines – With school now open, thirty teachers from the Misamis Oriental General Comprehensive High School are finding themselves in hot water over an incident left over from the last graduation.

The Office of the Ombudsman-Mindanao has directed the teachers, all class advisers, to answer a criminal complaint that they allegedly exacted quite a sum in unauthorized fees from the graduating students of the last school year.

School head Pedro Montejo collected P330 per graduating student as their contribution to a graduation ball which was organized without the approval of the PTCA.“Almost 1,030 students paid in full this alleged illegal collection for graduation and (the collection) totaled to P340,000 more or less,” he said in a written statement sent via mobile phone.

Based on the order, the PTCA “may solicit minimal voluntary contributions from their members for graduation ceremonies and celebrations”, but teachers and principals “should not be involved in said contributions.”

Padua however stressed that not only were the principal and teachers involved in the exaction of fees, the activity itself was not coordinated with the PTCA and no proper report was made to the association’s assembly on the collection, another requirement of Order 13.

Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez placed on preventive suspension high school principals Eleanor Abisado of Taguig National High School, Helen Aggabao of Olongapo City National High School.

Abisado allegedly pocketed unauthorized fees from students. She also allegedly certified that a senior bookkeeper and two utility personnel at the Taguig school were members of the teaching staff so they could collect benefits that are exclusively for teachers.

Aggabao, on the other hand, is charged with collecting unauthorized school fees and contributions, as well as rental fees from stall owners in the school canteen, without issuing official receipts. She also allegedly charged students 15 pesos an hour for computers that were donated by a congressman to the school.

CASE 2