THE Second Congressional Commission on Education (Edcom 2) marked its second year of existence this year. Republic Act 11899, which created the commission, lapsed into law on July 23, 2022. Since then, Edcom 2 has marked significant milestones in its mission to "undertake a comprehensive national assessment and evaluation of the performance of the education sector."
The bicameral conference committee report of the Basic Education Mental Health and Well-Being Promotion Act, backed by Edcom 2 co-chairs Sen. Win Gatchalian and Rep. Roman Romulo, was recently approved by Congress. The bill seeks to strengthen mental health programs by creating "care centers" in every public school in the country. This is a step in the right direction after the commission found that the prevalence of bullying among our students is alarmingly high. Even the Program for International Assessment supports this: 65 percent of students in the Philippines reported being bullied at least a few times a month — significantly higher than the average of 23 percent among countries that took the assessment. In connection with bullying, Edcom 2 has created a technical working group of experts from the public and private sectors to propose revisions to the implementing rules and regulations of the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013.
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