Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy (Party-list, Bagong Henerasyon), Vice Chairperson of the House Committee on Welfare of Children, filed House Bill 4866, which seeks to change the start of the school year from June to September.
The bill seeks to amend Republic Act. 7797, otherwise known as the "The act to lengthen the school calendar not more than 220 days."
"The existing school year calendar is from June through March of each year, falling within the rainy season. During this time, strong typhoons hits the country bringing in catastrophic floods, heavy traffic and highly communicable diseases," Herrera-Dy said.
Herrera-Dy said changing of the school calendar will help solve the frequent problem of the government officials suspending classes because of typhoons and floodings during June to August.
"As a matter of fact, another strong typhoon again hit our country on the very first week of classes which resulted in heavy floods in different parts of the country. This caused suspension of classes not only for a day because some parts of the country were still flooded for several days," Herrera-Dy said.
"The State shall give priority to education, science and technology, arts, culture, and sports to foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total human liberation and development," Herrera-Dy stressed.
The bill mandates the Department of Education (DepEd) jointly with the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) to prepare the implementing rules and regulations to the Committees on Education, Arts and Culture of both Senate and House of Representatives within 30 days after the enactment of the proposed act.
Under the RA 7797, the school calendar for each year, beginning in the school year 1995-1996, shall be lengthened to not more than two 220 class days, inclusive of class days which may be subsequently suspended due to natural or man-made calamities.
The law provides that the increase in the number of school days during the school years shall not be considered as a basis for additional pay for teachers who are paid salaries for the entire 12 months of a school year.
Source: http://www.congress.gov.ph
Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites
