DepEd set to reduce public school teachers’ paperwork by 57%
Department of Education Central office in Pasig City—INQUIRER PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) on Monday announced that it is set to reduce school paperwork by 57 percent to ease the administrative burden on public school teachers.
According to the DepEd’s statement, public school teachers will soon be required to regularly complete only five school forms from the previous 174.
Additional forms will be filled out only based on specific teacher designations, following DepEd Order No. 005, s. 2024,
“Teachers have repeatedly raised this issue, and we’re addressing it. Reducing their bureaucratic workload will improve their well-being and allow them to focus on delivering quality education,” Education Secretary Sonny Angara said.
Angara said the initiative is part of the Marcos administration’s broader education reform agenda, which seeks to make the public school system more efficient while at the same time improving the working conditions of teachers.
It was also based on a study by the DepEd’s Technical Working Group which found that teachers spend excessive hours on non-teaching tasks.
Another study from IDsight also showed that 42 percent of teachers work over 50 hours per week, with 17.8 hours dedicated to ancillary duties and 8.1 hours to program-related tasks—most of which is spent filling out forms instead of engaging with students or preparing lessons.
“To support the transition, DepEd will issue a formal department order outlining the new guidelines. Nationwide orientation sessions will be conducted to ensure a smooth rollout,” the DepEd said.
The agency will also develop a Data Management Framework to standardize school data collection to eliminate redundant and outdated reporting requirements.
Furthermore, advocacy campaigns will also be launched to inform stakeholders about the reforms and promote teacher-friendly policies.
READ: DepEd hiring 7,000 contractuals for nonteaching jobs
