Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
Eighteenth Congress
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. 5834

Tate aaa by Represe

tative Jocelyn Sy Limkaichong

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The important role of guidance counselors to the personal, social, and
academic development of children, especially those enrolled in public elementary
and high schools, is a fact beyond question. Guidance counseling helps students to
build healthy interpersonal relationships, guides them in their career selection, and
helps them to effectively manage and deal with emotional conflict and personal
problems at their stage of development.

Republic Act No. 9258, otherwise known as the “Guidance and Counseling
Act of 2004” recognizes the importance of advancing and protecting the guidance
and counseling profession by establishing preventive regulatory mechanisms and
standards of practice. However, its goal of institutionalizing measures to guarantee
“world-class and internationally recognized” professional services comes at the
expense of meeting the need for such services by the public.

The country suffers from a severe shortage of registered guidance counselors
(RGCs). The Department of Education requires public and private elementary and
high schools to hire one guidance counselor for every five hundred (500) students.
But as of July 2017, the Philippines only has 3, 220 registered guidance counselors
since the first batch of licensure examinees in 2008. The low number of RGCs has
been attributed to the rigid standards set forth under R.A. 9258, particularly for
licensure examinees. While a bachelor’s degree is enough to take the Licensure
Examinations for Teachers (LET), a master’s degree is mandatory to take the
licensure examination for guidance counselors.


To address this problem, there is a need to relax the requirements for
examination as provided under Section 13 of Republic Act No. 9258. Furthermore,
it is indispensable for empirically-based guidelines to be set for the determination of
optimal guidance counselor to student ratios in public schools which can be
adequately provided by the government, taking into account the need for the services
as well as the availability of financial and human resources of the State.

In view of the foregoing, immediate approval of this bill is earnestly sou;



HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
Eighteenth Congress
First Regular Sessj
irst Regular Seqsjgn,
HOUSE BILL NO.

introduced by Representative Jocelyn Sy Limkaichong

AN ACT STRENGTHENING THE PRACTICE OF GUIDANCE AND
COUNSELING, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTION 13 OF
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9258, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “GUIDANCE
AND COUNSELING ACT OF 2004”

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Qualification for Licensure Examination. — Section 13 of Republic Act
No. 9258, otherwise known as the “Guidance and Counseling Act of 2004” is hereby
amended to read as follows:

“Section 13. Qualification for Examination. - In order to qualify for
the examination, an applicant must, at the time of filing the
application be:

(a) a citizen of the republic of the Philippines or a foreigner whose
country has reciprocity with the Philippines in the practice of
Guidance and Counseling;

(b) has not been convicted of any offense involving moral turpitude
by a competent court; and

(c) holder of a Bachelor's Degree in Guidance and Counseling or in
other Allied Disciplines, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED
TO PSYCHOLOGY, SOCIAL WORK, AND OTHER
BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES.


SEC. 2. Hiring of additional school-based guidance counselors. — The Secretary of
Education shall ensure that there is sufficient number of guidance counselors in
every public elementary and high school. To meet the recommended guidance
counselor to student ratios, the Department of Education shall ensure the availability
of adequate plantilla positions for such purpose.

SEC. 3. Recommended Guidance Counselor to Student Ratios. - The Secretary of
Education shall, within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this Act, issue the
necessary guidelines for the determination of optimal guidance counselor to student
ratios for public elementary and high schools.

SEC. 4. Separability Clause. — \f any provision of this Act or the application of such
provision to any instrumentalities or entities or circumstances is declared invalid or
unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected thereby shall remain valid and
subsisting.

SEC. 5. Repealing Clause. — All laws, decrees, executive orders, administrative
orders or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.

SLC. 6. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its

publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the
Philippines.

Approved,