FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
) 
) 
) 
'S ENATE 
S,B, 1060 
Introduced by Senator Villar 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Section 1, Article XIV o(the 1987 Constitution mandates that the State 
shall "protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, 
and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all, 
Towards this end, the Constitution further provides that the State shall establish, 
maintain, and support a complete, adequate, and integrated system of education 
relevant to the needs of the people and society and that the State shall 
encourage non-formal, informal and indigenous learning systems, as well as self-
learning, independent, and out-of-school study programs particularly those that 
respond to the community levels .. " 
While the government continuously labors towards upholding these 
constitutional mandates, it is a sad reality that it encounters difficulty in providing 
quality and accessible education to all due to budgetary constraints resulting in 
the lack of classrooms and teachers, 
On the other hand, on the part of the a 
great number of our poor Filipino families, 
it is unfortunate that they cannot 
afford the everyday expenses involved (e,g, daily allowances for transportation, 
meals and other school-related incidental expenses) in sending their children to 
tertiary education the traditional way, 
In the preceding years, we have 
witnessed the decline in the quality of education and the significant increase in 
the number of students not pursuing and/or finishing higher education, 
In 
addition, many of our young people necessarily had to leave school and shelve 
their dream of acquiring college degree for them to work in low-paying jobs to 
help in the upkeep of their families, 
The Open Learning and Distance Education could be a suitable response 
to this reality, This System has minimal need for classrooms and teachers, it 
does not entail daily school expenses/allowances on the part of the student and it 
will enable the student to pursue work or earn a living to help their families while 
studying, Unlike traditional education in which one goes to school regularly to 
meet teachers and classmates, a student availing himself or herself of distance 
learning can attend classes while at home or in the workplace with the use of 
modules, e-mail, chat and video conference to name a few, Like the traditional 
learning experience, distance education follows a curriculum, There are 
deadlines set for the inputs of the students but studying can be done at ones 
pace, To ensure efficiency and quality, mechanisms are employed to monitor 
and ensure the academic progress of the students, 
This bill seeks to strengthen and regulate the offering of open learning and 
distance education in the country, 
This innovative delivery of education to 
learners could make higher education accessible to a great number of our people 
pursuant to the 
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Constitutional mandate. 
As long 
as the necessary support for the efficient 
implementation of the system as enunciated in the bill are followed, open 
learning and distance education could well serve as effective engines to develop 
our people and nation. 
Early approval of the bill is earnestly recommended. 


FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SEN~TE 
. S.B. 1u60 
) 
) 
) 
Introduced by Senator Villar 
AN ACT 
STRENGTHENING THE OPEN LEARNING SYSTEM OF HIGHER 
EDUCATION IN THE PHILIPPiNES, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR 
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
. 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the Open Tertiary 
Education Act of 2010. 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of 
the State to expand and further democratize educational opportunities for our 
people in a more effective and economical manner through the utilization of 
innovative educational technologies. In view thereof, the State recognizes the 
open learning system as a necessary mode to widen access to quality tertiary 
education even as it guarantees academic freedom of higher education 
institutions on what to teach and how to teach. 
SECTION 
3. Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act, the 
following terms are hereby defined: 
a) Open Learning System - A philosophy of learning that is highly flexible and 
learner-centered, that is the conditions for learning are controlled by the 
learner, thus enabling him to learn at the time, place and pace which 
satisfy his circumstances 'and requirements. It includes Expanded Tertiary 
Education, Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP), prior 
learning, portfolio learning, non-traditional, or sorts of prior learning that 
could be submitted for formal recognition. 
b) Distance Education - A system of delivering educational services to 
students who are disadvantaged by limited time, distance, or physical 
disability, among others, through the use of specially designed materials 
and methods and supported by organizational and administrative 
structures and arrangements. It is characterized by the separation of 
learner and teacher, thE! influence of an organization, the possibility of 
occasional meetings and face-to face interactions, the recourse to an 
industrialized form of education, and the use of technical media such as 
print, radio, audio, video and computers. 
c) Open University - A university which makes use of the open learning 
system by offering distance education programs at the tertiary level to 
students who cannot complete their education using the traditional mode. 
SECTION 4. Coverage. This Act shall apply to public and private higher 
edUcation institutions with existing open learning programs and to other 
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institutions which shall later be authorized as qualified implementers of the 
System. 
SECTION 5. Admission Requirements. - Admission to an open tertiary 
education shall be governed by these admission requirements: 
a) Completion of high school education evidenced by a high school 
certificate/ transcript of records shall be required for admission; and 
b) Admission requirements by the admitting educational institution shall be 
instituted in accordance with standards set by the Commission on Higher 
Education (CHED). 
SECTION 6. Program Requirements. - There shall be defined a set of 
courses (sUbjects) and/or examinations, the completion of which shall be 
required for graduation from a program, and which shall be equivalent to those 
under the formal system. 
a) The place, pace and mode of study shall be done at the option and 
convenience of the student, except in the case of examinations whose 
context, content and conduct shall be determined by the institution. 
b) The Commission on Higher Education and/or the institution concerned 
shall develop and implement a mechanism to monitor the academic 
progress of the students. 
c) The programs to be offered and the curricula to be implemented under the 
open tertiary education shall conform with the CHED's updated policies 
and guidelines on open le?rning and distance education. 
d) Completion of a progra.m shall be evidenced by the award of the 
appropriate certificate or diploma. 
e) For the practice of the. profession for which one has acquired the 
necessary academic credentials in the Open Tertiary Education, the 
existing requirements of passing a board or exams shall apply. 
SECTION 
7. Mode of, Delivery. - Open Learning System /Distance 
Education may be delivered using the following: 
a) Media 
1. Print 
-
textbooks, 
study 
guides, 
workbooks, 
course 
syllabi, 
correspondence feedqack, and other print formats; 
2. Audio-visual - radio, audio cassette tapes, slides, film, videotapes, 
television, telephone, fax, audio-conferencing, video-conferencing; 
3. Electronic/Computer Technology - CD-ROM, electronic mail, ebulletin 
boards, world-wide web, E-Iearning or online delivery of education; and 
4. Face-to-face sessions. 
b) Autonomous open learning/distance education institutions or independent 
open learning/distance education departments of a conventional or 
traditional institute, college or university; 
c) 
Consortium model consisting of open learning/distance education 
departments of different institutions. 
SECTION 
8. Support to Distance Education Programs. - Higher 
education institutions with open learning programs shall be provided support 
based on the following criteria to be determined by the CHED: 
a) Qualified faculty with experience and/or training in distance education; 
b) Relevant curricular programs; 
c) Appropriate educational materials; 
d) Suitable student support services and delivery system; and 
e) Linkages with other app~opriate institutions as study centers 
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SECTION 9. Support to Students. - Any student enrolled under this Act 
shall be given access to all privileges, opportunities and entitlements that a 
student similarly situated under. the traditional system may have access to, 
including but not necessarily limited to, availment of scholarships, grants and 
loans from the government or government-administered funding sources. 
Specifically, higher education institutions shall be tasked to perform the following 
support services: 
a) Maintain faculty-student dialogue in strategic sites and/or establish 
learning centers or linkages with other HEls to ensure greater 
access to the clientele for admission, tutorial, counseling, testing 
and evaluation activities; 
b) Provide clear admission policies and procedures for applicants; 
c) Provide for an efficient and reliable communication system and 
media support including equipment and facilities; 
d) Show evidence of regular monitoring of learners' progress; and 
e) Provide liberty and learning resources for the students. 
SECTION 10. Role of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). 
- The CHED has the authority to identify the higher educational institutions which 
shall be allowed to offer open learning/distance education programs and be given 
allocation for the continued implementation of these programs. As such, it shall: 
a) Promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the effective 
implementation of the System; 
b) Propose approaches to improve the quality of distance education in 
the country and formulate a quality control mechanism for distance 
education; 
c) Monitor and evaluate existing open learning programs; 
d) Review and approve proposals for new open learning programs 
from educational in'stitutions; and 
e) Recommend to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) 
the budget for open learning programs of qualified higher education 
institutions based qn the CHED monitoring and evaluation results. 
SECTION 11. Role of Broadcast Stations and Telecommunications 
Network. - Broadcast stations and telecommunications networks are encouraged 
to provide assistance and cooperation in support of the open learning system or 
in the delivery of distance education, which may include but not necessarily 
limited to, the transmission of materials for formal and non-formal courses to 
learners not only in the Philippines but also outside the country. 
SECTION 
12. Tax Incentives. - Private entities such as broadcast 
stations and. telecommunications networks and others which shall provide 
appropriate materials, time and services to the system shall be given 
corresponding tax credits in acc,ordance with existing rules and regulations. 
SECTION 13. Appropriations. - The amount necessary to carry out the 
initial implementation of this Act shall be charged to the appropriations of the 
Commission on Higher Education under the current General Appropriation Act. 
Thereafter, the funds necessarY for the continuous implementation of this Act in 
the ensuing years shall be included in the annual appropriations of CHED in the 
General Appropriations Act. 
SECTION 14. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Commission 
on Higher Education (CHED), in conSUltation with relevant stakeholders in higher 
education, is hereby mandated to formulate the rules and regulations to 
implement this Act within a period of ninety (90) days from the effectivity thereof. 
3 


SECTION 15. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act or any 
part thereof be declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other provisions, as far as 
they are separable from the invalid ones, shall remain in force and effect. 
SECTION 16. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, rules and 
regulations or parts thereof specifically inconsistent with this Act are hereby 
repealed or modified accordingly' 
SECTION 17. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of 
general circulation. 
' 
Approved, 
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