FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
,SENATE· 
Senate Bill No. 750 
10 
.JIJL-7 P/:/8 
INTRODUCED BY SEN. JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Constitution, Article 1.5, Section 1 provides: 
"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." 
Recent stUdies have shown that the quality and rigor of the secondary 
school program of study is thE'> most effective predictor of success in post 
secondary education. 
Unfortunately, most high school institutions in the country are ill-equipped 
to provide relevant and quality education. 
Hence, this bill seeks to structure reforms in secondary education in order 
to provide students with effective schools that -
(a) have high academic and behavioral standards for their students; 
(b) clearly communicate standards and provide students with the 
necessary support and opportunities to meet those standards; 
(c) connect students to adults in meaningful ways; 
(d) connect students to possible futures in college and the workforce; and 
(e) provide families with useful information about how their children are 
doing and about their futures. 
Senator 


, 
~f-t' r.Tt: 
FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC) 
OFF!CE 0; '1',> SFt;H(fARV 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
SENATE 
Senate Bill No. 750 
INTRODUCED BY SEN. JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
AN ACT 
INTRODUCING 
EDUCATIONAL 
REFORMS 
AND 
SUPPORTING 
THE 
PLANNING AND IMPLEMENtATION OF EDUCATIONAL REFORMS IN 
SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS . 
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 "High-School 
Reform Act." 
SEC. 2. Purposes. -The purposes of this Act are to-
1) support the planning and implementation of educational reforms in high 
schools, particularly in urban and rural high schools that educate students from 
low-income families, in order to help students at risk of failing to meet challenging 
standards, by strengthening curriculum and instruction, offering extended 
leaming opportunities and providing professional development opportunities to 
school staff, 
2) support the further development of educational reforms, designed 
specifically for high schools, that -
(a) help students meet challenging standards; and 
(b) increase connections between students and adults and provide safe 
learning environments. 
3) create positive incentives for serious change in high schools, by offering 
rewards to partiCipating schools that achieve significant improvements in stUdent 
achievement; and 
' 
4) increase the national knowledge base on effective high school reforms 
by identifying the most effective approaches and disseminating information on 
those approaches so that they can be adopted nationally. 
SEC. 3. Comprehensive Reforms Program. -
The Secretary of 
Education, hereinafter referred to as the Secretary through the use of 
appropriated funds, shall develop and innovate a comprehensive reforms 
program to be applied to all secondary schools nationwide, that shall critically 
assess and evaluate existing curricula, programs and activities, ensuring that the 
same are in conformity with the principles and components provided in Section 4. 


SEC. 4. Principles and Components of Educational Reforms -
(a) Principles. - Each high school, through the supervision of the 
Secretary, shall ensure that the reforms to be adopted are designed so that each 
assisted high school -
(1) is a place where students receive individual attention and support, 
through such strategies as creating smaller learning environments, such as 
"schools within schools" and career academies and providing students with 
counselors and mentors; 
(2) provides all students in the school with challenging coursework, 
aligned with content and performance standards, through such strategies as the 
use of technology to enhance academic instruction and the establishment or 
expansion of international baccalaureate programs or advanced placement 
programs; 
(3) is a place where stUdents are motivated to learn, through such 
strategies as applied learning and linking the arts, music and cultural 
opportunities with the school, both during and after the normal school day; 
(4) enables students to receive an education that is continuous and 
integrated, through such strategies as partnerships with institutions of higher 
education; 
(5) helps students achieve their educational and career goals, through 
such strategies as integrated academic and vocational instruction that connects 
students with career opportunities; and 
(6) functions as a center for the community, through such strategies as 
increasing the involvement of parents, employers and others in the community. 
(b) Required Components. - In order to institutionalize the principles 
described in subsection (a), the Secretary of Education shall appropriate funds to 
implement 
research-based 
educational 
reform 
strategies 
for 
eventual 
implementation throughout the entire school that -
(1) in the case of a school with a school wide program, build on and 
improve the school wide reform program; 
(2) address the needs of students who are at risk of failing to be promoted 
to the next grade or to graduate, including -
(a) covering material that students need to master in order to pass 
mandated entrance exams; and 
SEC. 8. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuan~e, 
executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation 
contrary to or inconsistent with the provision of this Act is hereby repealed, 
modified or amended accordingly. 
SEC. 9. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
after its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved,