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THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC ) 
OF THE PHKPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
1 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Constitution, Article 15, 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 - 
(1) have high academic and behavioral standards for their students; 
(2) clearly communicate standards and provide students with the necessary support and 
opportunities to meet those standards; 
(3) connect students to adults in meaningful ways; 
(4) connect students to possible futures in college and the workforce; and 
( 5 )  provide families with useful information about how their children are doing and about 
their futures. 


THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC ) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 
First Regular Session 
1 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
AN ACT 
INTRODUCING EDUCATIONAL REFORMS AND SUPPORTING THE PLANNTNG AND 
IMPLEMENTATION OF EDUCATIONAL REFORMS IN SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "High School Reform Act." 
SECTION 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 concentrations of students from low- 
income families, in order to meet the needs of students at risk of failing to achieve the challenging 
standards, by strengthening curriculum and instruction, offering extended learning opportunities, 
and providing professional development opportunities to the school staff; 
(2) support the further development of educational reforms, designed specifically for high 
schools that - 
(a) help students meet the challenging standards; 
(b) increase connections between students and adults and provide safe learning 
environments; 
(c) create positive incentives for serious change in high schools, by offering rewards to 
participating schools that achieve significant improvements in student achievement; 
and 
(d) increase the national knowledge base of effective high school reforms by identifying 
the most dfective approaches and disseminating information on those approaches SO 
that they can be adopted nationally. 


SECTION 3. Comprehensive Reforms Pvogvam. - The Secretary of Education (hereinafter 
referred to as “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. 
SECTION 4. Principles and Coinponents of Educational R eforms. - ( 1) P RWCIF’LES. - 
Each high school, through the supervision of the Secretary of Education shall ensure that the 
reforms to be adopted are designed so that each assisted high school - 
(a) 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; 
(b) provides all students i n  the school with challenging course work, aligned with 
content and performance standards, through such strategies as the use of 
technology to enhance academic instruction and the establishment or expansion 
o f  international baccalaureate programs or advanced placement programs; 
(c) is a place where students are motivated to learn, through such strategies as 
applied learning and linking arts, music, and cultural opportunities with the 
school, both during and afrer the normal school day; 
(d) enables students to receive an education that is continuous and integrated, 
tbrough such strategies as partnerships with institutions of higher education; 
(e) helps students to achieve their educational and career goals, through such 
strategies as integrated academic and vocational instruction that connects 
students with career opportunities; and 
(0 functions as a center for the community, through such strategies as increasing the 
involvement of parents, employers, and others in the community. 


(2) REQUIRED COMPONENTS - In order to institutionalize the principles described in 
subsection (I), the Secretary of Education shall appropriate funds to implement research-based 
educational reform strategies for eventual implementation throughout the entire school that - 
(a) in the case of a school with a school-wide program, build on, and improve the 
school-wide reform program; and 
(b) address the needs of students who are at risk of failing to be promoted to the next 
grade or to graduate, including - 
(i) covering material that students need to master in order to pass 
mandated entrance exams; and 
(ii) strengthening curriculum, instruction, and assessments and by 
offering extended learning opportunities such as after school, weekend, and 
summer programs; 
(c) make full and effective use of the resources that the school receives under other 
programs of the department; 
(d) make use of outside experts in high school reform, unless it can be shown to the 
satisfaction of the Secretary, that the school’s reform strategy can be 
implemented effectively without outside assistance; 
(e) include professional development of school staff, including development of the 
skills needed to use student achievement and other outcome data to refine and 
improve the educational reform strategy; and 
(f) provide for collecting data on, and evaluating, the reforms and for rehorting to 
the Secretary on the results of those evaluations. 
SECTION 5. Additional Activities. - (1) The Secretary may select a random sample of 
schools to participate in an incentive-based experiment, under which the Secretary makes incentive 
payments to teachers and administrators in the grantee schools if, after three (3) years of program 
participation, their students demonstrate significant gains in student educational outcomes. 
(2) The Secretary may - 


(a) recognize high schools and high school reforms that show outstanding 
results; 
(b) disseminate information on those schools and reforms; 
(c) carry out other activities to encourage the spread and adoption of 
successful high school reform strategies; 
(d) facilitate the creation of networks among participating schools and local 
educational agencies, which may include schools and local educational 
agencies interested in meeting the purpose of this part; and 
(e) pay the costs of the peer review of applications under this part. 
(3) The Secretary may reserve funds to evaluate activities carried out under this Act. 
SECTION 6. Funding. - For the purpose of carrying out this Act, there are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary. 
SECTION 7. Separability Clause. - If any provision, or part hereof, is held invalid or 
unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain valid 
and subsisting. 
SECTION 8. Repealing Clause. -Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive order, 
letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent with, the 
provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified, or amended accordingly. 
SECTION 9. Eflectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved. 
FN: 2107