The Department of Education (DepEd) is eyeing an expansion of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the Anti-Bullying Act and the Safe Spaces Act to address emerging challenges students face, including online harassment and peer violence.

DepEd Assistant Secretary for Operations Joyce Andaya, during a radio interview, said that they are working to activate the child protection committee in every school to strengthen the response to students exhibiting aggressive behavior and ensure early intervention and support.

“Ngayon, ang tinitingnan na namin is to activate the child protection committee per school para lalong mapagtuunan ng pansin ‘yung mga batang medyo nakikitaan ng aggression at ang iba naman ay para magkaroon ng peer counselling also and guidance counselling, (We are now looking at activating the child protection committee per school so we can focus more on students showing signs of aggression, and also provide peer counselling and guidance counselling),” Andaya explained.

In response to calls from teachers for stronger anti-bullying efforts, Andaya assured that the agency is continuously improving the Child Protection Policy and advocating for positive discipline.

“Mali rin that the teacher will look away even if she caught the student cheating for fear of retaliation in any form or penalties by the school, (It’s also wrong for a teacher to turn a blind eye if a student is caught cheating out of fear of retaliation or penalties from the school),” she added.

The statement comes amid recent reports of bullying across several educational institutions nationwide.

At a Senate hearing on 8 April, DepEd Assistant Secretary for Operations Dexter Galban revealed that from 24 November 2022 to 7 April 2025, around 1,314 cases of campus violence were recorded — half of which were committed by students.