The Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM2) is calling for more school counselor associates and stronger measures to protect learners, citing bullying, school violence and prolonged class suspensions.

EDCOM2 executive director Karol Mark Yee said the Philippines needs at least one school counselor associate for every 500 students, with every school eventually having at least one.

“We have 47,000 schools. So the most basic would be 47,000 that we need,” Yee said in a radio interview Sunday.

The government has funded 10,000 positions, but about 37,000 more would be needed to reach one counselor per school, he said. Yee added that the ratio should be based on enrollment because large schools may have thousands of students.

EDCOM2 has reported that the Philippines has among the highest bullying rates among countries covered by international assessments.

Yee also urged schools to strengthen preventive psychosocial support and student formation programs, saying teachers should not carry the burden alone.

Lost school days

Class advisers should be freed from administrative and other nonteaching duties to focus on students, he said.

On class suspensions, Yee said schools lost as many as 30 to 50 days of instruction in some of the past two years, out of a 180-day school year.

He urged the Department of Education to assess asynchronous learning programs, discontinue ineffective models and expand those that work. Students should also be assessed when they return to identify lessons they missed and receive catch-up instruction.

Yee said face-to-face classes remain the most effective option, particularly for younger students, but urged authorities to avoid blanket suspensions when local conditions allow classes to continue.

He also called for schools to be used as evacuation centers only as a last resort and urged local governments to identify alternative sites.