PH 'badly needs' professional guidance counselors for students' mental health support

THE Second Congressional Commission on Education (Edcom 2) raised on Tuesday, August 13, 2024, the urgent need for the country to have more guidance counselors in schools to ensure mental health support for students.

In a press briefing, Edcom 2 Executive Director Karol Mark Yee said that President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. expressed concern during a sectoral meeting about the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) findings, which show the Philippines leading in bullying cases among several countries, significantly impacting the mental health of Filipino students.

Yee said the study also showed that the Philippines has one of the highest percentages of students who reported experiencing bullying during their school years.

Pisa 2022 also showed that one out of three Filipino students is being bullied in schools, with 43 percent of the victims being girls and 53 percent being boys, compared to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average of 20 percent of girls and 21 percent of boys.

“Nabanggit ni Presidente may nabasa siyang article na may Singapore study that says that the loneliest students in the world are Filipinos. That is also in the Pisa data, the Filipino students feel that they don't belong,” Yee said.

(The President mentioned that he read an article about a Singapore study indicating that the loneliest students in the world are Filipinos. This is also reflected in the Pisa data, which shows that Filipino students feel they don't belong.)

Yee said Marcos ordered concerned agencies to look into the matter.

He said this indicates the need to address the country’s shortage of guidance counselors, noting that under Republic Act 10627 or the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013, these professionals are tasked with providing students with mental health support.

As of March 2024, the Department of Education has 4,460 vacancies for guidance counselor positions.

Yee said the country only produced around 300 graduates each year for guidance and counseling, as it requires a master’s degree program.

“To fill all of the vacancies, it will take us 14 years with the current setup,” he said.

“Almost 5,000 plantilla positions are vacant, but if you look, almost no school offers MA (Master of Arts) in guidance and counseling,” he added.

Department of Education Secretary Sonne Angara said that Marcos tasked him with finding enough people to provide guidance and counseling services, even if they do not have the master's degrees required by law.

Angara said that the DepEd is planning to propose amending Republic Act 9258, or the Guidance and Counseling Act of 2004, to remove the master's degree requirement for guidance counselors.

”’Yung kakulangan ng guidance counselors, halos 5,000 'yung bakanteng posisyon. Tulad ng sinabi niya kanina para maging isang guidance counselor, nasa batas kailangan magka-master's degree ka doon sa pagiging guidance counselor. Number one, 'yun ang naging problema,” Angara said.

(The shortage of guidance counselors is significant, with almost 5,000 vacant positions. As he mentioned earlier, the law requires a master’s degree to become a guidance counselor. This is the main issue.)

“Sana punan muna 'yung 5,000 bakanteng posisyon ng mga kahit graduates ng guidance counseling at psychology or whatever specialization pero di na kailangan 'yung master's degree. Bigyan sila ng palugit o limang taon para makuha nila 'yung necessary credentials,” he added.

(Hopefully, we can first fill the 5,000 vacant positions with graduates in guidance counseling, psychology, or related fields, even if they don’t have a master’s degree. They should be given a grace period of five years to obtain the necessary credentials.)

He said for now, they are banking on the mentors and teachers for the mental health support of students and to make sure that the students have a lifeline.

Meanwhile, Angara also said there is a need to review the country’s learning recovery program, noting that interventions should primarily focus on the learners’ needs, and the government has to dip into science-based data gathering.

He said the capacities of the learners should be assessed before and after holding learning recovery camps, as part of the National Learning Recovery Program (NLRP).

Yee agreed that the NLRP should be reviewed and made more learner-centered.

“Iyong request namin sa DepEd is sana iyong plano natin detalyado depende sa pangangailangan ng iba’t ibang bata kasi hindi naman lahat ng bata ay ganoon iyong kailangan,” Yee said.

(Our request to DepEd is for our plan to be detailed according to the needs of different children, as not all children have the same needs.)

“Iyong iba, kailangan mas focused, mas maraming oras. Iyong iba,, refreshments lang. So sana mayroon tayong delineation in terms of the interventions,” he added.

(Some need more focused attention and more time, while others just need refreshments. So hopefully, we can have a clear delineation in terms of the interventions.)

Angara said he has already ordered the rationalization of the senior high school (SHS) curriculum, which includes reducing the number of subjects from the usual 22 per academic track by making some optional and linking with industries to ensure SHS graduates can acquire high-quality jobs.

“So, gagawa tayo ng core for all four tracks na common na iyon ang kahit anong gawin ng bata he is well-equipped – may reading and writing skills siya; may communications skills siya; may personal development or soft skills siya; may physical education siya – so, he’s a well-rounded person kahit anong gawin niya at may foundational skills siya,” he said.

(So, we will create a core curriculum for all four tracks that includes common elements, ensuring that regardless of what the student chooses to do, they are well-equipped—with reading and writing skills, communication skills, personal development or soft skills, and physical education—so they become well-rounded individuals with foundational skills.)

“Iyong link-up namin with industries for senior high school – iyan iyong bilin ni Pangulo na kailangan maganda iyong tsansa niyang makakuha ng trabaho at hindi lang pangkaraniwang trabaho kundi iyong dekalidad na trabaho na maganda iyong suweldo at makakabuhay ng isang tao at kaniyang pamilya,” he added.

(Our link-up with industries for senior high school is part of the President’s directive to ensure that students have a good chance of securing not just any job, but high-quality jobs with good salaries that can support themselves and their families.) (TPM/SunStar Philippines)