New school year, new policies from the Department of Education (DepEd).
Such will be the case in public schools on June 8 as millions of Filipino students begin their studies for SY 2026-2027.
Teachers and principals will have to focus on the implementation of various policy reforms that ultimately aim to address the country’s learning problem, according to DepEd.
But are schools ready for this? Here are the expected policy changes:
A three-phase system begins
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. adopted to change from a quarter to a three-semester school calendar in March to specifically address “the long-standing issue of compressed academic periods caused by class suspensions due to natural hazards and overlapping major events.”
Beginning in SY 2026-2027, there will be a 201-day calendar, with terms lasting 65 to 69 days.
For the first semester only, the first week or opening block will be used for school opening activities, such as orientation sessions, student profiling, baseline assessments and other administrative processes.
Lessons, learning activities and exams will be conducted in the teaching block, the longest block in each semester.
A nine- or 10-day end-of-semester block will apply each semester. Various school and DepEd activities will be scheduled here, including the distribution of report cards, a five-day period of motivation of the reform organization – especially the Educational Recovery and Accessible Learning Program (ARAL) – parent-teacher meetings, and health retreats, among others.
“We also don’t want anyone to think that we are only after academics. Activities…really play an important role in student development – leadership development, self-confidence, and all these communication skills,” Education Undersecretary Carmela Oracion told Rappler regarding the end of the semester.
The Second Parliamentary Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) previously found that festivals and competitions filled the school calendar and take time away from learning basic subjects.
Semester 1 of SY 2026-2027 will end on September 15, followed by Semester 2 from September 16 to December 18. Semester 3 will run from January 4 to April 8.
Currently, the three-semester school calendar is optional for private schools.
‘Easy’ lesson planning
To align with the new school calendar, Oracion said lesson planning has been simplified, with a template that includes the following:
- Purpose – curriculum goals, clear expectations, and context for students
- Learning experience – lesson flow and opportunities to integrate into other subjects
- Evaluate
- Ways forward – reflective activities and extended learning opportunities outside the classroom
“Check-ins should be frequent to see if students can understand what we are teaching without waiting for the last minute,” he said of structured assessments.
In the parliamentary session of May 18, Assistant Secretary of Education Jerome Buenviaje also said that the new lesson planning guidelines give teachers the flexibility to change according to the progress of the class. Lessons not taken during a given semester may be combined in the following semester.
During the congressional session, the Union of Concerned Teachers and the Union of Teacher Dignity asked DepEd for the recommended minimum subjects that must be taught, known by the industry as “the most important learning skills.” The agency has not yet released this.
Buenviaje said it is important for schools to come with their lists of what subjects have been taught in that semester and to coordinate with the divisional offices of their schools regarding these lists.
He also said that teachers must remove students who find it difficult to continue their studies by the fifth week of the semester. ARAL or remedial sessions can be held after classes during the instructional block, and then for five days straight with the end-of-term block.
Through the three-semester system, Buenviaje said DepEd seeks to get at least 163 days of “solid training,” as they already expect that there will be no lesson delivery during the opening week.
Education officials, however, were initially encouraged to achieve at least 180 days of study.
New scoring system
DepEd will also be moving forward with a new grading system starting in SY 2026-2027.
Although there will still be a conversion table, a student must now obtain a raw score of 70 to 72.99 to achieve a passing grade of 75. Previously, a raw score of 60 would be converted or converted to a 75.
EDCOM 2 had reported that The change of grade contributed to the increase in quantitybecause it “(hid) the depth of (students’) learning disabilities in school records.”
The revised conversion table serves as DepEd’s transition to the zero-based grading system that will be implemented by SY 2027-2028. This system means that students will receive their raw scores, without conversion.
Teachers will also administer two summative or achievement tests per semester: the first covering the first 15 days of instruction and the second covering the following 15 days.
For example, the DepEd calendar shows that the summary tests conducted by teachers for the first semester are expected on July 6 and July 28, while the semester exam will be on August 28 and September 1.
Revised SHS Curriculum
Full implementation of Enhanced Secondary School Program or the revised SHS curriculum for public and private schools across the country will begin in June.
Under the revised SHS curriculum, four tracks (Academic Livelihoods, Technical-Technical, Sports, and Arts and Design) were reduced to two (Academic and Technical-Professional or Tech-Pro).
Major courses were reduced from 15 to five, namely Effective Communication, Life Skills, General Mathematics, General Science, and Study of Philippine History and Society. These will be given only during Class 11.
Students are free to choose electives that would match their interests and goals, even electives from a track they did not choose, unlike the previous curriculum where students could only take courses in the stream they chose.
About 900 schools that were part of the pilot test last school year will continue to implement the revised Class 12 curriculum, which features more work hours. Tech-Pro Track students are required to have 320 hours of work immersion.
Work immersion is an option for Academic List students, who are more likely to go on to higher education. Instead they are recommended to face field exposure for 80 hours.
Feedback process
Some teachers’ groups have been asking DepEd to conduct a trial of the school calendar for the third term instead of making a full publication, saying that the policy reform could burden teachers.
EDCOM 2 also asked various questions to DepEd during the parliamentary sessions. Issues raised by the commission for the three-semester calendar include the lack of clear measures to protect Semester 2 from the suspension of classes for the rainy season, the need for guidance on how schools should handle the many festivals and competitions, and the need to ensure appropriate adjustments to support struggling students.
When asked how DepEd would handle feedback, Oracion told Rappler, “If along the way, during implementation, we see things that need to be improved, then we work on them.”
DepEd also said teachers can send their questions and clarifications through the agency’s online monitoring tool, which was presented during orientation sessions to regional and divisional officials, principals and teachers. – Rappler.com
