Senator Risa Hontiveros urged the Department of Education (DepEd) to strengthen the implementation of comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) as adolescent pregnancy and HIV cases continue to rise in the Philippines.
“The scope of DepEd is limited to school premises. That’s why it’s important for CSE to be implemented, evaluated, and continuously improved. We need to address any mistakes and fill in the gaps, especially for out-of-school youth or those in community-based programs,” she said.
The senator pertained to DepEd Order No. 31, series of 2018, which provides guidelines for teaching CSE in the Philippines to help students gain important knowledge, prevent early pregnancy and HIV, and make informed choices through age-appropriate lessons included in school subjects.
Hontiveros raised her concerns during the Senate Committee on Basic Education hearing on Tuesday and pointed out the need to empower parents and other responsible adults in the community to help out-of-school youth and prevent teenage pregnancies.
“Even if they do become pregnant and give birth, they should receive social protection to continue their education, finish school, learn how to care for their babies, and be supported in avoiding repeated teenage pregnancies,” the senator noted.
DepEd Assistant Secretary Dexter Galban revealed that around 400,000 teachers have undergone training on CSE. He explained this training focuses on handling sensitive topics and is separate from regular in-service teacher programs.
“Our goal is to hopefully eventually get all teachers accustomed to knowing how to effectively handle CSE as a topic for our learners,” he said.
Despite these efforts, Hontiveros said that challenges persist in rolling out CSE effectively, with Galban acknowledging that many teachers initially struggled with unfamiliarity regarding CSE content.
Hontiveros also called for better collaboration between DepEd and other government agencies to provide holistic support for adolescents.
“Schools and teachers are partners in this effort. We expect the same for our out-of-school youth and responsible adults in our communities, where there should be no barriers but rather a complementary approach,” she concluded.
