REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7784 - AN ACT TO
STRENGTHEN TEACHER EDUCATION IN THE PHILIPPINES BY ESTABLISHING CENTERS
OF EXCELLENCE, CREATING A TEACHER EDUCATION COUNCIL FOR THE PURPOSE,
APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFORE, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Section 1. Declaration of Policy. — It is the declared policy
of the State to protect and protect and promote the right of all
citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate
steps to make such education accessible to all. It is likewise
universally recognized that the teacher is the key to the effectiveness
of the teaching-learning process by drawing out and nurturing the best
in the learner as a human being and a worthy member of society.
Thus, this Act aims to provide and ensure quality education by
strengthening the education and training of teachers nationwide through
a national system of excellence for teacher education.
Our vision is a teacher education system whose mission is to educate
and train teachers of unquestionable integrity and competence, and who
are committed to their continuing professional growth and obligation to
help their students grow as responsible individuals and citizens of the
Philippines and of the world.
Sec. 2. Definition of Terms. — As used in this Act:
(a) "Teacher" shall mean all persons engaged in the
classroom teaching of any subject, including practical/vocational arts,
at the elementary and secondary levels of instruction including persons
performing guidance and counseling, instructional supervision in all
public or private education institutions, but shall not include school
nurses, school physicians, school dentists, school administrators, and
other school administrative support employees. Graduates of
education who have passed the government examination for teachers
although not actually employed as such, are hereby included in this
definition.
(b) "Teacher education" shall mean the pre-service
education, in-service education, and graduate education of teachers, in
various areas of specialization.
(c) "Excellence" pertains to the efficient, effective
and innovative delivery of relevant, functional, and quality programs
in teacher education, training, research and community service.
(d) "Center of excellence" shall be a public or
private college, institute, school or agency, engaged in the
pre-service and continuing education, formal and non-formal, of
teachers and top-notch educators, that has established and continues to
maintain a good record in teacher education (in terms of number of
graduates and their performance in the government examination for
teachers and their professional achievement), research, and community
service; whose graduates are models of integrity, commitment and
dedication in education. The centers of excellence may exist by
themselves or within a university or college.
Sec. 3. Teacher Education Centers of Excellence. —
There shall be identified, designated, established and developed in
strategic places in each of the regions of the country, one or more
centers of excellence for teacher education based on criteria listed
hereunder, assessed and adjudged by the Council. These centers of
excellence shall be initially chosen from among existing public and
private educational institutions by the Teacher Education Council
created under this Act.
Should the need arise, certain centers of excellence for teacher
education at the provincial level may later be identified and developed.
The criteria for identifying schools and colleges as centers of
excellence shall include the following: (a) highly educated,
professionally qualified and experienced faculty dedicated to the
Philosophy, mission, vision and goals of the institution and education;
(b) well-settled students; (c) adequate library, research and study
facilities; (d) competent administrative and support staff; (e)
well-planned and relevant instructional programs; (f) adequate student
development programs; (g) adequate student services; (h) relevant
extension service and outreach programs; (i) percentage of graduates
who become teachers; and (j) such other criteria as may be established
and operationalized by the Teacher Education Council.
The Teacher Education Centers of Excellence shall form a national
network which in turn shall network with elementary schools, high
schools and/or parts thereof for laboratory purposes.
Any center of excellence that is established shall be maintained for at
least five (5) years before any proposal or review is made to transfer
it elsewhere.
Sec. 4. Objectives and Functions of a Center of
Excellence. — The objectives and functions of a center of excellence
shall be to:
(a) Experiment and try out relevant and innovative
pre-service teacher education/training programs;
(b) Organize and coordinate collaborative research on
identified areas for systematic investigation in teacher education as
basis for improving teacher education/training programs;
(c) Serve as teacher resource center for
curricular/instructional materials
development;
(d) Serve as the center mode for networking specific
data;
(e) Provide professional assistance to Teacher
Education Institutions (TEIs) that have expressed the need for such
assistance;
(f) Encourage mutual support among TEIs in the region
for upgrading their programs; and
(g) Facilitate and help expedite accreditation among
TEIs.
Sec. 5. Creation of the Teacher Education Council.
— There shall be a Teacher Education Council composed of eleven (11)
members with the Secretary of Education, Culture and Sports as ex
officio chairman, and three (3) other ex officio members, namely: a
Commissioner of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), a
representative of the National Commission on Culture and Arts (NCAA),
and the Chairman of the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC).
The seven (7) regular members of the Council who shall be appointed by
the President of the Republic of the Philippines are:
(a) Three (3) representatives of centers of teacher
education: one (1) from Luzon, one (1) from the Visayas, and one (1)
from Mindanao who shall take into account the views of the
parents-teachers and community associations, student associations,
nongovernmental organizations, and people organizations concerned with
basic
education;
(b) One (1) representative of science teachers;
(c) One (1) representative of mathematics teachers;
(d) One (1) representative of social studies
teachers; and
(e) One (1) representative of language teachers.
The other officers of the Council shall be elected by the members from
among the regular members.
The members of the Council shall be serve without any compensation but
shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred by them
in carrying out their duties under this Act.
The Council shall meet at least four (4) times a year and hold such
other meetings at the call of the chairman or a majority of its members.
All regular members of the Council shall hold office for a period of
three (3) years.
Sec. 6. Criteria for the Selection of Regular
Council Members. — The criteria for the selection of the regular
Council members are as follows:
(a) Integrity;
(b) Expertise and experience in teacher education;
(c) Recognized as an expert, nationally or
internationally; and
(d) Willingness to serve.
Sec. 7. Powers and Functions of the Council. — The
Council shall have the following powers and functions:
(a) To identify and designate among existing private
and public schools, teacher education institutions as Centers of
Excellence for Teacher Education, at the national, regional, and
provincial levels;
(b) To formulate policies and standards that shall
strengthen and improve the system of teacher education in all existing
public and private schools;
(c) Initiate a periodic review of curricula and
programs for teacher education and training through participatory
methods, such as self-assessment by institutions;
(d) To adopt an adequate and effective system of
incentives such as scholarship grants, loan programs, subsidies,
stipends and other similar benefits and incentives, in order to attract
and encourage outstanding high school graduates whether from public or
private schools, to pursue teacher education;
(e) To encourage the establishment of consortia and
other cooperative arrangements among teacher education schools, public
or private, for greater efficiency and economy in the use of resources;
(f) Design collaborative programs or projects that
will enhance pre-service teacher training, in-service training,
re-training orientation and teacher development;
(g) To direct the conduct of relevant studies as may
be needed in the formulation of policies and in the planning and
successful implementation of plans, programs and projects required in
attaining the purposes of this Act;
(h) To review existing and recommend new legislation
and policies of the government in order to improve teacher education
and promote the welfare of teachers;
(i) To recommend appropriate measures to the
President, Congress, and heads of other government offices and agencies
to improve, enhance and strengthen teacher education; and
(j) To call upon any department, bureau, office, or
government corporation, local government unit and other concerned
agencies for assistance in areas falling within their mandate.
Sec. 8. Secretariat. — The Council shall organize
and appoint a secretariat headed by an executive director, that shall
assist the Council in executing its policies and programs and provide
the necessary administrative support therefore.
Sec. 9. Active Participation of Local Government
Units. — Local government units shall include in their plans, programs,
and projects the development and improvement of teacher education
through the centers of excellence in their respective regions.
SECTION 10. Appropriation. — The sum of One hundred
million pesos (P100,000,000) is hereby authorized to be appropriated
from the income of duty-free shops or otherwise known as the Trust
Liability Account of the Department of Tourism, for the initial
organizational and developmental activities of the Centers and the
Council: provided, however, that not more than five percent (5%) shall
be devoted to Council's expenses. Thereafter, such amount as may
be included in the annual budget of the Department of Education,
Culture and Sports.
SECTION 11. Implementing Rules and Guidelines. — The
Teacher Education Council created under this Act shall promulgate the
implementing rules and regulations sixty (60) days from the approval of
this Act.
SECTION 12. Repealing Clause. — All laws,
presidential decrees, rules or regulations or parts thereof
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or
modified accordingly.
SECTION 13. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take
effect upon its approval.
Approved: August 4, 1994
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