Recognizing the role of education in curbing the rising incidences of early pregnancy, sexual violence, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection among the youth, the Department of Education (DepEd) announced that the comprehensive sexuality education will be further strengthened in the classrooms.
“The need to promptly arrest the surge in these cases is increasingly becoming urgent; the young generation is really at risk, that’s why it is imperative to enable them to develop into responsible adolescents capable of making rational decisions based on adequate information and better understanding of reproductive health,” Education Secretary Leonor Briones said in a statement on Saturday.
DepEd issued the Policy Guidelines on the Implementation of the Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) or the DepEd Order No. 31, series of 2018 (DO 31), to help develop responsible youth against the rising risks, Briones noted.
The policy aims to enhance the “holistic wellness of the Filipino adolescents and effectively address their needs for health and protection.”
DepEd further said that recognizing the roles and responsibilities of the school system to “provide learners their right to good health, the policy shall establish a common understanding of CSE key concepts and messages and ensure a clear implementation of CSE protocols in all public and private elementary, junior and senior high schools, learning centers for Special Education (SPED) and Alternative Learning System (ALS), and laboratory schools of state and local universities and colleges (SUCs/LUCs).”