Bullying prompts DepEd to allow police outside ‘high-risk’ schools

MANILA — The Department of Education will allow police officers to be deployed and security cameras to be installed outside large “high-risk” schools as its immediate response to the rise in bullying cases this school year.

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Education Secretary Sonny Angara announced the planned security measures after holding DepEd’s largest executive committee meeting yet with other agencies on Monday. April 14—convened after a string of disturbing videos of student violence on campus circulated online.

Bullying cases have climbed almost every year since 2013 based on DepEd data, but officials believe cases have been underreported due to the lack of guidance counselors who can help schools monitor incidents.

Angara on Monday vowed the department would deal with the bullying problem in schools with urgency and “sustained action,” adding that the safety of students “cannot wait for perfect conditions.”

Data presented at the meeting showed the National Capital Region alone recorded 2,500 cases of bullying in the current school year — up from 2,268 in the previous year.

CROSS-AGENCY EFFORT

DepEd this time is enlisting the Philippine National Police to help monitor school perimeters and intervene in serious bullying incidents that cross into criminal behavior, according to its statement on Wednesday, April 16.