The Department of Education (DepEd) said on Monday that it goals to expand its school-based mental health and anti-bullying program by involving parents in strengthening learners’ well-being and protection.
“As a parent myself, I know the way heavy the responsibility of caring for and guiding a toddler could be,” Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” M. Angara said in Filipino in an announcement.
“When families and schools work together in shaping values and making a higher understanding of what children are going through, learners are higher supported, and the work of teachers becomes lighter,” he added.
The Kaagapay program, which goals to align the values taught in schools with parental upbringing, will probably be implemented through parent engagement sessions and advocacy campaigns.
“The sessions are structured to assist parents situate their role inside DepEd’s curriculum and learner development priorities before moving into learning discussions on socio-emotional and values support, positive discipline, bullying awareness, and residential–school–community partnership,” the DepEd said.
Although participation is voluntary, the agency underscored that each one parents and caregivers of public school students are encouraged to take part in the sessions to stop stigma and ensure proper representation of various family structures and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Sessions could also be conducted face-to-face, modular, and asynchronous to cater to oldsters’ different schedules and circumstances.
The DepEd added that the rollout of the Kaagapay program, which has a P100 million budget allocation, complements the P2.9-billion allocation for the School-Based Mental Health Program, which incorporates suicide prevention in schools.
In 2025, several school-based violence were reported, prompting the federal government to strengthen mechanisms for reporting and addressing incidents involving child abuse, bullying, violence, exploitation, discrimination plus gang-related activities on campus.
A lawmaker has also pushed for the designation of mental health counselors in all public schools, including state universities and colleges, to reverse the “disturbingly increasing rates” of depression, anxiety, and even self-harm or suicidal ideation amongst young Filipinos.
Under House Bill 163, or “Mental Health and Digital Wellbeing for Youth Act of 2025” by Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. Vincenzo Renato Luigi R. Villafuerte, it mandates annual mental health screenings, the establishment of secure spaces for emotional processing, and training programs for teachers in trauma-informed and empathy-based approaches.— Almira Louise S. Martinez