THE chairperson of the House of Representatives Committee on Higher and Technical Education on Tuesday urged the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to take firm action against diploma mills and strengthen the quality and oversight of graduate programs in teacher education.
House Committee on Higher and Technical Education Chairperson Jude Acidre made the call following the findings of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (Edcom II), which revealed that many graduate programs prioritize credentials over competence.
According to Edcom II data, more than half of the country’s graduate students are enrolled in education programs. However, many of these programs reportedly fail to produce meaningful research output or contribute to real professional growth. The Commission noted that a growing number of teachers pursue graduate degrees mainly to meet promotion requirements, with little evidence that these degrees enhance teaching quality.
Acidre, who also serves as Edcoim II co-chairperson, said this trend highlights the need to ensure that graduate studies truly fulfill their purpose-improving classroom instruction and teacher capability.
Collecting diplomas
‘THE goal of higher learning for teachers should never be about collecting diplomas. It should be about deepening competence,’ Acidre, a nominee of the party-list group Tingog, said.
‘Too many graduate programs today have become mere ticket requirements for promotion, not real opportunities for growth. We need to bring back the true purpose of education: to form better teachers who can give our students the best possible learning experience.’
He called on CHED to enforce stricter quality assurance standards and to conduct a comprehensive review of existing graduate programs to ensure they contribute to teacher development, rather than serving as mere credentialing exercises.
‘Graduate education must be more than a line in a résumé. It has to be a meaningful journey that helps teachers think critically, teach creatively, and lead with purpose,’ he added. ‘It’s time we put an end to diploma mills that profit from ambition but fail to nurture ability.’
Acidre clarified that tighter oversight is not meant to penalize institutions but to protect educators and students from substandard programs that waste valuable time, money, and effort.
He also supported Edcom II’s recommendation to prioritize graduate programs in science and mathematics education, literacy, inclusive education, and digital learning, which are critical areas in addressing persistent gaps in the Philippine education system.
Acidre said that reforming and strengthening graduate education is essential to restoring public trust in higher education and supporting the country’s long-term learning recovery.
Classroom shortage
MEMBERS of the House’s Makabayan Bloc, meanwhile, filed a resolution urging the chamber to investigate the ‘extremely low performance’ of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) School Building Program under the Duterte and Marcos Jr. administrations amid the worsening classroom shortage in public schools.
Party-list Reps. Antonio Tinio of ACT Teachers, Renee Louise Co of Kabataan and Sarah Jane Elago of Gabriela filed House Resolution 425, directing the Committee on Basic Education and Culture to look into the alarming delays in classroom construction nationwide.
The lawmakers said public school teachers continue to handle overcrowded classes of up to 60 to 80 students, twice the ideal size of 35, owing to DepEd’s poor infrastructure performance.
Data from the National Expenditure Program showed that since 2018, DepEd has repeatedly missed its classroom targets, completing only a fraction of the planned projects each year. The Commission on Audit (COA) also found that in 2023, only 192 classrooms-or 3 percent of the 6,379 target-were built, citing delays in project design and procurement.
During Senate budget hearings, Public Works Secretary Vivencio Dizon disclosed that only 22 of 6,000 targeted classrooms were completed for 2025. Education Secretary Juan Edgardo Angara likewise said only 22,092 classrooms had been built from July 2022 to July 2025, as the DPWH prioritized flood control projects over school buildings.
The lawmakers warned that neglecting classroom construction worsens the learning crisis, with Edcom II reporting that 24.8 million Filipinos were functionally illiterate in 2024.