Over 4 million students enrolled in ALS – DepEd

MANILA, Philippines — Over four million students enrolled in the Alternative Learning System (ALS) in the last six years of the Duterte administration, the Department of Education (DepEd) said yesterday.

Education Secretary Leonor Briones said the ALS is an important legacy of the Duterte administration as more out-of-school youths and adults (OSYAs) have enrolled in the program.

“We are happy that the enrollment rate of the ALS has gone up through the years. The numbers have shown that the department has been putting concerted effort to reach our OSYAs nationwide and give them a chance to have a diploma in all basic education levels,” she said in a statement.

Data from DepEd showed that the yearly average of the number of OSYAs enrolled in ALS under the Duterte administration rose to 80 percent compared to the past two administrations.

This is compared to the average of 377, 842 learners enrolled per year from 2005 to 2015.

“Under the administration of President Duterte and Secretary Liling (Briones), the annual enrollment is at 681,308. We are reaching more out of school youths and adults through this program,” Education Assistant Secretary G.H. Ambat said.

A total of 288 public schools and two private schools in 10 regions are also implementing the ALS-Senior High School program to provide more opportunities to the OSYAs, DepEd said.

The ALS-SHS program was piloted in DepEd Region 5 in 2019, and 62 learners have since been able to obtain their diplomas.

In December 2020, Duterte signed Republic Act 11510 institutionalizing the ALS program and creating the Bureau of Alternative Learning System to provide a parallel system for non-formal education.