Families working abroad who place their children in Philippine schools overseas that lack proper accreditation may run into trouble once those students attempt to resume their education at home, according to Commission on Filipinos Overseas chairperson Secretary Dante “Klink” Ang III.
Speaking Friday at a media training held at the Development Academy of the Philippines in Tagaytay, Ang explained that diplomas and records earned at unrecognized Philippine schools overseas, or PSOs, could be turned away by institutions back in the country.
“The implied message there is that if you’re enrolling your child in a non-accredited PSO, then there may be problems with that child’s credentials when they circulate back into the Philippine system,” Ang said.
He stressed that schools owe parents honesty about their standing. “Our point is that there should be transparency on the part of these institutions because their children will have problems when they enroll in a Philippine institution, whether in college or anywhere in the basic education sector,” he added.
When credentials fail to gain recognition, Ang noted, affected students might be funneled into bridging programs or assigned to lower grade levels, which translates into extra costs that fall on already stretched family budgets. He pointed out that the very reason overseas workers choose Philippine curricula for their children is the expectation of returning home. “The reason why OFWs enroll their children in the Philippines is that they know they’re going to come back to the Philippines,” he said.
A core part of the problem, Ang said, lies with overseas operations that advertise a Philippine education while holding no endorsement from the Department of Education. He cited a discrepancy uncovered through diplomatic channels: “In Dili, East Timor, there is one recognized Philippine school. However, we found out through our embassy in East Timor that there were six schools that market themselves as Philippine schools.”
Some of these establishments do carry valid permits, though only for narrow purposes. “There are institutions that get a license to operate, basically to teach a vocational skill or even a language offering, but they’re not allowed to teach a basic education curriculum,” Ang said. Others, he added, function informally or through online platforms.
The bulk of complaints, according to Ang, originates in places with sizeable Filipino populations, with the Gulf region standing out as an area where appetite for Philippine-style schooling stays strong.
To counter the issue, the CFO has released advisories naming the Philippine schools abroad that hold legitimate recognition, working alongside DepEd and the governments of host nations. Ang called on schools operating without accreditation to secure a DepEd license, warning that failure to do so could expose them to penalties from the Philippine government.
