In the media

Senators urged the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to closely monitor diploma mills offering unaccredited graduate programs after around 100 teachers in Palawan reportedly paid for online courses that were later not recognized. The school involved allegedly offered an unauthorized extension program and is now under investigation. Officials encouraged teachers to verify programs through the Philippine Teacher Education Registry (PhilTER) database, while CHED also acknowledged staffing shortages in regional offices that make monitoring difficult.

The Department of Education (DepEd) of the Philippines has partnered with Open Ownership to strengthen transparency and integrity in education procurement. DepEd manages the country’s largest education budget, making procurement a high-risk area for corruption. The initiative pilots the use of beneficial ownership data to identify hidden conflicts of interest, bid rotation, market concentration and undisclosed links among suppliers. The agreement includes technical assistance and contract analysis to reduce irregularities and aligns with the New Government Procurement Act.

The Department of Education (DepEd), in its continued efforts to promote better transparency in the education sector, rolled out its open data initiative named Project Bukas that discloses datasets on assessment results and school characteristics. Representatives from the public and private sectors and civil society conveyed their support for Project Bukas, highlighting the value of accessible data in better understanding assessment data and informing educational policies and reforms.

Education authorities in the Philippines have signed a Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) to take action against “diploma mills”. The establishment of the JMC is a direct response to the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2), which found an alarming level of unaccredited and substandard programs in higher education, especially in teacher education. The JMC addresses this until 2029 by establishing, among others, an Online National Registry (ONR) and a Quality Assurance Harmonization Committee to create transparency over accredited programs.

The Philippine Department of Education launched the Paaralang Bukas Dashboard, an open data portal providing public access to school-level information on performance, resources, and needs. Designed to enhance transparency and accountability, the initiative empowers parents, teachers, and local governments to monitor education investments and outcomes.

A teachers’ group urged the Department of Education (DepEd) in the Philippines to investigate an alleged “item-for-sale” scheme where public school teaching posts are reportedly sold for cash. The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition condemned the practice, calling it a matter of justice and fairness, and pledged cooperation with DepEd to expose and eliminate corruption in the teacher hiring process.

The Philippine Department of Education has introduced a confidential reporting platform for schools and the public to flag illegal or corrupt activities in procurement processes. This initiative follows audits that raised concerns about past procurement practices and supply contracts. The platform aims to enhance transparency and accountability in the Department’s activities.

During a Senate hearing on Charter change in the Philippines, concerns were raised by education experts regarding the potential risks associated with opening higher education to foreign ownership. An education adviser highlighted the country's reputation for diploma mills, warning that it could attract low-quality foreign universities instead of prestigious institutions. Despite debates over Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) 6 which proposes opening up higher education to foreign ownership, concerns persist regarding the regulation of substandard institutions and the potential commercialization of education.

The Department of Education (DepEd) was asked to take accountability and corruption cases that led to the alleged fire sale of laptops in retail and online stores. The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines said that DepEd failed to pay its contractor in the handling and distribution of billions of pesos worth of laptops to public schools which caused the subcontractors to sell the items to surplus shops to recover their investments. ACT called for a comprehensive report on how DepEd used its funds as well as a concrete plan on how public funds can be recovered, and projects still be realized.

Images of students wearing so-called "anti-cheating hats" during college exams have gone viral on social media in the Philippines. To ensure integrity and honesty in a fun way during exams, a professor at Bicol University College of Engineering asked the students to innovate headwear that would block their ability to see their peers' answer papers. The idea had been effective, and it was implemented for recent mid-term exams sat by hundreds of students at the College in October.