Senators eye penalties for parents of student bullies

Senators on Monday raised the possibility of imposing penalties on parents whose children bully classmates, including requiring them to perform community service in schools, as lawmakers reviewed government measures to address the country’s persistent bullying problem.

The proposal surfaced during a joint hearing of the Senate Committee on Basic Education and the Committee on Finance, where lawmakers questioned whether the Department of Education’s (DepEd) current anti-bullying measures are sufficient to curb incidents in schools.

Senator Bam Aquino, education committee chair, said stronger preventive measures and quicker disciplinary action are needed to change the culture surrounding bullying in schools.

“How do we go from being the bullying capital to having a zero-bullying policy? Unang-una, yung preventive—mahalaga ‘yan. Dapat alam ng mga tao na hindi dapat ito ginagawa,” Aquino said.

(How do we go from being the bullying capital to having a zero-bullying policy? First, prevention is important. People must know that this should not be done.)

Aquino also cited proposals that parents should be more directly involved when their children are responsible for bullying.

“And then yung parents, the parents need to be involved here. May nag-suggest online na baka daw yung magulang kailangan rin ipenalize kapag yung mga anak bully,” he said.

(Parents need to be involved here. Someone suggested online that parents should also be penalized if their children are bullies.)

During the hearing, Aquino also stressed that students should be encouraged not to remain passive witnesses to bullying incidents.

“Dapat hindi ganoon yung kultura natin. Yung kultura dapat natin, we step in kapag may inaapi. Dapat we step in right away,” he said.

(That should not be our culture. Our culture should be that when someone is being bullied, we step in right away.)

He said schools should act swiftly when bullying occurs and should not take weeks to respond to incidents of violence.

Senator Raffy Tulfo supported the idea of imposing sanctions against bullies' parents, proposing community service as a possible penalty.

“Tama ka, Mr. Chair, dapat may parusa sa mga magulang. When I say parusa, siguro community service. Tapos ikaw maging janitor sa school,” Tulfo said.

(You’re right, Mr. Chair, there should be punishment for the parents. When I say punishment, perhaps community service, such as serving as janitors in the school.)

For its part, DepEd said it is strengthening programs that encourage students to intervene and report bullying incidents.

Lawyer Razzel Ann Requesto said the department is providing capacity-building programs not only for teachers but also for learners to encourage them to become “upstanders” rather than bystanders when they witness bullying.

She added that DepEd is also developing programs to strengthen parental involvement in bullying prevention, citing recommendations from the Second Congressional Commission on Education.

According to EDCOM II, the Philippines continues to face widespread bullying in schools, with 63% of Grade 5 students reporting being bullied at least once a week, among the highest rates globally.

Lawmakers said the Senate review aims to determine whether existing DepEd policies—including reporting systems and school interventions—are sufficient to address bullying in Philippine schools.

Moreover, Tulfo urged schools and authorities to stop being “reactionary” in handling bullying cases and instead act proactively to prevent incidents.

He said schools, police, local social welfare offices, and the Department of Education (DepEd) should immediately inform parents once bullying incidents are discovered.

“That’s our problem—we are reactionary. What do you do when you find out that a child has been bullied in a certain school? Do you call the parents?” Tulfo said.

He also questioned why investigations often depend on formal complaints, noting that some victims may be too afraid to report bullying.

Bullying linked to lower test scores

During the hearing, lawmakers also discussed how bullying can significantly affect students’ academic performance, citing EDCOM II findings.

EDCOM II technical specialist for basic education Riz Comia said bullying is “a direct driver” of the country’s learning crisis.

“Frequent exposure to bullying is associated with a significant decline in test scores,” Comia told lawmakers.

Citing results from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2019, Comia said students who are bullied weekly scored 41 points lower in Mathematics and 52 points lower in Science compared to those bullied only once a month.

Data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022 also showed that 43% of female learners and 53% of male learners experience bullying multiple times a month.

Meanwhile, findings from the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) revealed that half of Grade 5 students in the Philippines are bullied at least once a month.

Comia also flagged structural issues in schools that hinder efforts to address bullying, including the underreporting of cases and the lack of personnel to handle student behavioral concerns.

She noted that 79% of guidance counselor positions in public schools remain unfilled, despite counselors playing a key role in addressing bullying and other student welfare issues.

Among EDCOM II’s recommendations are allocating more funds and personnel for anti-bullying programs and creating a “discipline officer” position in schools to help manage student behavior concerns.

Lawmakers are currently reviewing Republic Act No. 10627, or the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013, following reports highlighting the prevalence of bullying in Philippine schools.—MCG, GMA Integrated News