DepEd receives CSC’s approval for reappointment of SHS provisional teachers

The Department of Education (DepEd) received the approval of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to authorize the renewal of the provisional appointments of affected Senior High School (SHS) teachers for School Year (SY) 2022-2023 in the absence of available qualified and licensed teachers.

The CSC Resolution No. 2200353 dated August 18, 2022, rules that the reappointment of SHS provisional teachers first hired in 2016 and 2017 may be allowed, provided that the concerned teachers can show proof that they have taken the licensure exam at least once in the last five years.

It can be recalled that the K to 12 Law allows the hiring of non-licensed teachers to teach specialized subjects in the SHS, on the condition that the provisional teacher should pass the Licensure Examination for Professional Teachers (LEPT) within five years. Due to the ongoing pandemic, however, the administration of the LEPT has been limited, thereby restricting the affected provisional teachers from taking the LEPT since 2020.

In 2021, DepEd requested the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) and CSC to prioritize the plea of the affected SHS provisional teachers first hired in 2016 to be accommodated in the LEPT administration and reappointed beyond the 5-year allowable period. With the recent CSC issuance, they are granted another year of extension of appointment, along with those first hired in 2017.

The CSC has also committed to consider subsequent appeals coming from DepEd should the same factual circumstances exist.

Meanwhile, the Department is currently working closely with the PRC for the reopening of the Online Application System to accommodate SHS provisional teachers who failed to take the previous LEPTs in the scheduled examination this September 2022.

These efforts aim to secure sufficient teachers in the SHS with needed expertise and specialization and to ensure continuous employment and livelihood of SHS teachers, especially amid the pandemic.

DepEd will issue the implementing guidelines of CSC Resolution No. 2200353 to lay down the specific rules and procedures, particularly on complying with the conditions stated in the Resolution.