DepEd: Guidelines on Enrollment for School Year 2022–2023

GUIDELINES ON ENROLLMENT FOR SCHOOL YEAR 2022-2023

1. In preparation for the opening of School Year (SY) 2022-2023 on August 22, 2022, and in consideration of the easing of mobility restrictions, the Department of Education (DepEd) will be implementing the enhanced enrollment procedures that are reflective of the current health and safety situation in the country for SY 2022-2023. Consistent with DepEd Order (DO) No. 034, s. 2022 or the School Calendar and Activities for the School Year 2022-2023, the enrollment shall begin on July 25 to August 22, 2022.
2. In this light, DepEd issues the enclosed enhanced policy guidelines restoring the in­ person enrollment as provided in DO 003, s. 2018 and providing options for remote enrollment through various means that adhere to the minimum health and safety standards promulgated by the national government.
3. These enhanced enrollment guidelines shall guide learners, parents, legal guardians, and teachers in the enrollment procedures for Kindergarten, Elementary, Junior High School, and Senior High School, including Alternative Learning System (ALS), for SY 2022-2023. State/ Local Universities and Colleges (SUCs/ LUCs) offering basic education and private schools are encouraged to adopt this policy to their specific contexts.
4. These guidelines shall govern the SY 2022-2023 enrollment. For this purpose, provisions of DO 003, s. 2018 on the eligibility and documentary requirements, registration, tagging, and enrollment recording protocols shall remain in effect.
5. These guidelines shall be posted at the DepEd website and certified copies of this Order shall be registered with the University of the Philippines Law Center-Office of the National Administrative Register (UP LC-ONAR), UP Dillman, Quezon City.
6. For more information, please contact the Planning Service-Education Management Information System Division, Department of Education Central Office, DepEd Complex, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City through email at [email protected].
7. Immediate dissemination of and strict compliance with this Order is directed.

Guidelines on Enrollment for School Year 2022-2023 in the Context of the Re­ introduction of the In-person Classes

I. Rationale

The unprecedented success of the pilot implementation and progressive expansion of in-person classes provide DepEd with concrete evidence and solid experience on how to safely reopen the schools nationwide. Consistent with the provisions of DO No. 34,
s. 2022 and in preparation to the the resumption of the 5 days in-person classes that will start on November 2, 2022, the Department considered the conduct of the in­ person enrollment in schools.

For the past two (2) school years, remote enrollment has been largely implemented as the main enrollment procedure due to the restrictions imposed by the health authorities . Within these periods, learners can be enrolled through phone calls, text messages, online messaging through the platforms of Facebook Messenger, Viber, and email messaging. Dropbox enrollment was also one of the options given to parents/ legal guardians who have been affected by the health alert levels implemented in the various parts of the country.

The enrollment process is one of the key activities of DepEd conducted in preparation for the school year opening. In light of this, the DepEd issues these Guidelines on Enrollment for School Year 2022-2023 in the Context of the Re-introduction of the In-person Classes in order to enhance the procedure and clarify the roles of key stakeholders in the enrollment process. The guidelines will also introduce improvements in the reporting mechanisms, the Enhanced Basic Education Enrollment Form (BEEF), and the encoding procedure in the Learner Information System (LIS).

II. Scope

These guidelines shall provide guidance to school heads, teachers, and parents/ legal guardians regarding the new enrollment process for SY 2022-2023, which will start on July 25, 2022 to August 22, 2022.

The procedures and policies set forth under these guidelines shall be adopted by all public schools in basic education including Alternative Learning System (ALS). State/ Local Universities and Colleges (SUCs/ LUCs) offering basic education and private schools in basic education are encouraged to adopt this policy to their specific contexts.

These guidelines shall apply for SY 2022-2023. The provisions on DO No. 03, s. 2018, which discusses the eligibility and documentary requirements in the registration, tagging, and enrollment -recording protocols shall remain in effect.

Ill. Definition of Terms

For the purpose of this policy, the following terms are defined and understood as follows:

a. ALS Enrollment Focal Person (AEFP) – ALS teacher designated by the School Head as in-charge of receiving the ALS enrollment form and responding to queries related to ALS in schools offering ALS

b. Balik-Aral Learner – a learner who went back to school and resumed study after year/s of dropping out or discontinuing study.

c. Date of First Attendance (DOFA) – refers to the date of Learner’s first attendance in class or learning session.

d. Dropbox Enrollment – type of remote enrollment strategy where parents/ legal guardians may just drop the accomplished Enhanced Basic Education Enrollment Form (Enhanced BEEF) in the enrollment dropbox or kiosk/ booth, whichever is appropriate, located in front of the school gate, in front of the Barangay halls and other strategic locations that are accessible to parents/ legal guardians.

e. Grade Level Enrollment Chair (GLEC) – personnel assigned to manage and facilitate a smooth enrollment process for a specific grade level, particularly in medium and big schools.

f. In-person Classes – a mode of instruction wherein learners and/or teachers are physically interacting in the classroom/learning centers.

g. Enhanced Basic Education Enrollment Form (Enhanced BEEF) – the official enrollment form for basic education , which will be used to register learners for the school year. This form is not subject to any modification since it is the national standard form.

h. Modified ALS Form 2 (ALS Enrollment Form) – a basic information sheet of individuals who signified interest to enroll in ALS Program.

i. Remote enrollment – a process of registering learners conducted without face­ to-face interaction.

j. School Enrollment Focal Person (SEFP) – personnel designated by the school to oversee the overall conduct of enrollment and shall receive all Enhanced Enrollment Forms submitted by parents/ legal guardians.

IV. Policy Statement

The herein guidelines shall provide a range of options relating to the enrollment of learners for all public schools in basic education and ALS programs nationwide for SY 2022-2023 . It will seek to ensure continued access to learning opportunities through the conduct of an enrollment process that is efficient, safe, and in line with minimum health and safety standards.

V. Enrollment Procedures

Enrollment for SY 2022-2023 shall primarily be administered through the following:

1) In-person enrollment. This may be done in the schools where parents and/or learners can physically process the enrollment while observing minimum health and safety standards (i.e., wearing of facemask, temperature checks upon entry, availability of alcohols, and physical distance).

2) Remote enrollment. This can be facilitated by filling out of the digital forms and sending it through the official email address of the school or through any of the available messaging platforms provided by the school.

3) Enrollment through dropbox forms. Parents/ legal guardians or the learners may fill out the forms in their homes and physically submit it through dropboxes in the schools where the learners are to be enrolled. Alternatively, schools may establish a dropbox in front of the school, in every Barangay Hall, or in any other visible location where parents and legal guardians can get the printed copy of the BEEF and submit the filled up Form in the same dropbox.

The School Enrollment Focal Person (SEFP) shall receive all submitted enrollment forms and turn them over to grade level coordinators (if applicable), who shall then distribute them to prospective advisers. Prospective advisers shall encode the Enhanced BEEF (see Annex I) in the LIS Beginning of School Year (BOSY) Facility and register the DOFA of the learner.

Specific Instructions to Parents/Legal Guardians and Enrollees

1. For in-person enrollment

The parents or legal guardians of Kindergarten, Grade 7, and Grade 11 learners shall communicate/ reaffirm their intent to enroll their children to a school of their choice via physical enrollment and submission of the Enhanced BEEF. Learners may also enroll themselves, provided that their Enhanced BEEF are signed by their parent or legal guardian.

Grades 1 to 6, Grades 8 to 10, and Grade 12 learners who have existing accounts in the LIS (i.e., have Learner Reference Numbers [LRNs]) will still need to update their information by filling out the Enhanced BEEF. It is the responsibility of the concerned school personnel to ensure that the updated information is reflected in the LIS.

2. For remote enrollment (email or any available messaging platform by the school)

Schools shall make the Enhanced BEEF available both in digital and print format. The digital format of the Enhanced BEEF shall be made accessible/ downloadable from the websites of the Central Office, Regional Offices (ROs), Schools Division Offices (SDOs) and Schools. It shall also be made available in the LIS Support page. Filled-up digital copy of the BEEF shall be submitted through the official email address of the school which shall be made available by the school authorities or through available messaging platforms by the school.

3. For Enrollment using dropboxes

Alternatively, schools may establish a dropbox in front of the school, in every Barangay Hall, or in any other visible location where parents and legal guardians can get the printed copy of the BEEF and submit the filled up Form in the same dropbox.

ROs and SDOs shall maintain or activate hotlines that they established during the last year’s enrollment period. They can also set up other communication lines that are dedicated for Oplan Batik Eskwela which will help in disseminating information and responding to queries regarding enrollment procedures.

4. For ALS enrollees

ALS enrollees may communicate their intent to enroll via digital and / or physical enrollment platforms established by schools and barangays with community learning centers (CLCs). Modified ALS Form 2 (Annex 2) shall be used for this purpose . This form will be made available in digital and physical format. The summary of the ALS enrollment shall be submitted by each mobile teacher to the Education Program Specialist for ALS (EPSA).

A. Protocol for Enhanced General Enrollment

This section guides teachers and school administrators in determining how to implement the enhanced general enrollment and provides procedures under major stages in this process-pre-data collection, data collection, and data retrieval.

1. Pre-Data Collection

a. Designate School Enrollment Focal Person (SEFP), Grade Level Enrollment Chair (GLEC) and ALS Enrollment Focal Person (AEFP)

School heads shall designate an SEFP who will oversee the overall conduct of enrollment in the school, whether in-person or remote. For schools with a higher capacity to accept enrollees, a GLEC may be designated by the school head to facilitate the smooth implementation of enrollment procedures in their respective grade levels. The GLEC shall receive all Enhanced BEEFs and tum them over to prospective class advisers.

All schools are directed to receive all accomplished ALS enrollment forms in their locality. School heads may designate an AEFP, particularly in schools hosting a school-based ALS class. The designated AEFP shall receive all accomplished ALS enrollment forms and shall coordinate with their Division ALS Focal Person in processing the ALS enrollment Forms.

b. Deadline for submission of documentary requirements

The deadline for the submission of documentary requirements under Section V-A of DO No. 03, s. 2018 shall be on October 31, 2022 for both public and private schools.

Only schools and their personnel shall transmit the learners’ records, whether internally (e.g. between a learner ‘s previous and incoming class advisers) or externally (i.e. between schools). Schools shall not compel learners and/ or their parents/ legal guardians to take responsibility in the transmission of school records. This is in accordance with DepEd Order No. 54, s. 2016 (Guidelines on the Request and Transfer of Learner’s School Records).

c. Option to transmit electronic format/scanned copy of credential document for specific grade levels

For Grade 6 graduates and Grade 10 completers who already enrolled in Grade 7 and Grade 11, respectively, transmission of the scanned copy of Form 137/ SFlO, together with other supporting or attached document to the receiving school is an option, provided that the request was made thru LIS portal -Tracking/ Transfer facility, as instructed in Deped Order 54, s. 2016 (Guidelines on the Request and Transfer of Learner’s School Records)The school official email ([email protected]) shall be used in the sending/ receiving of the records by both schools. The option to transmit the scanned credentials/ documents through the official email, instead of sending the hard copies of the documents, is also applicable for kindergarten completers who opted to transfer and enroll to Grade 1 in another school. ALS Teachers may also use this option in sending electronic/ scanned copies of Portfolio Assessment Passer Certificate for Elementary and Junior HS completers who enrolled in Grade 7 and Grade 11, respectively.

The school/ ALS Teacher who receives the scanned copy of document is hereby reminded that there is no need for the originating school to compel the submission of the physical copies of the said requirements.

d. Disseminate information on enrollment procedures

The DepEd shall disseminate the information on the enrollment procedures to the public through print , social media, radio, and television . Schools shall publish the contact number of schools and/or designated teachers for queries and enrollment procedures.

Parents, legal guardians, and learners may access and download the Enhanced BEEF at the DepEd website or obtain copies of it from the school upon enrollment. While teachers may also download the said form from the Learner Information System (LIS).

e. Encourage stakeholder participation

The Active participation of stakeholders is crucial to the success of the enrollment process . DepEd shall exhaust all available means to engage stakeholders from information dissemination to the actual conduct of the enrollment.

Parents/legal guardians shall be encouraged to proactively communicate with school authorities during the enrollment period .

2. Data collection and Reporting

Learners and/ or their parents / legal guardians shall use printed Enhanced BEEFs as the main document for enrollment in their school of choice. However, schools may also adopt various means in the collection of Enhanced BEEFs.

a. Establishment of digital and physical platforms

Schools shall provide specific instructions to guide the submission of the Enhanced BEEF by the parents/ legal guardians of prospective enrollees, especially transferees, kindergarten, Balik-Aral and ALS learners who obtained it from enrollment booths/ kiosks.

b. Enrollment Quick Count Reporting

There will be a daily reporting of enrollment count and summary result of Enhanced BEEF and ALS Modified AF-2 from the start of enrollment period until one month after the opening of classes using the Quick Count Facility in LIS. Instruction and system tutorial guide will be made available through the LIS support tab.

c. LIS Encoding

c. 1. Enrollment and Tracking in LIS

Following the same process in updating the enrollment status of learners at the Beginning of School Year (BOSY Encoding) , the enrollment status of learners in the school’s registry shall be updated based on their SF 9 (Learner Progress Report Card).

For this purpose, the class adviser shall encode collected learner data from the Enhanced BEEF in the LIS.

Public and private schools shall start their encoding/ updating of Enhanced BEEF data in the LIS BOSY module starting the first week of opening of classes. All schools are directed to enroll all of their learners who are attending classes.

c.2. Transferred Out from Private School with Unsettled Financial Obligation

For learners who moved / transferred out from Private Schools but still have outstanding financial obligations, the receiving public school is instructed to accommodate the learner and assist the parent in the execution of an affidavit of undertaking, as stipulated in DO No. 03, s. 2018. The originating Private School, within thirty (30) calendar days upon receipt of electronic notification of transfer through LIS Portal – Tracking/Transfer Facility, is requested to review the validity of the request and take required action by confirming the transfer request and clicking the unsettled account check box to tag/ mark in the system that the learner is just Temporarily Enrolled in the current school, consistent with Section V-C of DO No. 03, s. 2018 which states that such learners “shall be required to submit an Affidavit of Undertaking, signed by parent / guardian in order to be temporarily enrolled“.

To ensure timely and accurate reporting of learner ‘s movement from one school to another, the Division LIS System Administrator or the Division Planning Officer is reminded to monitor compliance of private & public schools concerned and maintain proper utilization of LIS particularly, the Tracking System which is intended to monitor the physical transfer of learners. Any malicious intent/ misutilization of LIS Tracking System

that result in delays or in pending transfer transactions between schools shall be reported to the Office of the Schools Division Superintendent for appropriate action, in relation to DepEd Order 14, s. 2016.

c.3. Transfer From ALS Program to Formal

The class adviser is directed to enroll the learners in LIS as soon as the latter starts attending classes. Enrollment eligibility and presentation of supporting documents as stipulated in Deped Order 3, 2018 is still applicable, except for enrollment that requires ALS A&E Certificate, Portfolio Assessment Certificate shall be used for SY 2022-2023.

c.4. Transfer From Formal to ALS Program or From ALS CLC to another CLC

The ALS Teachers shall encode the learner’s information in the LIS using the duly accomplished and signed Modified ALS Form 2 with supporting documents establishing the identity of the learner.

c.5 Data retrieval

The Central Office (CO} shall retrieve new data pertaining to the Enhanced BEEF from the LIS and process the results. ROs and SDOs shall also be given access and provide monitoring dashboard keep an update to the new data and the processed results in the Quick Count Facility.