Claim: The proposed budget of the Department of Education (DepEd) aims to scrap the K to 12 Basic Education Program.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim has over 4,600 reactions, 845 comments, and 193,081 views on YouTube, as of writing.

Different priorities: Vice President and concurrent Education Secretary Sara Duterte did not mention scrapping the K to 12 Program during the budget hearing for the DedEd on September 14, 2022. 

Duterte said during the hearing that the proposed DepEd budget for 2023 is focused on the safe reopening of classes, improvement of school facilities, modernization of teaching equipment, and the increase in the number of teachers.  

Review on K to 12 done: Duterte said during the budget hearing that the education department is already done with the review of the K to 12 curriculum. Duterte told reporters on June 20, 2022, that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. gave instructions to review the curriculum.

• What’s next? The education secretary said the review will go through presentations to gather comments and suggestions from all sectors which will be used to come up with a “new curriculum for the K to 12 Program.”

No immediate changes: Duterte said in the hearing that any changes in the current curriculum will take time to be implemented. “During our discussions, it will take two to three years for us to implement a new curriculum for the K to 12,” Duterte said.

Mandated by law: The DepEd said on May 20, 2019, that they cannot just “arbitrarily discontinue the program” because the K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum is mandated by law under Republic Act (R.A.) 10533, or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013.

“As with any law, the implementation, amendment, expansion, or repeal of the K to 12 Program is within the ambit of the legislative branch of the government comprised of the Senate of the Philippines and the House of Representatives,” the DepEd said.

Previously fact-checked: Similar claims that alleged Sara Duterte will scrap the K to 12 Program were fact-checked by Rappler before. – Lorenz Pasion/Rappler.com

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