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DepEd Policy on Educational Field Trips

DepEd Order No. 56, s. 2001

To:

Bureau Directors
Regional Directors
Schools Division/City Superintendents
Public Elementary and Secondary School Principals

In view of queries on the holding of field trips by public schools in the light of the policy of no collection of fees during enrollment, the following clarification is being made:

  1. This Office has not issued any circular banning the holding of educational field trips by public schools.
  2. Educational field trips can supplement classroom instruction. But this depends on the places visited, i.e. cultural, historical and scientific interest such as the National Museum, Museo Pambata, provincial/local museums, Science Centrum, Planetarium, zoological/botanical gardens, historical sites/shrines, model manufacturing or technological firms or scientific sites.
  3. Recognizing, however that such trips involve certain monetary costs which may be unaffordable to students coming from poor families and who therefore are not able to join, teachers should refrain from conducting tests based on these field trips. Should it be decided that tests will be held based on these field trips, students who were unable to join such trips should not be penalized; they shall be given special tests or assignments as substitutes for not joining the field trip.
  4. School heads are encouraged to tap external sources such as local government units, civic organizations and PTCAs to help fund educational field trips and arrange for group or student discounts in order to reduce the burden on students.
  5. Those responsible for organizing the field trips should secure the consent of parents for their children to join the field trip since the children are under the stewardship of the school.
  6. Educational field trips should never be used to generate income for the school or for school officials/teachers organizing them. Students should only be charged for actual costs for transportation, entrance fees and related expenses.

Immediate and wide dissemination of the foregoing clarification is hereby directed.

RAUL S. ROCO
Secretary


 

IMPLEMENTING STRICT GUIDELINES ON THE CONDUCT OF FIELD TRIPS AS AN EDUCATIONAL OUT-OF-CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

1. The conduct of a field trip must be treated as a school-based activity, thus, the school head must appear as the main proponent. Understandably, the policies articulated in DepEd Order No. 56, s. 2001 and DepEd Order No. 50, s. 2003 are fully complied by the proponent.

2. In addition to the required compliance in Item No. 1, prior to the conduct of the field trip outside Region (), a project proposal must be prepared and must be forwarded to the Schools Division Superintendent by the school head. The Curriculum and Implementation Division will evaluate the rationale, objectives, and places to be visited to ensure its educational value in the light of the standards of the different learning areas in the K to 12 Curriculum. On the other hand, the School Governance and Operations Division, will evaluate the full conformance of the following to be attached to the project proposal:

a. security and safety plan including the people in-charge and accountable for the full security and safety of the pupils/students,
b. abstract of the field trip with the attachment of the shopping conducted to prospective providers, and
c. detailed breakdown of the actual cost without any additional cost to be shouldered by the pupils/students (e.g. raise fund for school projects, incentives).

3. Schools Division Superintendents must ensure the completion of all the mentioned requirements in Item No. 2 before the official endorsement of the request to the Regional Office 15 days before the actual date of the field trip.

4. All requests for field trips are subject for evaluation and approval.

5. Strict compliance to this Memorandum is directed.

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10 thoughts on “DepEd Policy on Educational Field Trips”

  1. Hi my children ate force to pay for fieldtrip, even if we’re not going to join, ang mga anak ko po ay mahiluhin sa byahe at dahil sa pandemic pa, i refuse to join, but the directress of the school is forcing us to pay for the trip, tama po ba ang ginagawa nila?

    Reply
  2. Children are being blackmailed to join the fieldtrip. They are giving a hard time to students who will not join the fieltrip by giving numerous projects, projects in which a grader cant do. Can we file a complaint? Thanks

    Reply
  3. Back in school year 2012-2013, I was asked to join the group of parent volunteers to help accompany my daughter’s class of grade 2s. Our itinerary was Manila Ocean Park in the morning then Museo Pambata in the afternoon.

    Both places were suitable for grade 2 pupils which were aged 6-8 year old. The only problem was the facilitator which was hired by our school.

    Weeks before the said field trip, all parent volunteers and students participating were given a seminar. According to Lakbay, they are well equipped to handle even kids as young as the grade 2s. They also said that they have a van for first aid, which we were all happy to learn.

    The head of the facilitators was assigned to our bus, which made us mommies more confident that everything will be fine. On the day of the field trip, each parent has been assigned 2-3 kids to monitor. One of the kid I was assigned to had stomach ache since she got in the bus. I asked the leader of the facilitator Lakbay if we can at least give the kid a hot compress (I believed they have in the medical van). She kept on diverting the topic, saying that she is an expert mountaineer, she always brings with her the balm which she put on the kid’s tummy. After our first stop (in Manila ocean park), the pain still was not relieved. I asked again the head facilitator if we could let the kid have hot compress for her tummy. Again, it was diverted to the balm. Our next stop was lunch in mcdonalds. The kid couldn’t come out of the bus due to excruciating pain. The driver of the bus (which was hired by the facilitator) got mad at us when all the other kids already alighted the bus and we were the only people left. We had to carry the kid out of the bus going to mcdonalds. Also it was drizzling during that time, that we were not able to use umbrella since we didn’t have free hands to hold it. What’s worst, the facilitator asked hot water in a plastic cup from mcdonalds which she instructed me to put on the tummy of the kid. How unsafe was that!!! The kid could have burned herself. Turn out, the facilitator who was bragging of their van for first aid, did not bring any hot compress. I believe hot compress should be part of it.

    I hope schools will not trust facilitator Lakbay ever again. I also heard from some parents that older kids were intentionally bumped by some workers during field trips. Yet the facilitators never cared.

    What I observed during field trip, the facilitators just join then mingle together with their co-facilitators, then, never even bother to assist the kids.

    Reply
  4. The point of the Deped are really true. Field trips are big help for students’ academic performances. Their thinking skills will be wider.

    Reply
    • Hi can ask if this memo is also applicable in private schools? My kids’ school is forcing us to join the ft eventhough we already been there previous field trips before. And ask for a partial payment if we don’t.. pls help tnx

      Reply
      • Same here, and I dont want to allow my kid to join on their field trip which is swimming somewhere in bulacan. Swimming is somewhat educational for them, even they dont teach kids to swim.

        Reply

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