What are the legal bases oI the Alternative Learning

System?
Constitution oI the Philippines 1987, Art. XIV, Sec. 15
Executive Order No. 117 Sec. 115
DepEd Order No. 32, 1972
Proclamation No. 480
DECS Memo No. 204, 2. 1998
DECS Order Nos. 22 and 28, s. 1999
What is the ALS Accreditation and Equivalency Test?
The ALS A&E Test Iormerly the NonIormal Education
A&E Test is one oI the Iour
components oI the ALS A&E (then NFE A&E). It oIIers
the successIul test takers
certiIication oI learning achievements at two learning levels
Elementary and Secondary
that is comparable to the Iormal school system. The ALS
A&E Tests in both levels are
standardized paper and pencil-based tests and use multiple-
choice test and composition
writing. The test items are based on the learning
competencies oI the Iive learning strands
oI the ALS Curriculum.
Who are the target clienteles oI the ALS A&E Test?
The target learners / clienteles oI the ALS A&E Test are
Filipino Out-oI-School Youth (OSY)
and Adults at least 11 years old (Ior elementary level test)
and at least 15 years old (Ior the
secondary level test) who are basically literate. They may
include:
unemployed/underemployed OSYs and adults
elementary and secondary school drop-outs/leavers
industry-based workers, housewives, maids, Iactory
workers, drivers
members oI cultural minorities / indigenous peoples
persons with disabilities / physically challenged
inmates, rebel / soldier integrees
Most oI these target
learners live below
the poverty line,
predominantly
coming Irom
depressed,
disadvantaged,
underserved
communities.
What does a prospective test taker do to prepare himselI /
herselI Ior the test?
A test taker may either be a learner/attendee or completer
oI the ALS A&E Learning
Support Delivery (LSDS) System, a learning intervention
designed to help equip the
prospective test taker with the necessary competencies to
prepare him/her Ior the test. The
test is largely based on prior learning. Through the test,
and OSY is still encouraged to
attend the learning interventions to upgrade his/her
knowledge and skills acquired Irom
experiences What does one beneIit aIter passing the ALS
A&E Test?
A test passer oI either the Elementary or Secondary Level
gets a certiIicate which bears the
signature oI the Secretary oI the Department oI Education.
This allows a passer to
mainstream in the educational system oI the country. It
oIIers him/her the Iollowing
opportunities:
enroll in post secondary courses (technical / vocational,
two / Iour / Iiveyear course) oI the CHED (Ior private
colleges and universities) and
PASUC (Ior government owned / controlled) member
institutions;
access to MFI and TESDA skills training programs; and
acquire eligibility Ior government employment positions.
What is the ALS A&E Test made oI?
The test is divided into 2 parts: the Multiple Choice Tests
and the Composition Writing. The
test runs Ior 3 hours and 30 minutes Ior the Elementary
Level and 4 hours and 15 minutes
Ior the Secondary Level.
The test covers the Iollowing strands (subject areas):
ELEMENTARY : 3 hours and 30 minutes
Multiple Choice - 3 hours
Bahagi I (Communication) - 40 minutes
Bahagi II (Problem Solving & Critical Thinking - 60
minutes
Bahagi III (Sustainable Use oI Resources & Productivity) -
40 minutes
Bahagi IV (Dev`t. oI SelI & Expanding One`s World
Vision) - 40 minutes
Composition Writing - 30 minutes
SECONDARY :
Multiple Choice - s s
Bahagi I (Komunikasyon sa Filipino) - 45 minutes
Bahagi II (English Communication) - 30 minutes
Bahagi III (Problem Solving & Critical Thinking) -
60 minutes
Bahagi IV (Sustainable Use oI Resources &
Productivity) - 45 minutes
Bahagi V (Dev`t. oI SelI & Expanding One`s Wold
Vision) - 45 minutes
Composition Writing -
How does one register Ior the A&E Test?
For the next ALS A&E Test (to be held on February 2008),
registration will be held Irom
September 3, 2007 up to November 23, 2007. The
prospective test taker / registrant shall
accomplish the registration Iorm and shall:
provide any oI the Iollowing documents as prooI oI their
identity:
copy oI birth certiIicate
copy oI marriage contract
Iorm 137
voter`s ID
postal ID
TIN card
driver`s license
passport provide all required data and aIIix their
signature on the space provided it;
provide two copies oI their latest 1 x 1 photo;
submit accomplished registration Iorm to test registration
oIIicer; and
get the lower portion oI the registration Iorm Ior
presentation to the Examiner on
the day oI the test.
Where does one take the A&E Test? When is the test?
A prospective test taker shall register at designated
registration centers nationwide. List oI
these centers will be posted on this site on or beIore August
25, 2007. QualiIied test takers
shall come back to the same venue Ior the administration oI
the A&E Test on the Iollowing
dates:
The ALS A&E Test Iormerly known as the NonIormal
Education A&E Test is a paper and pencil test. The test is
designed to measure the competencies oI those who have
not Iinished either the Iormal elementary or secondary
education. Passers oI this test are given a
certiIicate/diploma (which bears the seal and the signature
oI the Department Secretary) certiIying their competencies
as comparable to graduates oI the Iormal school system.
Hence, they are qualiIied to enroll in high school (Ior
elementary level passers) and to enroll in college (Ior
secondary level passers).

Who are the target clienteles oI the ALS A&E Test?
* An elementary dropout (not enrolled in the current school
year), who is at least 11 years old on or beIore the day oI
the test, may take the elementary level ALS A&E Test
* A high school dropout (not enrolled in the current school
year), who is at least 15 years old on or beIore the day oI
the test, may teake the secondary level ALS A&E Test
* Non-passers oI previous ALS A&E Tests
* Youth and adults although in-school but overaged Ior
Grade 6 (more than 11 years old) or Ior 4th year (more than
15 years old)
* Non-passers oI previous ALS A&E Test/s

Others (at least basically literate) who may be:
* unemployed/underemployed OSYs and adults
* industry-based workers, housewives, maids, Iactory
workers, drivers
* members oI cultural minorities/indigenous peoples (IPs)
* persons with disabilities (PWDs)/physically challenged
* inmates, rebel/soldier integrees

What does a prospective test taker do to prepare Ior the
test?
* may see an ALS OIIicial oI the DepEd Division OIIice
nearest to him/her to get basic inIormation on A&E
learning program
* may enroll in the ALS A&E learning program designed
to help equip the prospective test taker with the necessary
competencies to upgrade his/her knowledge and skills
acquired Irom liIe experience

What does one beneIit aIter passing the ALS A&E Test?
A secondary level test passer is given a chance to
mainstream in the Iormal education system oI the country
like:
* enroll in post secondary courses (technical/vocational,
two/Iour/Iive-year course) oI the CHED (Ior private
colleges and universities DepEd Memo #101 s.2001) and
PASUC (Ior government owned/controlled DepEd Memo
#344 s.2000) member institutions;
* access to MFI (DepEd Memo #533 s.2000) and TESDA
(DepEd Order #110 s.1999) skills training programs;
* and a chance to acquire eligibility Ior government
employment positions under CSC Resolution No. 499
(DepEd Order #20, s. 2000).

An elementary level test passer is qualiIied to enroll as
Ireshman in the secondary level education.
Is there real education beyond the classroom? How should
that Basic Learning Need be availed and be useIul to one`s
liIe and journey?
To start IulIilling the promise I made re; the origin, vision
and philosopy oI ALS, I reproduce below the message I
penned to the Teacher Education and Development Loop
years ago:
It`s a matter oI great academic and technical interest to all
members oI the Loop, hence, I Ieel constrained to respond
to this latest posting on the ALS Alternative Education
question via the TEDPLoop.
This is also intended to reach the bigger education
community (especially the DepEd) to understand the
antecedents and rationale oI this 'systemic educational
innovation introduced by the Education Ior All (EFA) Plan
oI Action 1991-1999, put in place by the ADB-Iunded
NonIormal Education Project (1993) and recognized and
awarded by the UNESCO through its prestigious Nomah
Prize in 1997. Ultimately, the Republic Act 9155 not only
legalized the term but also institutionalized the concept and
its Iuture program translation. The Inter-Agency
Committee on Education Statistics (IACES) has also
Iollowed suit and adopted the rightIul deIinition oI the
term.
All oI us did not only have angst (we also had reservation)
about the term 'alternative way back in the 1990-91
consultations beIore we enshrined it in the EFA-PPA.
To Iind better justiIication, we had reIerence to the
'Alternative Education Program which the Association oI
Major Religious Superiors and their lay supporters
espoused in the early 80's (with the late Dr. Malu Doronila
as spokesperson). However we Iound that the 'alternative
spoken oI was really just the 'other kinds or persuasion oI
contents oI what Filipinos should learn to respond to the
socio-political Ierment at that time. These things were still
largely very much about school-based learning. Other than
the contents or curriculum, there was not seen any need Ior
alternative to Iormal education or schooling.
In short, aIter many workshops and collecting the doubts
and objections to the term, we still ended up with the term
ALS in 1991. Why, because in essence, the point oI
reIerence was the school AND WHAT WE COULD DO
(LEARN, TEACH, RESEARCH, ETC) OUTSIDE THE
SCHOOL SYSTEM which pedagogically, Iinancially,
technically and socially, had so many limitations as
Ioreseen by the original prophetess oI the ALS, Dr. Liceria
Brillantes Soriano, the Iounding Director oI the
INNOTECH. During the last Iew months oI her liIe when
we heard her articulate the natural constraints oI schooling
in bringing about real education, we did not really have any
inkling that we would call that banana ALS. All we had in
mind was to Iind what appropriate term would best
describe the vision,the program and the setup and the
eventual machinery to carry it out.
Why is it a system? (or a subsystem to be more accurate).
First, schooling or the school system was seen as something
synonymous with the educational system. We all grew up
with that idea that education means schools and schooling.
Yet, we all realized that there is a much larger world oI
learning where people can learn or acquire education
(Iormally, nonIormally and inIormally). It has become a
universal truth that learning (sometimes a better one) is not
a monopoly oI the establishment called schools. In a way,
the ALS is really a subsystem oI the total learning system
which the EFA PPA 1 sought to reconIigure in 1991. Its
graphical illustration can be sent upon request.
ALS just Iollowed this line oI reality and truth: there must
be an alternative way oI learning which need not be
conducted or take place in the well-established system
called schools or within the Iour walls oI the classroom.
That set up, NOT JUST THE LEARNING CONTENTS,
must be the ALTERNATIVE to the school system. The
truth is that there is a better classroom according to the
Mother oI Philippine EFA, Dr. Lourdes Quisumbing: THE
WORLD IS THE CLASSROOM, she philosophically
proclaimed during the launching oI the EFA 1.
I think it is time to get over the angst or other nasty notions
we might associate with the world 'alternative. Director
Carol Guerrero oI the Bureau oI Alternative Learning
System could not have justiIied it in a better way: It is an
alternative with the best and legitimate intention and it is an
alternative that works (and can succeed, iI I may add).
Much oI our problem, I think, is that certain connotations
stick like a sore thumb and we cannot just shed them oII
Irom our mindset. It`s the same way with which the 'Grand
Alliance Ior EFA was received and perceived in 1991.
Despite being enshrined in the World Declaration oI EFA
as one oI the cardinal principles around which EFA was to
be pursued, Filipinos still viewed it with suspicions and
something akin to the Iamous or inIamous Grand Alliance,
a political coalition that was born in the early 60's. Until
now, the Jomtien and Dakar Declarations, notwihstanding,
people are still aIIected with unexplained and unknown Iear
about the term Grand Alliance. But that`s the way it is with
its noble philosophy, and we have legitimately constituted
the National Committee on EFA (PPA 1) and EFA
National Committee (2001-2015) as the expression oI the
Philippine Grand Alliance Ior EFA.
For practical, social and legal reasons, we had to create an
artiIicial boundary Ior the original ALS. (Note that the
CHED and TESDA -launched ETEEAP is a higher or post-
basic education level oI ALS). Because oI our commitment
to Universal Primary Education which should be
COMPULSORY, ALS should preIerably be oIIered and
availed by learners who already had enough Ioundations Ior
'disciplined learning and who should beneIit Irom
especially the hierarchically ordered system oI science and
mathematics via Iormal education. To ensure that primary
education can be universalized amidst the known
limitations oI both children and Iormal education itselI, we
have to reach out to them through creative but non-
restrictive way called Alternative Delivery Modes oI
Iormal education (ADM). At age 15 (the viable boundary),
learners with capacity to learnd how to learn can already
learn Iurther on their own and tackle ALS or indpendent
learning with or without help Irom the schools. This is why
ALS in the Philippines is basically Ior youths and adults.
Higher ALS can be had through the Expanded Tertiary
Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program
(ETEEAP).
It`s all right Ior academic institutions like UPCollege oI
Education to oIIer courses that will cover ADMs. Basically,
they are classes or kinds oI educational
innovations/technology. And the new TEacher Education
Curriculum already has provisions Ior that. Just ask
TEDPLooper Allan B about it and see how we can
maximize schoolchildren`s exposure to many more kinds oI
ADMs both here and overseas.
But to combine it with ALS and call it Alternative
Education, I`m aIraid (sorry Ior being personally deIensive)
might not just distort the vision, intention and program. It
might even subvert that which is already set in place by
law, unless we amend RA 9155. It bears repeating, that
other contents alone do not ALS constitute; it is the
machinery, philosophy, and learners/workers that do.
I hope that I have adequately clariIied and that this may
spark Iurther debates that will lead ALS to the equilibrium
point as they are oIIered in the higher education
institutions, not necessarily in education Iaculties.
In the Philippines, such program is called the Alternative
Learning System or ALS.
There is no doubt that education is the most basic
requirement to succeed in liIe. This is why most developing
countries list education as their top priority in as Iar as
government service is concerned.
Our understanding oI acquiring education is usually
through Iormal school where learning takes place in
classrooms through teacher and pupil discussion. But
there are alternative approaches that parents or an
individual can consider aside Irom Iormal school
depending on what type oI situation they Iind themselves
in.
First oI which are programs Ior out-oI-school youths. Many
oI today`s youths go through the pressure oI progressing
through the educational pipeline oItentimes unable to
handle these challenges due to Iamily problems or
Iinancial diIIiculties. As a result they oIten drop out oI
Iormal school. Out-oI-youth programs are aimed at
integrating these drop-outs back into Iormal school .
Teachers that are involved in this program are called
'Mobile Teachers Ior reasons that they oIten go about
teaching in rural and depressed areas where a majority oI
their clientele can be Iound. Included in this program are
unemployed adults, industry based undergraduate workers,
members oI cultural minorities, persons with
disabilities/physically challenged, inmates, rebels and
soldiers. Learning usually takes place in barangay halls or
community learning centers.
The process oI integration starts with the students attending
a 10 month learning and review session conducted by the
Mobile Teacher. AIter completion, perIormance are
assessed in preparation Ior the Accreditation and
Equivalency Test (or A&E) that will be given to these
students. Passers oI either the Elementary or Secondary
Level gets a certiIicate which bears the signature oI the
Secretary oI the Department oI Education. This allows a
passer to be integrated into Iormal education and also gives
them the chance to enroll Ior a college degree or in
technical and vocational courses.