Following a unprecedented mass shooting at a school in Tacloban City, the Department of Education (DepEd) is introducing specialized safety measures nationwide.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara announced that “active shooter drills” will debut this Friday, July 10, to train students and faculty on how to respond to campus violence.
The policy shift comes in the wake of a devastating attack orchestrated by two Grade 9 students against their classmates.
“We are adjusting because we have the first ever school shooting, which means students were the shooters. So we are now doing the active shooter drill,” Angara explained during a school-based feeding program in Pulilan, Bulacan. “The drill will focus on the things that should be done when there is a school shooting. We will be launching that on Friday.”
The Tacloban assault was carried out by a 14-year-old student who fired approximately 40 rounds using a stolen service weapon belonging to his aunt, a police officer. The tragedy claimed the lives of three students and injured 20 others, with 15 sustaining direct gunshot wounds.
In response, DepEd has teamed up with the Philippine National Police (PNP).
Alongside boosting police presence around campuses, PNP Chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. committed to supporting mental health efforts by providing guidance counselors for traumatized students and setting up anti-bullying desks at local police stations.
Angara pointed out that the upcoming guidelines will also standardize how schools handle other security emergencies, such as bomb threats, which currently lack a uniform response.
“There is also a need to come up with a protocol that will focus on the safety and welfare of not only learners but also teachers and all the other school personnel,” he said.