MANILA, Philippines — Public school teachers will soon have fewer administrative tasks as the Department of Education (DepEd) moves to cut their paperwork by 57 percent, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said. 

According to Angara, the reduction aims to ease the workload of teachers, who have long raised concerns about excessive reporting requirements.

Under the new policy, teachers will be required to complete only five essential school forms, down from the current 174. However, additional forms—31 for ancillary tasks and 39 for teaching-related assignments—will still be required depending on a teacher’s specific workload under DepEd Order No. 005, s. 2024.

“Teachers have long raised concerns about excessive paperwork, and this policy directly responds to that. Reducing their bureaucratic workload will not only improve their well-being but also enhance the quality of instruction they provide to our learners,” Angara said.

A study by DepEd’s Technical Working Group (TWG) on school forms found that teachers spend excessive hours on non-teaching duties. 

An IDInsight study also showed that 42 percentof teachers work more than 50 hours per week, with 17.8 hours dedicated to ancillary tasks and 8.1 hours to program-related assignments—significantly cutting into their time for lesson planning and student engagement.

DepEd said it will issue a formal department order to implement the changes and hold nationwide orientation sessions to ensure compliance at the school level. 

A Data Management Framework will also be introduced to standardize data collection and remove redundant documentation, he said.

Angara also noted that the department will also launch advocacy campaigns to inform education stakeholders about the reforms and address broader concerns over teachers’ working conditions.