RECONCILING ‘NO PERMIT, NO EXAM’ RULE

RAINAND C. DELA PEÑA

Senate Bill 1359 and House of Representatives Bills 6483 and 7584, both of which propose to ban the "no permit, no exam" rule, have been recently consolidated by the Bicameral Conference Committee. This means that the Senate has ratified the reconciled version of the proposed "No Permit, No Exam Prohibition Act”. In seeking the ratification, it was assured that the bicameral conference committee has the full support of the representatives of the education sector, led by the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA). According to officials, the reconciled 'No Permit, No Exam Prohibition Act,' is one of the greatest legacies that they can leave behind, getting rid of this long-time practice. They said that forcing a student to forfeit an exam is the cruelest of fines and set off a series of events that can be life changing for the student, and not in a good way. It may even lead to shattered dreams and lost opportunities, not just the loss of a diploma, they said. Aside from the "no permit, no exam" rule, the measure prohibits the imposition of any policy that prevents students enrolled in public or private schools from taking examinations or any form of educational assessment for reasons of outstanding financial or property obligations, such as unpaid tuition and other school fees. However, the legislation does not mandate tuition forgiveness as it does not erase a student's debt to schools. It only calls for the deferment of its payment while the student is allowed to take the examination.

-oOoThe author is a Teacher III at Dr. Clemente N. Dayrit Sr. Memorial High School, Division of Angeles City , Region III