DepEd Order No. 14, s. 2012, dated February 10, 2012, sets the Department of Education’s policy and guidelines on the proper distribution, care, recording, retrieval, and disposal of textbooks (TXs), teacher’s manuals (TMs), and other instructional materials (IMs). Its goals are to improve access to these materials, get the most use out of them, and reduce or eliminate damage and loss. It was signed by then Education Secretary Br. Armin A. Luistro FSC. It is addressed to regional directors, schools division and city superintendents, heads of public elementary and secondary schools, and all others concerned.
On this page 8 sections
Key points
- Textbooks and teacher’s manuals are government property. School principals and school heads must make sure they are properly used, cared for, protected from natural and human damage, and recorded.
- Textbooks and teacher’s manuals are given to students and teachers free of charge and are meant to last at least five years. Every learner, teacher, and school head is responsible for protecting them from damage or loss.
- The order restates relevant provisions of DepEd Order No. 25, s. 2003 (Resolving Losses of Textbooks) and DECS Order No. 23, s. 2001 (Loss of Textbooks by Students).
- DepEd officials must strictly follow the guidelines. Any violation is dealt with administratively.
Issuing and distributing textbooks in school
- Each textbook and teacher’s manual must have a property code number, as required by DepEd Order No. 26, s. 2007 (Submission of Consolidated Inventory Report of Property, Plant, and Equipment, Textbooks and Desks/Armchairs).
- At the start of the school year, the school supply officer or designated property custodian issues the books to classroom teachers or advisers, who then issue them to each student.
- Schools division superintendents and school heads must make sure teachers accept the books issued to them for their pupils. Teacher-advisers who refuse because they fear penalties for losses will be dealt with administratively.
- The supply officer stamps the school’s name on the front and back covers, the title page, and somewhere in the body of each book.
- The supply officer keeps a record or logbook of the books issued to each user. Teacher-advisers can help by having each student sign the logbook next to the property code number of the book assigned to them.
- Teachers are encouraged to read “Take Care of the Book” to their students. It is printed on the inside front cover of high school textbooks and the inside back cover of elementary textbooks.
Classroom inventory
- Students fill out the “Book Record Form” on the inside front cover of their textbooks.
- Each teacher-adviser keeps a current inventory of textbooks in the classroom. Random checks of students before they leave the classroom or after each class session are suggested.
- Supply officers are encouraged to inventory textbooks at least after every grading period or at the end of each semester. Teacher-advisers can help by submitting an inventory report at those times.
Retrieval and lost textbooks
The amount a student pays for a lost book follows the formula in DepEd Order No. 25, s. 2003:
Amount to be paid = acquisition cost – depreciation amount
The depreciation amount is the acquisition cost divided by 5 (the estimated useful life of the book in years), multiplied by the number of years the lost book has been used. The supply officer prepares a “Matrix of Computation for TX Losses” so that collections are standard. The order gives this sample matrix:
| Years in use | Textbook (Php 35.98) | Teacher’s manual (Php 29.74) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28.784 | 23.792 |
| 2 | 21.588 | 17.844 |
| 3 | 14.392 | 11.896 |
| 4 | 7.196 | 5.948 |
| 5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Beyond 5 years | 0.00 | 0.00 |
Other retrieval rules:
- Teacher-advisers should encourage students to return books, preferably before classes close.
- Lost and unreturned books must be reported right away to the supply officer, so the school can collect the cost before the school year closes, not before or during the opening of classes.
- A notarized affidavit of loss is not required. Instead, the teacher may submit one of these as support for an application for Relief from Accountability:
- for losses due to force majeure: a letter from the student, signed by the parent or guardian and endorsed by the teacher-adviser to the property custodian or supply officer;
- for losses due to a student transferring or dropping out: a letter from the teacher-adviser, noted by the school head.
- The school should investigate reported losses to see whether textbook requests and allocations for the next school year need adjusting.
- To keep a 1:1 textbook-to-pupil ratio, the supply officer may request replacements from the buffer stock of the Division, Region, or Central Office before or during the opening of classes.
- The goal is to keep losses of each title at 1% or less. The school head should monitor retrieval closely and involve the whole school and community in reminding students to return books.
- Schools may give incentives to encourage students to return books before the school year ends.
Disposing of old and damaged textbooks
- The supply officer identifies obsolete, damaged, or worn-out books and submits the inventory to the Division Office, copy furnished the Instructional Materials Council Secretariat (IMCS).
- The school head makes sure that books for condemnation or disposal are removed from the inventory list.
- The Division Office, with the Disposal Committee, tells schools the disposal dates.
Books to be condemned
Old books bought by the Central Office or other fund sources (LGUs, SEF, Local School Board, and others) that have been or will be replaced by universal titles, in these subject areas:
- Sibika 1 to 3
- HeKaSi 4 to 6
- English for Grades 1 to 6
- Mathematics for Grades 3, 4, and 5
- Araling Panlipunan I and II
- English I to IV
- Science and Technology I to IV (2004 Revised Edition)
- Mathematics I to IV (2009 Revised Edition)
- Music and Arts I, III, and IV
- Physical Education and Health II and IV
Books under the Textbook Exchange Program
For these subject areas, one class or section keeps one title:
- Science 3 to 6
- Mathematics 1, 2, and 6
- Filipino 1 to 6
- Araling Panlipunan III and IV
- Filipino I to IV
- Music and Arts II
- Physical Education and Health I and III
- Other non-core subjects (MSEP, EKAWP, TLE, Values Education)
Recommended disposal methods
- Shredding, tearing, or cutting. Books should not be thrown away whole. The shredded or cut paper may be sold to paper mills or manufacturing plants for recycling.
- Donation. Old books may be given to teachers, students, and parents who can use them as reference materials, for school projects, or as instructional aids, or to communities and barangays with reading programs.
Who to contact
The order lists the Instructional Materials Council Secretariat (IMCS), 5/F Mabini Bldg., DepEd Complex, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City, headed at the time by Executive Director Ms. Socorro A. Pilor. Printed contact numbers were mobile 0927-793-7331 and 0928-696-0132, and telefax (02) 634-0901, (02) 631-3690, and (02) 631-4985. These details date from 2012 and may have changed.
Effectivity
The order directs immediate dissemination and strict compliance.
Frequently asked questions
Who pays for a lost textbook in a public school?
The student is charged the book’s acquisition cost minus depreciation, following DepEd Order No. 25, s. 2003. The cost is collected before the school year closes.
How is the payment for a lost textbook computed?
Divide the acquisition cost by 5, multiply by the number of years the book was used, and subtract that from the acquisition cost. Books used five years or more cost nothing to replace.
Is a notarized affidavit of loss required for a lost textbook?
No. A letter from the student signed by the parent or guardian and endorsed by the teacher-adviser (for force majeure), or a letter from the teacher-adviser noted by the school head (for transfers or dropouts), may be submitted instead.
How long are DepEd textbooks meant to last?
Textbooks and teacher’s manuals are meant to be used for at least five years, which is also their estimated useful life in the loss formula.
How should old textbooks be disposed of?
They should be shredded, torn, or cut rather than thrown away whole, and the paper may be sold for recycling. They may also be donated to teachers, students, parents, or communities with reading programs.
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