DepEd Memorandum No. 103, s. 2022
2022 National Children's Month Celebration
04 NOV 2022
DepEd MEMORANDUM
No. 103, s. 2022
2022 NATIONAL CHILDREN'S MONTH CELEBRATION
To: Undersecretaries
Assistant Secretaries
Minister, Basic, Higher, and Technical Education, BARMM
Bureau and Service Directors
Regional Directors
Schools Division Superintendents
Public and Private Elementary and Secondary School Heads
All Others Concerned
1. The Department of Education (DepEd) joins the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), the National Youth Commission (NYC), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), local government units, and private organizations including the civil society, private enterprises, and nongovernment, civic, and people's organizations, and the whole nation in celebrating the 30th National Children's Month (NCM), with the theme, Kalusugan, Kaisipan, at Kapakanan ng Bawat Bata Ating Tutukan!
2. The NCM is annually celebrated every November pursuant to Republic Act 10661, titled An Act Declaring the Month of November of Every Year as the National Children's Month, commemorating the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on November 20, 1989, seeking to promote the protection of children's rights.
3. Section 4 thereof mandates DepEd to facilitate and encourage the commemoration of the NCM in all schools, public and private, nationwide. This year, the 30th NCM anniversary will focus on the mental health and well-being of the children. According to the World Health Organization, health, in general, is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Particularly, mental health is an integral and essential component of health while wellbeing frames health as a positive aspiration.
4. Moreover, the COVID-19 Pandemic induced higher levels of stress within families and households, and it challenged not only their physical health care but also access to mental health services and programs.
5. In 2019, the National Center for Mental Health (NCMH) Crisis Hotline, reported that of the 4,239 callers served, 5.21 percent (221) of callers were children and were referred to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or in the hospital services of NCMH. Alarmingly, it received an increase in the average daily calls from 32 to 27 in their Crisis Hotline where 9.7 percent is suicide-related and 251 of the callers were minors over the course of the pandemic.
6. This year's NCM will cover four categories of children's rights per week of November, nan-iely: survival rights (1st week), development rights (2nd week), participation rights (3rd week), and protection rights (4th week). Special celebrations for children will also be observed simultaneously:
a. 1st Week of November: NCM Kick-Off Ceremony and the start of Weekly Documentaries/Video Screenings on Mental Health;
b. 2nd Week of November: DepEd NCM National, Regional, District, Division, and School Level Activities;
c. 3rd Week of November: National Play Advocacy Week (NPAW) led by the Philippine Play Coalition; and
d. 4th Week of November: The Juvenile Justice and Welfare Consciousness Week led by the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council (JJWC).
7. In addition, the 30th NCM aims to
a. acknowledge the magnitude of the mental health concerns among children pre and during the COVID-19 Pandemic;
b. meet and improve the mental health needs of Filipino children since the onset of the COVI~ 19 Pandemic through activities that responds to the categories of children's rights to survival, development, participation, and protection; and
c. converge efforts and services, and share the good practices to fill the knowledge gaps of the local government units, government agencies, and nongovernment organizations in addressing the mental health concerns of the children.
8. In view of the 2022 NCM celebrations and this year's theme, DepEd Central Office (CO), regional and school division offices, all public and private elementary and secondary schools, and attached agencies of DepEd are encouraged to undertake the following activities for November:
Thematic Focus | Schedule | Activity | Where to View/Access |
Weekly activities | November 4, 11, and 18 (4:00-6:00 p.m.) | Documentaries/video screenings on mental health | Available exclusively up to a maximum of 300 pax. For further details, please follow the Council for the Welfare of the Children-Official Facebook Page for further information. Link: Fb.com/CWCgov.ph |
1st Week Survival Rights | November 3, Thursday (9:00 a.m. -2:00 p.m.) | NCM Kick-Off Ceremony: Launching of the CWC MAKABATA Helpline 1383, Mental Health Literary Pieces for Children, National Play Advocacy Week (NPAW) Toolkit, and Video Documentaries on the Success Stories of Local Government Units (LGU) on Child Participation and Local Council for the Protection of Children | Face to Face and live stream via CWC Facebook-Official
Link: Fb.com/CWCgovph |
2nd Week Development Rights | November 7-12 | DepEd Child Protection Unit (CPU) | Kick-off event of the National Children’s Month Regional Offices and per school Link: Fb.com/Department of Education.ph fb.com/deped.cpu/ |
3rd Week Participation Rights and National Play Advocacy Week | November 13-19 | Simultaneous Physical Education (P.E.) Session on the 3rd Week of November Mindfulness Play Day (November 19, 2022) | Face to Face activity. Please also see the Philippine Play CoalitionFacebook Page for other activities. Link: fb.com/CWCgovph |
4th Week Protection Rights and Juvenile Justice Welfare Consciousness Week | November 21-25
November 22 | JJWC Week-Long Activities
5th Conference on Digital Parenting (Webinar on Cyberbullying) | CWC Facebook live stream:
Link: fb.com/CWCgov.ph CWChildrenOfficial |
Finale | November 25 (a.m.) | National Day of Prayer for the Children and Launching of the Interfaith Prayer for Children | World Vision and CWC Facebook Page |
| November 25 (p.m.) | Culminating Ceremony: Announcement of Winners for the NCM Jingle Making Contest, Launching of the 19th Congress CWC Legilative Agenda of Children (CLAC) Compendium, Children in Situations of Armed Conflict (CSAC), and Recognition of Partners | Face to Face and live stream via CWC Facebook-Official Link: fb.com/CWCgovph |
| End of November 2022 | DepEd Child Protection Unit – Culminating Program | Venue to be announced at a later date
Face to Face Activity and live stream via DepEd Philippines and CPU Facebook Page |
9. ln line with the foregoing celebration, DepEd CO through the Child Protection Unit (CPU) shall undertake the following activities:
a. Kick-Off Program in Celebration of the 30th National Children's Month on November 9, 2022, at 9:00 a.m. to be conducted and livestreamed via the DepEd Philippines and CPU Facebook Pages. The kick-off program shall focus on the following topics:
i. Bullying Prevention and Safeguarding of Learners,
ii. Safe Spaces in the School Setting and in the Context of our Learners, and
iii. Child Participation and Youth Concerns in Child Protection.
b. Culminating Program in Celebration of the National Children's Month by end of November 2022, with venue to be announced at a later date. This will be conducted as a Face to Face Activity and live-streamed via the DepEd. Philippines and CPU Facebook Pages. The event will launch and introduce the new structure of Child Protection Unit, the CPU's Digitalization initiatives through the Child Protection Unit Website and Contact Center, and its projects and programs.
c. The CPU shall also officially launch its Contact Center, a helpline exclusively dedicated to addressing learners' concerns, particularly those involving abuse, violence, exploitation, and similar acts analogous thereto.
d. Likewise, in support of School Year 2022-2023 with the transition from a blended learning setting to in-person classes, it is essential to provide all the necessary support and help for the learners to build coping mechanisms for this change.
Thus, to ensure the right of every learner to be safe in school, the CPU will launch its Bullying Prevention Advocacy Campaign, with the theme,
#KasamaKa: BaLiK-Aral
(Boses, Lakas ng Kabataan at Komunidad sa Balik-Aral)
Ligtas na Paaralan, Sama-samang Pangalagaan!
KasamaAko, KasamaKayo, KasamaTayo
The campaign shall focus on three core aspects:
i. KasamaAko (Adbokasiya Para sa Sarili)
ii. KasamaKayo (Adbokasiya Para sa Kapwa)
iii. KasamaTayo (Adbokasiya Tungo sa Pagbabago)
(1) To bolster the abovementioned campaign, IEC and advocacy materials shall be made available for dissemination in schools and in the field via: https://bit.ly/CPUAdvocacyandIEC; and
(2) Further, the CPU announces its initiative to recognize the schools that have continuously upheld the learners' rights and lead in shaping a learning environment that equips the learners to hone their intellectual faculties and enables them to become responsible and productive members of their community and society.
10. The objectives of the program include:
a. To ensure the functionality of the child protection committees (CPC);
b. To encourage schools to develop their localized child protection policies;
c. To inspire the members of the CPC and the teachers to know the Child Protection Policy and their role as guardians and partners towards its development;
d. To raise teachers' morale and motivation, and mobilization of community support for education; and
e. To promote learner empowerment and participation of the youth in advocating for their rights and protection.
11. This program aims to recognize schools that deliver positive results for the learners' well-being. Schools will be assessed based on criteria aligned with the Child Protection Policy Implementation Checklist, principles and objectives of a child-friendly school, focusing on child's rights, health, protection, and learners' participation.
12. ln support of the 30th NCM, the CPU shall download funds to DepEd schools and field offices to ensure the conduct of activities in line with the NCM. Guidelines and details on the use of the funds shall be issued to ensure compliance with the accounting and auditing rules and regulations.
13. The Schools Division CPU Focal Persons are requested to submit to the Regional Office their Accomplishment and Financial Reports, documented with photos and/or videos during the conduct of the activities, duly signed by the Schools Division Superintendent. The Regional CPU Focal Person is requested to consolidate all reports submitted by the Divisions. The reports are required to be submitted on December 12, 2022, to the Child Protection Unit at email cpu@deped.gov.ph
14. Materials related to the 2022 NCM (e.g., banner design/ cover photo template, shirt design, Philippine native language translations of the Panatang Makabata), may be accessed and downloaded through the following links:
a. NCM Materials/Template Designs: bit.ly/NCM30Materials,
b. ewe website: cwc.gov.ph,
c. Facebook Page: fb.com/CWCgovph,
d. Twitter Page: @CWC_govph, and
e. YouTube channel: CWChildrenOfficial
15. For more information on the 2022 NCM Celebrations, please contact the following:
Mr. Elino L. Bardillon
Information Officer IV, Public Affairs and Information Office
Council for the Welfare of Children
Telephone Number: (02) 8461-6553
Email Addresses: elbardillon@cwc.gov.ph or childrensmonth.ph@gmail.com
Ms. Celaine Cabrera
Information Officer 11, Public Affairs and Information Office
Council for the Welfare of Children
Telephone Number: (02) 8461-65-53
Email Address: childrensmonth.ph@grnail.com
Ms. Janis Escandor-Enguerra
Senior Technical Assistant HJ
Child Protection Unit
Email Address: janis.enguerra@deped.gov.ph
(cc: cpu@deped.gov.ph)
Mr. Harvey .Dollente
Technical Assistant II
Child Protection Unit
Email Address: harvey.dollente@deped.gov.ph
(cc: cpu@deped.gov.ph)
16. Immediate dissemination of this Memorandum is desired.
By Authority of the Secretary
(SGD) EPIMACO V. DENSING III
Undersecretary and Chief of Staff
Reference:
DepEd Memorandum No. 075, s. 2021
To be indicated in the Perpetual Index
under the following subjects:
BUREAUS AND OFFICES
CAMPAIGN
CELEBRATIONS AND FESTIVALS
LEARNERS
PROGRAMS
RIGHTS
SCHOOLS
TEACHERS
Full copy of DepEd Memorandum No. 103, s. 2022:
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