It is a win for all with the signing into law of the Good Manners and Right Conduct (GMRC) Act – for children, for families, for society, for country. And we are grateful to Congressman Roman Romulo and Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, both part of the Synergeia family, for nurturing the proposal in Congress until it became a law.
As Congressman Romulo put it, “The institutionalization of good manners and right conduct will provide a balance so that proper conduct, good manners, patriotism and love of country may be instilled among students.” Alongside him, Synergeia Trustee and mentor, Senator Win Gatchalian said of the bill, “Mahalaga ang GMRC at Values Education sa paghubog natin ng mga susunod na henerasyon ng mga mamamayang Filipino, ngunit napabayaan natin nitong mga nakaraang taon ang pagtuturo nito. Sa pagpasa ng batas na ito, hindi lang natin ibabalik ang GMRC at Values Education, mapupunan din natin ang mga nagging pagkukulang nito.”
GMRC will now be part of the K-12 curriculum and treated as a regular subject in schools. It will be integrated into the daily learning activities in kindergarten, and taught as a separate subject from Grades 1 to 6. In Grades 7 to 10, it be part of the Values Education subject. Values Education will be integrated into all subjects for Grades 11 and 12. Under the new law, or Republic Act No. 11476, teachers with certification, diploma, and training on values education and allied disciplines are given preference in teaching this core subject.
The new law aims to instill the basic tenets of good manners and right conduct in students. An important aspect of it is that it emphasizes actual and experiential methods, rather than just conceptual and theoretical. Content will be in the Filipino context, allowing the students to easily understand and apply it in their everyday lives.
Sen. Gatchalian adds, “The new law strengthens learners’ character development and values formation even as the basic education system enters the new normal because of the COVID-19 pandemic.” Teaching GMRC can only beneficial. It is big step in the right direction in molding better citizens of our country.
