Second Part
PROPOSALS TO make the study of the West Philippine Sea (WPS) mandatory in schools are now pending before Congress. If passed, public and private educational institutions will be teaching one of the country’s most critical issues — a matter of national security and sovereignty but also a lifeline for food and energy.
Both titled “West Philippine Sea Mandatory Education Act of 2025,” Senate Bill No. 577 and House Bill No. 1625 raised that insufficient knowledge on the topic has fueled widespread disinformation, which supposedly erodes public understanding of the country’s rights. This, the bills said, weakens the support for defending its waters and leaves Filipinos vulnerable to foreign influence.
The West Philippine Sea conflict may not be a very easy topic to teach, however, if the proposals become law, Department of Education (DepEd) Bureau of Learning Delivery Director Gerson Marvin Abesamis said it is important to craft a dynamic curriculum that meets the bills’ objectives without becoming a burden to students.
He said there are several issues that need to be addressed, including the risks of curriculum overload and ill-equipped teachers.
He supported the proposal under the bills that DepEd will get the support of the Department of Foreign Affairs and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines in developing the curriculum “to ensure the factual and legal accuracy of all materials.”
Abesamis said the success of implementing the West Philippine Sea curriculum will rest on the ability of government agencies to develop a specialized and dynamic framework with updates to learning materials and teacher training.
Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela said it is important for Filipinos to learn about the West Philippine Sea.
“If [young people] already have a solid foundation of education about the issue in the West Philippine Sea, then fake news would no longer be a problem,” Tarriela said.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea, but the Permanent Court of Arbitration rejected those claims in 2016. It affirmed the Philippines’ maritime rights within its exclusive economic zone, and upheld principles of freedom of navigation and overflight under international law.
China does not recognize the arbitration ruling and continues to harass Filipino fishermen in disputed waters, however.
Addressing challenges
Abesamis said there will be several challenges to address.
He said the West Philippine Sea conflict is a “technical” issue and will need to shift from traditional assessment methods to performance-based strategies. This is to ensure critical thinking and civic engagement, he added.
The bills seek to teach students about the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Philippine exclusive economic zone and the national security implications of maritime disputes.
The bills are not proposing the creation of a separate subject. Instead, the topic will be integrated or “mainstreamed” into existing subjects — for example, Araling Panlipunan, Social Studies, or related civics and history classes.
Abesamis said there is a need to ensure the additional topic will not overload the curriculum. If not designed carefully, it could defeat the intent of the existing MATATAG curriculum, which implements broad, decongested and values-based lessons.
He said care should be taken because it is “a sensitive and evolving issue” and it “could become a tool for political agenda rather than objective education.”
“The West Philippine Sea issue is distinct because it is an evolving, real-time geopolitical conflict, not a historical event. A static curriculum developed today could quickly become obsolete as events unfold,” he said.
The curriculum could make use of several frameworks already implemented by the DepEd in tackling politically and socially sensitive topics, he said.
He cited the 2022 Balangkas ng Nagkakaisang Sambayanan (BANSA) peace framework, which provides guidance for teachers on teaching armed conflicts. The framework, which aims to produce “peace-loving learners,” is anchored on the core values maka-Diyos (pro-God), makabansa (pro-country), makatao (pro-people) and makakalikasan (pro-environment).
Many courses under the senior high school curriculum already cover contentious issues such as political dynasties and human rights violations, which, Abesamis said, shows DepEd’s general capacity to manage such topics.
But he said the existing frameworks lack specific guidelines for developing and dynamic topics like the West Philippine Sea row and would need to be provided.
Important role of teachers
The role of teachers will be important. He said adopting the West Philippine Sea curriculum would require several changes and supplements to the MATATAG curriculum, including a shift from general to specific content, new sets of training guides for educators and integration across grade levels.
Abesamis is concerned about the “significant gap” in the preparedness of teachers to handle the legally complex and politically sensitive and evolving nature of the subject, which requires specialized training in international law, geopolitics and history.
He’s also wary of one-sided narratives if there are no strategies and materials in place to foster critical discourse in classes.
He proposed assessment strategies for students, such as project-based learning that allows them to identify a West Philippine Sea-related problem and formulate solutions through research and reflection.
Oral assessments or debates on geopolitical incidents would also help students’ reasoning, while mastery of the topic could be measured through an assessment of their compiled portfolios, he added.
He said the integration of the maritime row in the curriculum should also extend across all levels of basic education, a move that he said would require a “complete revision” of the Araling Panlipunan’s scope and sequence.
“By teaching historical facts and legal rulings, it equips learners with foundational knowledge to defend the country’s rights and participate in national discourse…It aims to produce graduates who are not only academically competent but also proactive citizens who understand international law and their role in protecting national interests,” he said.
Mainstreaming WPS
Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) spokesman Nazer Briguera agreed with proposals that the curriculum should be a “whole-of-government approach”
Briguera said it should extend beyond the perspectives of BFAR, the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the PCG to ensure that all citizens know about the true narrative on the issue.
He proposed the inclusion of the experiences of fisherfolk in educational materials that will be produced. He said the government-led efforts to integrate the topic in schools would be more effective if they reflect the realities of fishing communities directly affected by the dispute.
He said fisherfolk testimonies will help ensure that classroom lessons do not remain abstract or overly technical, but grounded in lived experiences.
“It is very important to take the pulse of the fisherfolk in designing or refining these materials. The message becomes more fitting when part of it comes directly from those who are experiencing what is happening in the West Philippine Sea,” Briguera said.
He said complex issues such as maritime law, sovereignty and environmental destruction must be translated into something that ordinary Filipinos can easily grasp.
He said this could be done through films, media content and other platforms that resonate with everyday audiences.
Briguera said this is how the country’s maritime rights over the West Philippine Sea can be mainstreamed.
“Taking into account or considering that the issue of the West Philippine Sea is deep — because it’s an issue that talks about legal [and] arbitral matters — they cannot immediately internalize that…So there’s a need for popularization aside from mandatory education,” the BFAR spokesman said.
“It really has to be embedded in the curriculum and other platforms that would actually lead down to heightened awareness and education of the people,” he said.
“It cannot be done in just a one-shot deal of public information campaign.” F
Editor’s note: This story is published through a grant from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
