From NCBS-SH to PPSSH: DepEd Standards for School Heads

The NCBS-SH and PPSSH are the two sets of standards that the Department of Education (DepEd) has adopted for school heads. The National Competency-Based Standards for School Heads (NCBS-SH) came first, in April 2010, through DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010. The Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads (PPSSH) replaced them in September 2020. This guide explains why DepEd wrote standards for school heads, what each set contains, and how the two compare. It then follows what changed in practice: the training given by the National Educators Academy of the Philippines (NEAP), the test for aspiring principals, performance management and promotion.

It is written for teachers preparing for the National Assessment for School Heads (NASH, formerly the National Qualifying Examination for School Heads or NQESH), for newly designated school heads, and for teachers-in-charge. The NASH is built on the PPSSH, which DepEd adopted through DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020. At Career Stage 1, the PPSSH describes aspiring school heads who “demonstrate basic knowledge and understanding of the authority, responsibility, and accountability expected of school heads”. If you still have training notes organized by the seven NCBS-SH domains, this guide shows how they map to the five PPSSH domains, and why the PPSSH is the set to study.

Key points

• The PPSSH replaced the NCBS-SH in 2020. DO 024, s. 2020 states: “DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010 is hereby rescinded.” The NCBS-SH had been adopted in April 2010 under the implementing rules of RA 9155 and the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA).
• The PPSSH has 5 domains, 34 strands and 4 career stages. Each strand has one indicator per stage, for 136 indicators. The 34 at Career Stage 1 describe aspiring school heads.
• The NCBS-SH had seven domains, but no DepEd order sets out its strands and indicators. DO 32, s. 2010, as DepEd publishes it, has no annex. The domain names survive in a 2016 memorandum on the School Heads Development Program.
• Both sets were meant to drive training, selection and appraisal. The PPSSH adds recruitment, rewards and talent management, and is “the basis for all their professional development programs”.
• The school head test followed the standards. EDCOM II labels the 2016 to 2018 NQESH rounds as based on the NCBS-SH and the 2021 and 2023 rounds as based on the PPSSH. The NASH reports each taker’s results by PPSSH domain.
• Not every human resource system has caught up. DO 024, s. 2020 keeps existing policies until PPSSH-based guidelines are issued. In November 2025 DepEd was still drafting PPSSH-based performance tools for school heads.
• The law now ties training and promotion to professional standards. RA 11713 (2022) institutionalized NEAP and requires its programs to follow the standards. RA 12288 (2025) anchors the promotion of school leaders on them.

Why DepEd set standards for school heads

RA 9155, the Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001, requires a school head for every public elementary and high school, or cluster of schools. It makes the school head “both an instructional leader and administrative manager”, with authority over 12 areas that the guide to RA 9155 duties explains. A law that gives one person that much authority raises a practical question: how should the system select, prepare and judge the people who hold it? A set of standards is DepEd’s answer.

BESRA and “a head for every school”

The standards grew out of the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA). A detailed public description is the World Bank’s project appraisal document of May 22, 2006, for a US$200 million loan “designed to strategically support BESRA over a five-year period (2006-2010)” (p. 3). BESRA had five key reform thrusts, on schools, teachers, social support to learning, complementary interventions and DepEd’s institutional culture (p. 101). The first policy action of the first thrust reads:

“A head for every school. Ensure that every school or cluster of schools is led by a school head who is selected, prepared, supported, monitored and made accountable for organizing and leading an institutionalized school improvement process at the school/community level” (p. 102).

The five verbs in that sentence (selected, prepared, supported, monitored and made accountable) are the uses that a set of standards serves. The same document planned capacity building “in collaboration with a restructured National Educators’ Academy of the Philippines (NEAP), linked to the principals and school heads institute” (p. 13). Teachers got their standards first: DepEd later recalled that the National Competency-Based Teacher Standards (NCBTS) “emerged as part of the implementation of the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA)” (DepEd Order No. 42, s. 2017, Introduction).

The orders that set the stage

DO 32, s. 2010 was signed by Ramon C. Bacani as Undersecretary and Officer-in-Charge, the official who chaired BESRA’s coordinating team, and it sent reports on the rollout “through the BESRA Technical Coordinating Team (TCT)”. The World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group, reviewing the project in 2018, reports why school heads’ capacity mattered. During its mission, some stakeholders noted “that the success of SBM is highly contingent on the school principal’s capacity and leadership” (p. 14).

What was the NCBS-SH? DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010

DO 32, s. 2010 describes the standards in one paragraph. The NCBS-SH “defines the standards through the domains and strands which can be used as basis for the school heads’ decision making, actions and performance of their functions”. It adds that “knowledge, skills and values are clarified through the indicators defined per strand on every domain”. The NCBS-SH, in other words, used the same three levels as the PPSSH: domains, strands and indicators.

Paragraph 3 of the order lists four uses:

The rollout ran through NEAP’s regional arm: regional directors were to orient their divisions “through the Training and Development Teams of the NEAP in the Region (NEAP-R)”.

Where is the text of the NCBS-SH?

DO 32, s. 2010, as DepEd publishes it, is two pages long, with no annex. It does not attach the standards, so the NCBS-SH strands and indicators are not in it, and as of October 2026 no DepEd order reproduces them. The two sets can therefore be compared only at the level of their domains.

The seven NCBS-SH domains

The domain names survive in DepEd Memorandum No. 192, s. 2016, which anchored a training program on the NCBS-SH “with the following domains” (Enclosure No. 1):

1. School Leadership
2. Instructional Leadership
3. Creating a Student-Centered Learning Climate
4. HR Management and Professional Development
5. Parent Involvement and Community Partnership
6. School Management Operations
7. Personal and Professional Attributes and Interpersonal Effectiveness

How DepEd used the NCBS-SH

The NCBS-SH did the work that DO 32, s. 2010 assigned it, at least on paper.

• Training policy. DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2011 named the NCBS-SH and a Training Needs Analysis as the standards and tools for school heads’ training, as the NCBTS was for teachers.
• Training funds. As late as April 2018, DepEd Order No. 21, s. 2018 made the PPST and the NCBS-SH “the reference for competency development initiatives for teachers and school heads respectively”.
• The qualifying examination. EDCOM II’s Year Two Report labels the 2016, 2017 and 2018 NQESH rounds as based on the NCBS-SH (Table 13, p. 262). The NASH study guide gives the pass rates for the 2016 to 2023 rounds.
• The School Heads Development Program. NEAP’s Foundation Course for school heads was built on the NCBS-SH, as the next section shows.

The School Heads Development Program (DM 192, s. 2016)

DM 192, s. 2016, dated November 8, 2016, rolled out the School Heads Development Program (SHDP) Foundation Course through NEAP and the regional offices from September 2016 to May 2017. It states its purpose: “to improve the capacity of the school heads to manage their schools, as well as prepare aspirants to handle the responsibilities of a school head. The program design is anchored on the National Competency-Based Standards for School Heads (NCBSSH).”

The course targets “the three core roles of the school head”, with one module for each. The training matrices in its enclosures show what each module covered.

The memorandum says the three modules “will be run STRICTLY for nineteen (19) days”, with at least two weeks between modules for applying what was learned.

The participants were passers of the principals’ qualifying examinations from 2008 to 2015, and incumbent school heads, teachers-in-charge and officers-in-charge who had passed the regional examination before 2008 without NEAP-accredited training or had not passed the Principal’s Test. Enclosure No. 6 counts 20,024 school heads in 403 classes, and Enclosure No. 7 allocates PhP 510,541,200 to the regions.

Each participant had to carry out an Application Project on a school concern that would “deliver the best impact on school measures in three (3) months”, and needed a grade of at least 85% on it to pass. The course shows how DepEd turned the NCBS-SH domains into training: instruction first, then the organization, then the school head as exemplar: managing people and money, leadership and ethics.

What is the PPSSH? DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020

DO 024, s. 2020, dated September 7, 2020 and signed by Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones, adopted the PPSSH. Its rationale explains the change: the K to 12 program, ASEAN integration, globalization and the changing character of 21st-century learners “necessitate a call for the rethinking” of DO 32, s. 2010. Paragraph 8 of the cover order rescinds DO 32, s. 2010.

The Bureau of Human Resource and Organizational Development (BHROD) and NEAP led the development work with the Philippine National Research Center for Teacher Quality (RCTQ), a partnership of the Philippine Normal University and the University of New England in Australia. The order’s first aim for the PPSSH is to “set out clear expectations of school heads along well-defined career stages of professional development from beginning to exemplary practice” (paragraph 6). Its policy statement (Section IV) is broader than DO 32, s. 2010. The PPSSH “shall be the foundation of relevant human resource systems, policies, guidelines and mechanisms, including the recruitment, selection and placement, performance appraisal, rewards and recognition and talent management of school heads, and the basis for all their professional development programs”. School heads of private schools are encouraged to use it.

Five domains and 34 strands

The PPSSH framework “depicts the synergy between maximizing school effectiveness and ensuring people effectiveness” through five domains. The document states that “The five (5) domains collectively comprise 34 strands”.

Each domain guide linked in the table reads its strands with DepEd data, so this guide does not explain them again.

Four career stages

Every strand has one indicator at each of four career stages, numbered by the last digit: 1.1.1 is Career Stage 1, 1.1.4 is Career Stage 4. The PPSSH describes the stages this way:

Career Stage 1 also ties the school head standards to the teacher standards. Aspiring school heads “are equipped with exceptional teaching and/or leadership skills described by Career Stage 3 and/ or Career Stage 4 in the Philippine Professional Standards for Teachers or other relevant equivalent qualifications and experiences”.

Who puts the PPSSH to work

BHROD must make sure that the selection, hiring, performance appraisal, promotion and talent management of school heads are “anchored on the professional standards” (paragraph 13). NEAP must do the same for “all professional development interventions and programs for school heads, whether developed and implemented by internal or external stakeholders” (paragraph 14). Regional offices orient the divisions (paragraph 16).

One provision limits all of this. Section IX, the transitory provision, reads: “Notwithstanding the issuance of this DepEd Order, existing policies shall govern the Department’s human resource systems, mechanisms, rules and regulations until implementing guidelines anchored on the PPSSH are issued” (paragraph 22). The PPSSH became the standard in 2020; the systems built on it have followed one at a time.

From draft to final

DepEd used the PPSSH before it formally adopted it. The NEAP Task Force report that DepEd Order No. 011, s. 2019 adopted in May 2019 said: “The current drafts indicate five Domains for School Heads comprising 32 strands”. It named the third domain “leading teaching and learning”. The final order has 34 strands, and the third domain is “Focusing on Teaching and Learning”. DepEd Order No. 001, s. 2020, dated January 23, 2020, already defined the PPSSH, and DepEd Memorandum No. 050, s. 2020, dated May 4, 2020, listed training priorities by PPSSH strand. Both came months before DO 024, s. 2020.

PPSSH vs NCBS-SH: how the two standards compare

The table compares the two orders on the points that both of them address.

NCBS-SH domains and the PPSSH domains that took their place

Because the NCBS-SH strands are not available, the mapping below matches the NCBS-SH domain titles to the PPSSH strands. It is not a DepEd crosswalk.

Strands 1.6 and 2.4 fit two NCBS-SH domains and are listed in both. Strand 3.7, career awareness, has no clear NCBS-SH counterpart by title; it sits with instructional leadership here because it concerns the curriculum.

What is new in the PPSSH

1. Career stages. DO 32, s. 2010 does not mention career stages. The PPSSH presents them as its contribution: it “introduces a continuum of professional practice” and “addresses career stages for professional development”. One set of standards now serves both an aspiring school head and an experienced principal.
2. Aspiring school heads are inside the standards. Career Stage 1 describes people with “the prerequisite qualifications for the school head position” who may not hold it yet. That gives the NASH a written stage of the standards to test aspirants against. The older NQESH also tested aspirants on the NCBS-SH, but the NCBS-SH order describes no separate stage for them.
3. One design with the teacher standards. The PPST of 2017 and the PPSSH of 2020 both use domains, strands and four career stages.
4. Strands named for current priorities. Titles such as research and innovation (1.4), learner voice (1.6), school safety for disaster preparedness (2.5) and inclusive practice (5.3) name priorities directly. Whether some NCBS-SH strands covered the same ground cannot be checked while those strands are unavailable.

What changed in practice since 2019

Standards matter only through the systems that use them. Five changes since 2019, and one plan, show how far the PPSSH has reached.

NEAP’s transformation: DO 011, s. 2019 and RA 11713

DO 011, s. 2019, dated May 30, 2019, ordered the transformation of NEAP to “streamline professional development, make training activities programmatic and accountable, effectively link professional development with career progression”. Section 8 made DepEd’s professional development program for teachers and school leaders “fully integrated” beginning 2020, under NEAP. The Task Force report adopted by the order says: “The programs for teachers, school heads and supervisors will be based on the PPST, PPSSH and PPSS, respectively.”

Congress then put NEAP into law. Republic Act No. 11713, the Excellence in Teacher Education Act, was approved on April 27, 2022. It amends the earlier teacher education law, and the amended law’s Section 17 states that “the NEAP is hereby institutionalized to provide quality professional development programs on teacher education to in-service teachers, school leaders, and other teaching-related personnel”. Section 18 requires NEAP to design its programs “in accordance with the professional standards”. The Act defines those standards as the ones “established and used by the Department of Education (DepEd)”, “the basis for all learning and development programs” and “the benchmark for their selection and promotion”. The Teacher Education Council must review them five years after the Act takes effect and every five years after that (Section 3(i)). For school heads, the standards DepEd uses are the PPSSH.

NEAP recognition of programs, and the 2023 moratorium

DO 001, s. 2020 set up a recognition system that required professional development programs to map to the domains, strands or indicators of the PPST, the PPSSH or the standards for supervisors. Under it, “only recognized programs and courses shall be implemented in DepEd as officially part of the DepEd professional development program.” DepEd Order No. 022, s. 2022 later exempted Civil Service Commission programs from NEAP authorization and had NEAP map them to the standards itself. DM 050, s. 2020 then set the priorities for SY 2020-2023. For school heads it lists 21 of the 34 PPSSH strands: 1.1, 1.2 and 1.7; all six strands of Domain 2; 3.1 to 3.6 and 3.8; 4.4, 4.5, 4.6 and 4.8; and 5.5.

That system is on hold. DepEd Memorandum No. 012, s. 2023, dated March 2, 2023, says the implementation of DO 001, s. 2020 “shall be held in abeyance” while DepEd reviews its professional development systems. Providers that NEAP had authorized “may continue to offer their PD programs and courses, subject to the voluntary participation of teachers and school leaders.” In August 2023, DepEd Memorandum No. 044, s. 2023 issued interim quality assurance guidelines for NEAP’s core programs, to remain in effect “until the issuance of the DepEd Professional Development (PD) System”. As of October 2026, no issuance has lifted the moratorium.

A replacement is on the way. In March 2026 NEAP put out for consultation a draft DepEd Order, Revised Guidelines on NEAP Authorization of Learning Service Providers and Recognition of Professional Development Programs for Teachers, School Leaders, and Teaching-Related Personnel, which DepEd says “will supersede” DO 001, s. 2020. As of October 30, 2026 it had not been issued.

From the NQESH to the NASH

The school head test moved to the PPSSH before it changed its name.

EDCOM II’s Year Two Report explains the 2021 change: “Since the 2021 assessment developed by the Research Center for Teacher Quality and the University of New England’s SiMERR, the NQESH has been aligned with various indicators in the PPSSH” (p. 262). DepEd announced the results of that round as “the first PPSSH-aligned” NQESH, with items “developed using the Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) model as the underpinning framework” (DepEd news release, November 10, 2022).

The NASH results are reported through the PPSSH. Under DepEd Memorandum No. 097, s. 2025, responses are scored 0 to 3 and combined into indicator, domain and overall scores. A taker’s competency level depends on scoring 65 or higher overall and in at least four, or at least three, of the five domains, and each taker receives an Individual Development Report. The NASH results guide explains what a 65 means.

Performance management: PPSSH-based tools still being drafted

DO 024, s. 2020 makes the PPSSH the foundation of performance appraisal, but its transitory provision keeps existing policies in force until PPSSH-based guidelines are issued. EDCOM II’s Year Two Report found “no explicit guidelines stating that the performance evaluation for schools heads must be aligned with the PPSSH” (p. 261). It noted that school heads’ performance reviews were governed by DepEd Order No. 2, s. 2015, which “predates the PPSSH”, and cited Region V’s regional memorandum combining the two as a positive example.

DepEd has since begun the work. Memorandum DM-OUHROD-2025-3315, dated November 19, 2025, called a workshop on December 9 to 12, 2025 to draft the “Performance Management and Evaluation System (PMES) – Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads (PPSSH) Tools”. Its stated objective was “to establish a systematic and aligned Performance Management and Evaluation System (PMES) for schools heads anchored on the” PPSSH. As of October 30, 2026, DepEd had not released the final tools. The guide to the OPCRF for DepEd school heads explains what applies to school heads’ ratings now, and the guide to DepEd PMES for teachers covers the teachers’ side.

Promotion: RA 12288 anchors it on the professional standards

Republic Act No. 12288, the Career Progression System for Public School Teachers and School Leaders Act, was approved on September 12, 2025. It covers head teachers, assistant principals and principals as school leaders (Section 3(h)). Section 9 states: “Teachers and school leaders shall be promoted through natural vacancy or reclassification of position based on merit, fitness, and competence anchored on the professional standards.” The Act also requires a Standards-Based Assessment as “a prerequisite to their promotion and increase in salary” (Section 3(i)). What RA 12288 Changes in Teacher Career Progression explains the assessment and its status. DepEd called for comments on draft implementing rules in November 2025. An EDCOM 2 release of September 17, 2026 reports that the implementing rules have since been issued. They were signed on August 17, 2026, and take effect 30 days after their publication in a newspaper and their filing with the Office of the National Administrative Register (IRR, Section 20). As of October 31, 2026, they had not been published in the Official Gazette or on deped.gov.ph, so their effective date is not yet known, and no DepEd order implementing them had been issued.

Separately, DepEd’s own rules require aspiring principals to pass a DepEd-administered school head assessment before a first appointment, and the NASH is that assessment (DM 069, s. 2025, paragraph 4). The NASH qualification standards FAQ covers who may take it.

DepEd’s developing Principals Academy in EDCOM II’s plan

EDCOM II’s Final Report sets targets for school leadership in its National Education Plan. Under recommendation 6.1.2, “Recruit and develop quality school leaders and administrators from basic education to higher education”, one target is to “Increase the % of Principals meeting SBM Competencies”. The baseline is 0%, “Pending the establishment of DepEd’s Principals Academy”, out of 22,320 school heads. The target is 33% by 2028 and 100% by 2035. EDCOM puts the 2028 figure at about 15,110 school heads (cumulative), calculated on the 45,785 principal positions it wants filled by 2028 (p. 495, note 8). The report also recommends that NEAP “expand Professional Learning Communities under its developing Principal Academy” (p. 496). EDCOM II does not create the academy; it sets targets that wait for it. The guide to the EDCOM II Final Report and the National Education Plan 2026-2035 guide set these targets in context.

What an aspiring school head should do now

The steps below apply to a head teacher, master teacher or teacher-in-charge preparing to lead a Philippine public school.

1. Study the PPSSH, not the NCBS-SH. DO 024, s. 2020 rescinded DO 32, s. 2010. Use the mapping table above to move any older notes to the five PPSSH domains.
2. Rate yourself against the 34 Career Stage 1 indicators. This is indicator 4.1.1, “Conduct self-assessment of personal and professional development needs using the Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads”. Use evidence from your current work: a plan you wrote, a meeting you led, a record you kept.
3. Turn the largest gaps into goals. Setting development goals from the self-assessment is indicator 4.1.2, at Career Stage 2. Choose three gaps and write what you will do about each one this school year.
4. If you have taken the NASH, read your Individual Development Report by domain. Your competency level depends on your domain scores, so a low domain is a study target, not just a number.
5. Find a coach. DM 069, s. 2025 says aspiring school heads “are strongly encouraged to actively participate in coaching and mentoring sessions with experienced and proficient school principals”. Seeking such opportunities through professional networks is indicator 4.3.1.
6. Choose training that maps to the PPSSH. Ask any provider which PPSSH strands and indicators a course covers. Remember that the NEAP recognition guidelines of DO 001, s. 2020 are on hold under DM 012, s. 2023 while a replacement is drafted, so ask also who runs the course and whether your division counts it.
7. If you already lead a school, plan teachers’ training from their standards. DepEd Order No. 35, s. 2016 says learning action cell needs “are identified with reference to the professional teacher standards set for one’s career stage”. Knowing why this works is indicator 4.5.1; doing it as a school head is 4.5.2. The learning action cell guide shows how.
8. Watch four pending changes. They are the PPSSH-based performance tools for school heads, the revised NEAP recognition guidelines, the DepEd order that will implement RA 12288 and its rules, with new qualification standards for Master Teacher VI and School Principal V (a DepEd orientation deck targets both for the first quarter of 2027), and the Principals Academy that DepEd, through NEAP, is developing, which EDCOM II’s targets depend on.

School head standards and the PPSSH: strands and Career Stage 1 indicators

The PPSSH turns its own use into indicators. Most of them sit in Domain 4, Developing Self and Others. The table gives the Career Stage 1 indicators that this topic supports, in the words of the PPSSH.

The PPSSH guide lists every indicator at all four career stages. The Domain 4 guide reads each of its eight strands with DepEd data.

Practice: how the NASH may test this

DepEd Memorandum No. 069, s. 2025 says the NASH covers “conceptual and situational critical thinking questions aligned with” the PPSSH, using the Structure of the Observed Learning Outcome (SOLO) taxonomy. On the standards themselves, expect items that ask which standards apply, how a school head uses them for self-assessment and development, and what a policy does and does not yet require. The three items below are original practice items, not actual or recalled NASH items. Each option is scored 3-2-1-0, as in the NASH practice questions with answers. Timed sets are on the NASH Reviewer assessment page.

Question 1

Indicator 4.1.1, Personal and professional development. Career Stage 1, Situational, Moderate.

You are a head teacher who plans to take the next NASH. While clearing a cabinet, you find the self-assessment form you filled out in a 2016 School Heads Development Program course. It rates you on the seven NCBS-SH domains, and most of your old ratings were high. How should you begin planning your preparation?

• A. Use the 2016 form again and focus your review on the NCBS-SH domains where your old ratings were lowest, since both sets of standards describe the same work.
• B. Rate yourself against the PPSSH Career Stage 1 indicators in all five domains, then list the indicators with your lowest ratings as your study focus.
• C. Rate yourself against the PPSSH Career Stage 1 indicators in all five domains, using evidence from your current work, and turn the largest gaps into goals with a plan.
• D. Skip the self-assessment and read the descriptions of the five PPSSH domains, since the NASH reports each taker’s results by domain rather than by indicator.

Answer and explanation

Best answer: C. Points: A = 0, B = 2, C = 3, D = 1.

• A (0 points, Prestructural). DO 024, s. 2020 rescinded DO 32, s. 2010, so the NCBS-SH is no longer the standard. Old ratings on rescinded standards do not show your needs against the PPSSH that the NASH tests.
• B (2 points, Multistructural). The tool and the scope are right, but the plan stops at a list. Ratings without evidence are hard to trust, and a list of low indicators is not yet a development plan.
• C (3 points, Relational). This connects the current standards, evidence from your own practice and a plan for the gaps, which is what a self-assessment is for.
• D (1 point, Unistructural). Turning to the PPSSH is right, but reading domain descriptions is not a self-assessment. The NASH also scores indicators before it combines them into domain scores.

Why. This aligns with Career Stage 1 expectations because indicator 4.1.1 asks aspiring school heads to self-assess “using the Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads”. The PPSSH replaced the NCBS-SH in 2020, and the school head test has been aligned with it since the 2021 round. The option that uses the right indicators but stops at a list gets the standard right and misses the link between assessment and action that indicator 4.1.2 builds on at Career Stage 2.

Indicator 4.1.1: Conduct self-assessment of personal and professional development needs using the Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads.

Sources: DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020; DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010; DepEd Memorandum No. 192, s. 2016; DepEd Memorandum No. 097, s. 2025.

Question 2

Indicator 1.3.1, Policy implementation and review. Career Stage 1, Conceptual, Moderate.

A colleague says that because DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020 makes the PPSSH the foundation of human resource systems for school heads, every school head’s performance has been rated directly on the 34 PPSSH strands since 2020. Which statement best describes the order’s effect on the performance appraisal of school heads?

• A. The colleague is right: the order replaced the existing appraisal rules for school heads when it took effect, so ratings have used the 34 strands since 2020.
• B. The order makes the PPSSH the foundation of appraisal and directs the BHROD to anchor human resource systems on it, so the shift to the PPSSH is complete.
• C. The order concerns professional development only, so the PPSSH guides training for school heads but has no part in how their performance is appraised.
• D. The order makes the PPSSH the foundation of appraisal, but existing policies govern until PPSSH-based guidelines are issued, and DepEd was still drafting such tools in 2025.

Answer and explanation

Best answer: D. Points: A = 0, B = 2, C = 1, D = 3.

• A (0 points, Prestructural). The order does not replace the appraisal rules on its own. Its transitory provision keeps existing policies in force until implementing guidelines anchored on the PPSSH are issued.
• B (2 points, Multistructural). Both facts are right: the PPSSH is the stated foundation, and BHROD must anchor the systems on it. But the option treats a direction as a finished change.
• C (1 point, Unistructural). The PPSSH does guide professional development, but the order names performance appraisal among the systems it must underpin.
• D (3 points, Relational). This links the policy statement, the transitory provision and the current state of implementation.

Why. This aligns with Career Stage 1 expectations because indicator 1.3.1 asks for knowledge of policy implementation, so that school operations stay “consistent with national and local laws, regulations and issuances”. Here the question is which rules govern school heads’ appraisal while a new standard takes effect. DO 024, s. 2020 makes the PPSSH “the foundation” of performance appraisal, directs BHROD to anchor appraisal on it, and keeps existing policies until PPSSH-based guidelines are issued. EDCOM II found no explicit guideline aligning school heads’ evaluation with the PPSSH, and DepEd called a workshop to draft PMES-PPSSH tools in November 2025. The option that names the foundation and BHROD’s duty gets the policy right and misses the transition.

Indicator 1.3.1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of policy implementation and review to ensure that school operations are consistent with national and local laws, regulations and issuances.

Sources: DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020, Sections IV, VI and IX; EDCOM II Year Two Report, p. 261; Memorandum DM-OUHROD-2025-3315.

Question 3

Indicator 4.5.1, Professional development of school personnel. Career Stage 1, Situational, Moderate.

You are the teacher-in-charge of a public elementary school. Your classroom observations show that most Grade 4 to 6 teachers give summative tests and term examinations but do not use the results to plan remediation. The teachers ask you to send them to a two-day motivational seminar from a private provider. Funds are limited. What is the most appropriate professional development plan?

• A. Approve the motivational seminar that the teachers asked for, since teachers take part more fully in professional development on topics they choose.
• B. Hold LAC sessions on using test results to plan remediation, link them to the teachers’ PPST-based needs and the SIP, and check later observations for change.
• C. Hold LAC sessions on using test results to plan remediation, and require every teacher in the school to attend all of the sessions this school year.
• D. Wait for the division to schedule a training on assessment, since the professional development of teachers is the responsibility of the division office.

Answer and explanation

Best answer: B. Points: A = 1, B = 3, C = 2, D = 0.

• A (1 point, Unistructural). Teachers’ interests matter, and DO 35, s. 2016 lets them help choose LAC topics. But the plan ignores the gap the observations found.
• B (3 points, Relational). This addresses the observed gap, ties it to the teachers’ standards and the school plan, and checks whether practice changes.
• C (2 points, Multistructural). The topic and the format are right, but the plan does not target the teachers with the gap, link to their standards or the SIP, or check results.
• D (0 points, Prestructural). RA 9155 makes “Encouraging staff development” a school head’s responsibility, and DO 35, s. 2016 calls supporting teachers’ professional development “one of the most vital functions of school heads/principals”.

Why. This aligns with Career Stage 1 expectations because indicator 4.5.1 asks for knowledge of professional development that addresses “performance gaps among school personnel”. DO 35, s. 2016 says LAC needs “are identified with reference to the professional teacher standards set for one’s career stage”, using sources such as “classroom observation results”, and that the LAC plan “should be integrated or linked with the School Improvement Plan (SIP)”. DO 42, s. 2017 makes the PPST “a basis for all learning and development programs for teachers”, and DepEd Order No. 015, s. 2026 states that “assessment results shall guide remediation”. The option that runs the right LAC for everyone gets the content right and misses the targeting and the follow-up.

Indicator 4.5.1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of professional development in enhancing strengths and in addressing performance gaps among school personnel.

Sources: DepEd Order No. 35, s. 2016; DepEd Order No. 42, s. 2017; DepEd Order No. 015, s. 2026; Republic Act No. 9155, Section 7(E); DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020.

Frequently asked questions

What is the NCBS-SH in DepEd?

The National Competency-Based Standards for School Heads (NCBS-SH) were DepEd’s first standards for school heads, adopted through DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010 on April 16, 2010. They defined standards “through the domains and strands”, with indicators for each strand, and had seven domains, from School Leadership to Personal and Professional Attributes and Interpersonal Effectiveness.

What is the difference between the NCBS-SH and the PPSSH?

The PPSSH has five domains, 34 strands and four career stages, while the NCBS-SH had seven domains and its order mentions no career stages. The PPSSH covers aspiring school heads at Career Stage 1 and shares its design with the teacher standards (PPST). It is also meant to underpin every human resource system for school heads, from recruitment to talent management.

Is the NCBS-SH still in effect?

No. DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020 rescinded DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010. The PPSSH is the standard that DepEd uses for school heads, and the NASH is aligned with it.

How many domains, strands and indicators are in the PPSSH?

The PPSSH has 5 domains and 34 strands. Each strand has one indicator at each of the 4 career stages, for 136 indicators in all, of which 34 are at Career Stage 1.

What NEAP programs are there for school heads?

Today NEAP’s core programs run under interim quality assurance guidelines (DM 044, s. 2023) while a revised recognition order is drafted, and RA 11713 requires NEAP’s programs to follow the professional standards. NASH takers who meet the standards in three domains get an online course, and those With Developmental Areas must complete Professional Development Interventions facilitated by NEAP or an authorized provider (DM 097, s. 2025). Earlier, DM 192, s. 2016 ran the School Heads Development Program Foundation Course on the NCBS-SH. NEAP is also developing a Principals Academy, which EDCOM II’s targets rely on.

Is the NASH based on the PPSSH?

Yes. DepEd Memorandum No. 069, s. 2025 says the NASH covers “conceptual and situational critical thinking questions aligned with the standards set by” the PPSSH, using the SOLO taxonomy. The NQESH has been aligned with the PPSSH since the 2021 round.

More on school leadership

This post is part of a series on what a school head does under the DepEd rules in force today. Related posts:

• Leadership Styles of School Heads: What the Evidence Says
• Instructional Leadership for DepEd School Heads
• Distributed Leadership in DepEd: Head and Master Teachers
• Principal, Head Teacher or Teacher-in-Charge in DepEd
• OPCRF for DepEd School Heads in 2026: What Applies Now
• RA 9155 Duties of DepEd School Heads: 12 Areas Explained
• PPSSH Domain 4: Developing Self and Others With DepEd Data
• NASH Study Guide: DepEd Memorandum 069, s. 2025 and PPSSH
• NASH Results 2025 Explained: Pass Rate and the Score of 65
• NASH Qualification Standards for School Principal I: FAQ
• EDCOM II Final Report: Guide for Aspiring School Heads
• DepEd Learning Action Cell (LAC) Guidelines: DO 35, s. 2016
• On the app: the PPSSH guide, with every indicator at all four career stages; how to become a school principal in DepEd; the NASH guide to requirements and career rules; and the principal shortage in numbers

Sources

• DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2010, National Adoption and Implementation of the National Competency-Based Standards for School Heads.
• DepEd Order No. 024, s. 2020, National Adoption and Implementation of the Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads, with the PPSSH document.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 192, s. 2016, School Heads Development Program: Foundation Course, Enclosures 1, 2A to 2C, 6 and 7.
• DepEd Order No. 34, s. 2009, Moving Forward in the Implementation of the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA), Annex 1.
• DepEd Order No. 16, s. 2008, Coordinating Mechanisms for Implementing the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA).
• DepEd Order No. 23, s. 2010, Adoption of the BESRA Implementation and Accountability Plan, 2010-2012.
• DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2011, Policies and Guidelines on Training and Development (T&D) Programs and Activities.
• DepEd Order No. 2, s. 2015, Guidelines on the Establishment and Implementation of the Results-Based Performance Management System (RPMS) in the Department of Education.
• DepEd Order No. 35, s. 2016, The Learning Action Cell as a K to 12 Basic Education Program School-Based Continuing Professional Development Strategy.
• DepEd Order No. 42, s. 2017, National Adoption and Implementation of the Philippine Professional Standards for Teachers.
• DepEd Order No. 21, s. 2018, Implementing Guidelines on the Allocation and Utilization of the Human Resources Development Funds for Personnel in Schools and Learning Centers.
• DepEd Order No. 011, s. 2019, Implementation of the NEAP Transformation, with the Task Force report.
• DepEd Order No. 001, s. 2020, Guidelines for NEAP Recognition of Professional Development Programs and Courses for Teachers and School Leaders.
• DepEd Order No. 022, s. 2022, Amendment to DepEd Order No. 001, s. 2020.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 050, s. 2020, DepEd Professional Development Priorities for Teachers and School Leaders for School Year 2020-2023.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 033, s. 2022, Conduct of the 2021 National Qualifying Examination for School Heads.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 012, s. 2023, Moratorium on the Implementation of DepEd Order No. 001, s. 2020.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 044, s. 2023, Interim Guidelines for the Quality Assurance and Monitoring and Evaluation of the National Educators Academy of the Philippines Core Programs.
• DepEd news release, 2,203 aspiring principals obtain eligibilities in the first PPSSH-aligned National Qualifying Examination for School Heads, November 10, 2022, and All systems go for full remote online National Qualifying Examination of aspiring school heads in DepEd, July 29, 2022.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 100, s. 2022, Results of the Fiscal Year 2021 National Qualifying Examination for School Heads.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 013, s. 2024, Administration of the Fiscal Year 2023 National Qualifying Examination for School Heads.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 069, s. 2025, Administration of the National Assessment for School Heads for Fiscal Year 2025.
• DepEd Memorandum No. 097, s. 2025, Results of the National Assessment for School Heads for Fiscal Year 2025 (Batch 1).
• DepEd Order No. 015, s. 2026, Revised Guidelines on Classroom Assessment, Grading System, and Awards and Recognition for the K to 12 Basic Education Program.
• DepEd, Notice of Consultation and Submission of Feedback on the Proposed Policy: Revised Guidelines on NEAP Authorization of Learning Service Providers and Recognition of Professional Development Programs for Teachers, School Leaders, and Teaching-Related Personnel, March 23, 2026.
• Memorandum DM-OUHROD-2025-3315, Consultation Workshop and Drafting of the Performance Management and Evaluation System (PMES) – Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads (PPSSH) Tools, November 19, 2025.
• Republic Act No. 9155, Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001, Section 7(E), Official Gazette.
• Republic Act No. 11713, Excellence in Teacher Education Act, Sections 3(i), 17 and 18 of the law as amended, Lawphil.
• Republic Act No. 12288, Career Progression System for Public School Teachers and School Leaders Act, Sections 3(h), 3(i) and 9, Official Gazette.
• DepEd, Call for Submission on Inputs and Comments on the Draft Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 12288, November 13, 2025.
• EDCOM 2, Acidre welcomes IRR of teacher career progression law, September 17, 2026.
• World Bank (2006). Project Appraisal Document on a Proposed Loan in the Amount of US$200.00 Million to the Republic of the Philippines for a National Program Support for Basic Education Project, Report No. 35445-PH, May 22, 2006, pp. 3, 13, 101-102.
• World Bank Independent Evaluation Group (2018). Philippines: Support for Basic Education Reform, 2006-12, Project Performance Assessment Report No. 117900, p. 14.
• EDCOM II (2025). Fixing the Foundations: A Matter of National Survival, Year Two Report, pp. 261-262 and Table 13.
• EDCOM II (2026). Turning Point: A Decade of Necessary Reform (2026-2035), Final Report, pp. 495-496.

Written by Mark Anthony Llego for NASH Reviewer. Sources: DepEd Orders No. 32, s. 2010 and No. 024, s. 2020 and the PPSSH; DepEd Orders on BESRA, NEAP and training cited above; DepEd Memoranda on the SHDP, NEAP priorities, the NQESH and the NASH; Republic Acts No. 9155, No. 11713 and No. 12288; World Bank (2006, 2018); EDCOM II (2025, 2026).