QC to offer ALS program in city jails.

The Quezon City government will institutionalize the Alternative Learning System (ALS), a Department of Education (DepEd) program, in the Quezon City Jail (QCJ).

Earlier, Mayor Herbert Bautista has approved ordinance number SP-2300 S-2014 which ensures that the QCJ inmates are provided access to adequate education through DepEd's ALS program to prevent recidivism among detainees.

The Alternative Learning System refers to a parallel learning system that serves as a viable alternative to existing formal education.

Recent research on prison education programs presents discouraging statistics on the current recidivism rate or the rate of the habitual relapse into crime. The US Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) reported in 2011 that nearly seven in ten people who were formerly imprisoned will commit a new crime and half will end up back in prison within three years. In 2005 studies by the IHEP revealed that the best way to reduce the instances of recidivism is through education during imprisonment.

Quezon City Jail management officials also believe that education through the ALS program will help prevent detainees from returning to a life of crime when they are released.

The implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the ALS ordinance shall be issued by the QCJ in coordination with the division of city schools.

For the implementation of the QCJ-ALS program, the QC division of city schools is authorized to conduct inspections of the detention facilities to ensure that adequate facilities are made available for the program.

The ordinance which offers ALS program for QC jail detainees was authored by Councilor Ally Medalla.

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