• Ferdinand C. Somido

  Author

Public elementary and high schools in the Philippines are struggling to cope up with the
accreditation standards set by the Department of Education. The questionable stability of the
accreditation process in public schools would cause uncertainty among principal to undergo
accreditation. Using a phenomenological design, the researcher conducted this study among
principals who underwent accreditation. Data collected via interviews with participants who
were principals of their respective schools during the pilot implementation of the Department of
Education accreditation program. Transcriptions were derived from the videotapes of the
interviews. After gaining the holistic view of the participants, significant statements were
extracted that serve as essence from where the themes were formulated. In response to the
purpose of this study which is to determine the live experiences of the principals who already
experienced actual accreditation, this study emerged that principals experienced extreme
pressure in understanding the “whats” and “hows” of accreditation. Contributory to their
anxieties were the financial constraints, retrieval of documents for three years, and the pressing
time. However, despite hardship and difficulties, the principals were all successful in obtaining
certain accreditation.

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