Philippines - PHL must adopt international benchmark in basic education

MANILA — Saying it is high time for the Philippines to adopt international benchmark of basic education, senators have expressed their support to the intention of the government to adopt the K+12 or kindergarten plus 12 years in the country's basic education curriculum.

Senator Edgardo Angara, chairman of the Senate committee on education, said the K+12 will make Filipino graduates more globally competitive as he allayed fears it will be additional burden to the poor parents.

Angara noted that the Philippines has been lagging behind its ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) neighbors in terms of the overall competitiveness of its graduates for years, in part because of having the lowest total number of years spent in school.

“We are the only country in Asia with less than 11 years of basic education. Globally, we are among the last three countries with a 10-year curriculum. The other two are African nations -- they are our peers in this regard,” said Angara after the Senate public hearing on the proposal.

Angara emphasized that a 12-year basic education curriculum is required for Filipino graduates to be eligible for employment under the Washington Accord for Engineers and the Bologna Accord for the European Union.

"This is about putting our graduates on a par with the rest of the world," he stressed. “Some of our nursing graduates abroad work as nursing aides, while our engineers are deemed under-qualified because of the significantly shorter education they had in the Philippines,” he lamented.

"Our graduates can get much better employment and directly compete with the best from Asia, Europe and the United States if our basic education standards can meet just the minimum requirement followed all over the world," Angara said.

Senator Ralph Recto also agreed that the Philippines should adopt an international bench mark as provided in his own Senate Bill No. 2713 or an Act enhancing the curriculum and increasing the number of years for basic education.

”There is an international benchmark and that is 12 years basic education. I think we must adopt that as well,” Recto said.

Recto, however, said all stakeholders from both the legislative, executive and private sectors must discuss comprehensively “between now up to 2016” when the full implementation of K+12 is expected as planned by the Department of Education (DepEd).

”I think kindergarten is correct. That’s very clear. But the 11th and 12th, they are trying to improve on that.

So gradually, we need to implement this. We will discuss it first,” Recto said.

Based on SB 2713, Recto is proposing to add two years in kindergarten and Grade 7 in the elementary level while under DepEd’s K+12, the government proposes to add two more years in the high school to be known as ‘senior high school’ or SHS.

In a PowerPoint presentation, DepEd Undersecretary Yolanda Quijano explained that the government should allot at least P40 billion additional budget for the full implementation of the K to 12 basic education curriculum.

Quijano explained that the K to 12 aims to decongest curriculum to improve the students’ mastery of basic competencies; ensure seamlessness of primary, secondary and post-secondary competencies; improve teaching through enhanced pedagogies and medium of instruction; and reduce job-skills mismatch by expanding the graduates’ job opportunities.

However, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV was not convinced by Quijano’s explanation, especially when the education official answered the senator that the K+12 is not guarantee that it would improve the quality of education in the country.

”I’m supporting the K (kindergarten) part of the program but the problem is additional two years. You said there is no guarantee it will improve education and yet we will impose upon parents to have additional budget for schooling for additional two years. This is no brainer,” Trillanes said. (PNA)

Jelly F. Musico

DCT/scs/jfm

http://www.zambotimes.com

Business & Investment Opportunities 
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com