What should be changed is the curriculum not the number of years in basic education. This is my stand towards extending the years in basic education or K-12. On October 5, 2010 the Department of Education declared President Benigno "NoyNoy" Aquino III's agenda to add one year to grade school, and one year to high school, carrying the knowledge that this would benefit the less fortunate Filipinos more.
“The current thinking and the current culture in the Philippines is that if you don't finish with a college degree, there is something missing in your life. What should basic education be? To me, what is basic is that [high school graduates] should be able to live a meaningful life, they should be able to be prepared to start a family, and thirdly they should be able to be productively employed." (Secretary Armin Luistro 2010) The reason why there is need for Filipinos to take college before being able to get a decent job is because the curriculum in high school is not good enough. It lacks subjects that can enable students to see their full capabilities.
While I was still an Engineering student my younger sister, who is five years younger than I, and I were studying math together, to my surprise she had the exact same lesson I had a few days ago. Then after a couple of days she was studying a different lesson which my professor had not yet discussed. Her school only has four years in high school yet all the students can withstand the level of thinking of a college student due to their compact curriculum. The school also encourages it’s students to seek for their unenhanced talents so as to after high school they can still have a bright future. Activities such as such making handicrafts, sewing garments, computing analytically, learning other languages, and so on are included to their school’s curriculum so students can still have an alternative way in making profits after graduating high school. Therefore the need to extend grade school, and high school is not necessary, revision of every school’s curriculum would be more favorable in my belief.
“Perhaps our current curriculum is too academic in orientation… What are the needs of industry? You need to match that with the gifts, resources, and interests of young people." (Secretary Armin Luistro 2010) Not all students desire to live or work in a corporate setting. Others should be knowledgeable that there are other ways to make profit not just by working in an office wearing a tie or a blazer. Today’s curriculum solely teaches the students to master English, Math, and Science. How about Arts and Home Economics? The curriculum should be revised to fit the young’s capabilities and interests for them to be more inspired in studying or going to school.
Possibly the employers and company owners should also revise their qualifications. An examination before employment can be a different way to filter the employees that can live up to their standards. We should change our perspective and stop making “Did you finish college?” as a basis on one’s intelligence. Not all college graduates are wise, and not all high school graduates are ignorant. The K-12 basic education program do has it’s perks. Such as: 1) The K-12 will solve the annual growing number of out-of-school youth. 2) The K-12 will address low achievement scores and poor academic performance of elementary and high school students. 3) The Department of Education has enough resources to implement the K-12. 4) The K-12 will open doors for more jobs for the youth, even without a college diploma. 5) Filipino graduates will be automatically recognized as “professionals” abroad. (SarahKatrina Maramag of The Philippine Online Chronicles 2010)
Implementing K-12, education would be more attainable for the needy because of the fact that college can sometimes get pretty expensive due to the requirement for school allowances, supplies, and fees for other school projects and activities. The need for another four or five years tuition fee would not be necessary for everybody would be given an opportunity similar to those who were able to finish college or at least a good paying job. Everybody can and should be given a chance to have a job, a decent one.
Yet if K-12 would be implemented, can we be assured that the employers lower their qualifications? Would they be given equal opportunities with those who have a college degree? Maybe the problem is not the number of years needed.
I live only a block from a public high school and upon riding the public utility transportation I can hear them converse about what to do after high school. Though many of them want to pursue college they say their parents cannot afford to enroll them. Could the government be the solution to their problems? There are numerous public high schools in the Philippines yet only a quarter of that number is the number of public college schools in the country. The reason some students tend to lose interest in college because they know that they would not have anything to look forward to after high school because limited students can only enter to public college schools. Another issue they keep on mentioning is that having 60-80 students per room is not efficient in learning. Too much students mean too much noise, distraction, and less information absorbing.
This controversial issue is quite broad, a decision that requires much time and thought before implementing. “Our immediate focus should be just improving basic education. The dropout rate is very, very high and the quality of education is very, very low." (Milwida Guevara, chief executive officer of Synergeia) She also stressed that the quality education in the pre-school and grade school should be improved rather than adding two more years. It would increase the number of dropouts in high school.
Being a citizen of a country whose ruler can make impulse decisions such as the implementation of K-12 saddens me for the said issue is not that mild, this concern millions of children, and the country’s future. “Ang kabataan ang pag asa ng bayan.” (Jose Rizal) Therefore the country must provide the children of this generation the proper education needed.
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