Let’s get it on. Philippine Education System continues to drudge its 12-year basic education plan despite various rants made by the general public. This incoming 2016 until 2017, there will be no freshmen enrollees on Higher Education Institutes (HEI’s) due to implementation of K+12 Basic Education Program by the Department of Education. This signifies that General Education teachers, who usually teach freshmen and sophomores, will have no teaching assignment which is called ‘load’, for two years. Now, what awaits for these GE teachers who will lose their teaching load, same as those secondary institutions who is deficient of teaching faculty needed for the K+12 program?
The consolidated bill, entitled ” An Act Enhancing the Philippine Basic Education Curriculum and Increasing the Number of Years for Basic Education, Appropriating Funds Therefore and for other Purposes” passed by the houses of congress contains the plan for GE teachers in 2016 and after. Section 8 of this bill, entitled “Hiring of Graduates of Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering, and other Specialists in subjects with a Shortage of Qualified Applicants, Technical-Vocational Courses and Higher Education Faculty,” states that if such graduates are willing to teach on part-time basis,the provisions of LET shall no longer be required. LET is the Licensure Examination for teachers that all high school teachers by law, are required to pass.
This denotes that these GE teachers will be allowed to teach part-time in high schools provided that their institutions permit them, and most importantly, they are still reserved in their college posts. By the time 2018 comes, there will again be freshmen enrollees, also mirrors a revised GE curriculum. GE teachers now can return to their college teaching loads.
GE teachers that are planning to teach in secondary schools must be a Bachelor’s degree holder, relevant to their general education or subject specialties that they will be going to teach in high school. Aside from that, they must have served their respective HEI’s satisfactorily. Indeed, there is enough plan for those teaching faculties that will be strained by the K12 program.
Another thing stated by the bill is that, a full time GE teacher with a relevant Bachelor’s degree can immediately become a full time high school teacher without having to pass the LET. This is due to two legal schemes of the bill. First, main Section 8 states that DepEd and Private Education Institutes shall hire as may be relevant to the subject, not withstanding the provisions of set 26, 27 and 28 of RA 7836 known as Teachers Professionalization Act of 1994. Second is section 8, ‘Repealing Clause’ of the bill, provides that Pertinent Provisions of the RA 7836 and so on… This means that full time GE teachers with relevant Bachelor’s Degree are exempted from having pass the LET, if they want to teach full time in high school.
This appears too good for GE teachers and to secondary institutes who is in need of teaching faculties. Somehow, the implementation of K12 program has provided basic solutions to several anticipations of the said plan. As of now, the best option for GE teachers is to transfer to high schools. If they are full time in college, they can be full time in high school, if they are part time in college, they will also be part time in high school. However, if they are part time in college and wants to be full time in high school, they will be required to take the LET.
For those GE teachers who doesn’t want to teach in high school, DepEd will give them jobs during the transition period, according to Section 12, “Transitory Provisions” of the bill. This is because DepEd will be in partnership with HEI’s and therefore, they do not have to leave their institutions. Here, the best option for GE teachers is to make sure that their college or university will work with DepEd.
Based on the bill being passed by the congress, it merely contains some of the basic answers to the problems that might be encountered during the implementation of the plan. It is clear that there are clear options for the GE teachers on what they will do during their teaching vacancy. But most of all, Higher Education Institutes themselves must be responsible in keeping their GE teachers not to be disadvantaged by the pursuance of government to make Philippine Education System a better thing.
By: Charms D. Repol
