Are we late or are we on time? Just when the other countries are practicing K to 12 Curriculum for years, we are just starting. In the past Filipino students who migrate on abroad still need to complete an additional years of study. Oftentimes, we hear students coming from prestigious universities that they undergo Grade 7 that few years back in an ordinary private and public school students undergo 1st year high school. Hearing the school life of foreigners we can learn that they graduate in High School at age 18 and can enter jobs after graduation though not a professional one. Now the big question is, did we implement the K to 12 Curriculum on time?
The vision of many educators in implementing this kind of curriculum in replacement of BEC, SEC or UBD is to make Filipino students globally competitive that after graduating senior high school they can enter a job. This is very similar to an American setting. In order to turn the vision into a reality they divided the senior high school into different tracks and strands to make students master knowledge and skills that they think will be useful so that they will be well equipped in their chosen careers somedays. The challenge is this, like a freshman in college many students are not sure of what track or strand they are going to enter, sometimes when they are starting their semester they’ll soon realize that they want to shiftto another strand/track because of the difficult subjects that they have. Sometimes the strand/track that they want is not available in their chosen school but the academe will tell them it is alright to choose any strand/track because there is no specific strand/track requirement to enter a chosen program in college.
Part of entering Senior High School is to study the subjects that were once given in First Year College like Personality Development, Calculus, Statistics, Research, Entrepreneurship and many others. Aside from these, they are required to have an immersion so they will be exposed to the different work field. These are all interesting in the part of the academe and on the parents. However, as our education progresses, what about the students? Do they mature already not only to absorb what they are learning but to practice skills that will make them globally competitive? Are the contents of the curriculum are enough already that when they graduate in senior high school they can find jobs at least if they are not yet going to enter college? Do the contents are really useful? Are all the contents of K to 12 Curriculum in order to turn the Filipinos into being globally competitive are excellent to ensure the reality of the vision? Are there enough jobs that are waiting for a senior high school graduate? Few more months and we will see the product of to 12 curriculum in college as the first batch of graduates will enter college. Three to Five Years and will see the result of the K to 12 Curriculum in our nation. And while we are waiting for all the results, what all people from the academe can do is to make the most out of the vision of globalization and take hand in hand for the success of Philippine education.
By: Ms.Ana Rosette S. Garcia, LPT | Jose Rizal Institute | Orion, Bataan
