“Naninindigan pa rin po tayo sa ipinangako nating pagbabago sa edukasyon: ang gawin itong sentral na estratehiya sa pamumuhunan sa pinakamahalaga nating yaman—ang mamamayang Pilipino. Sa K to 12, tiwala tayong mabibigyang-lakas si Juan dela Cruz upang mapaunlad—hindi lamang ang kanyang sarili at pamilya—kundi maging ang buong bansa.” – Pres. Benigno S. Aquino III
Issues on poverty, unemployment, and literacy rate of Filipinos have been some of the primary concerns of the government for many years now. Thus, the present administration has been very insistent and serious in bringing hope and progress to the nation— looking for all possible ways on how to improve every Filipino family’s way of living.
The then controversial K12 bill had gone through a lot of debates, forums, and even rallies before it was passed to be a law on May 15, 2013. Seen as a significant answer to the country’s problem on poverty, this law has been a popular topic in the senate for years now. Parties that are in favor of the bill have been very persistent in presenting the assumed favorable effects of the matter up to the present time while groups that see its ambiguity have remained courageous and vigilant, standing firm against the then-bill-now-law known as the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013.
Since its enactment in 2013, the K12 program has caused major changes not only in the country’s educational system but also in the lives of every Filipino family who has at least one child that goes to school. Section 4 of the two-year old K12 law, for instance, mandated the inclusion of the Kindergarten program to basic education and the addition of two years to secondary education legally referred to as senior high school. Both of these significant modifications went through serious critiquing and scrutiny by the general public including parents and even members of the educational sectors themselves. Nevertheless, the Aquino administration and all concerned agencies such as DepEd and DOLE were persistent in upholding the realization and conduct of the Government’s K12 plans.
Two years after its enactment, the K12 law has kept its key features: Strengthening Early Childhood Education, Making the Curriculum Relevant to the Learners, Building Proficiency, Ensuring Integrated and Seamless Learning, Gearing Up for the Future, and Nurturing the Holistically Developed Filipino (Features of K12, DepEd website). As a result, schools have now adopted new trends and strategies in curriculum planning and development and a more meaningful way of student assessment and evaluation. UBD and KPUP are now familiar terms in every educational institution in the country. DepEd branches from regional offices to division offices to district offices have closely monitored the schools’ status as far as the implementation of the K12 program is concerned. The Department of Education has exerted so much will in improving the quality of education for the Filipino people. DepEd officials would always talk about the program as a very inspiring transformation for a third-world country such as the Philippines. Promoters of the program would also seem to be delightful whenever giving reports on how the program has been carried out since the day of its implementation. However, the implementation of the K12 program has not yet gotten away from its ambiguity issues. Senator Trillanes’ Resolution No. 499 that reiterates the conduct of an inquiry into the feasibility, viability, practicality, and truthfulness of the official justifications advanced by the DepEd for the implementation of the K12 program as well as the impact of the said implementation to the youth and the poor is still in progress and is still being supported by a number of advocates.
Republic Act 10533 is turning two years old this May. Thus, the public will soon hear reviews and opinions about the effects of the program—whether it’s initial objectives have been achieved or not. Most probably, the public may expect any of the DepEd Usecs and Asecs to serve as the agency’s spokesperson on the matter if not the secretary himself. Meanwhile, the general public would wonder if the same reviews and reports would have the same theme as of the insights of public school teachers who are actually the ones who do the dirty work and perhaps must be the first ones to be asked of their judgment on the program.
President Aquino’s conviction and faith in the assumed effects and benefits of the K12 program as he signed Republic Act No. 10533 known as the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 on May 15, 2013 are seen optimistic by many, yet it continuously leaves a question in the minds of the concerned Filipino whether the implementation of the K12 program is really bringing the nation to the idealistic Tuwid na Daan or just leading the country to another bandwagon set by the present administration.
By: Ma. Nelfa C. Trinidad | Teacher II | Orani National High School | Orani, Bataan
