There is no turning back. The first batch of Grade 12 students is set to graduate soon. While this is considered a glorious milestone in the lives of the students, their families, and their teachers, it is inevitable for others to still rain on their parade.

Some skeptics doubt the readiness of the students as they will soon embark on their journey on possibly joining the Filipino workforce. K to 12 graduates, being at least eighteen years of age, are already of legal age should they consider to work and not to pursue further studies anymore. This, at some angle, might be considered beneficial for the students who want to help their families already after many years of studying. They can finally apply what they have learned for the past twelve years of their lives. This includes countless hours of lectures combined with at least 80 hours of on-the-job-training while on their senior years. However, some people might still find their training insufficient as the number of hours only translates to two weeks. This can be true that it is impossible to learn everything about a job in such a short period of time. But what choice do the students have if they also have other subjects to complete? After all, the curriculum was carefully planned with consultations from both the Commission on Higher Education and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority who know better about the requirements for trainings.

Continuous learning after knowing the basics is important to master a craft. If companies and employers won’t give the new graduates a shot to prove themselves, then they never will be ready. Their efforts will then be put to waste, thus concluding that the education system is a failure, which we all hope not to be the case.

By: Arvin L. Pascual, Teacher I | COB National Highschool | Balanga, Bataan