The key to alleviate poverty and achieve sustainable growth and development is to uplift the Philippine Basic Education through quality education. Dr. Salvador P. Lopez, in his paper, “Relevance and Quality in Education”, stated that Quality in Education, means, in principle, the best education on what money can buy in terms of teachers and facilities as well as academic standards and traditions developed over time.

The goal of quality education is to develop the full capacities of learners and to support unfolding of individual potential. Dr. Manuel Z. Ramiso, an Education Supervisor in Social Studies from Masbate, cites four concepts of quality in education: and command of direction.

1. 1.Nature of the Learner – Change in the learner can be achieved through changing the environment, not just by mere instruction and command of direction. We can argue that the concept of quality is effective but its effectiveness is achieved only with a small number of students.
2. 2.Nature of Curriculum – Equality exist in the terms opportunities to take the curriculum once the learner is judged to be qualified.
3. 3.Nature of Professional Staff – The more highly qualified staff, the more quality will be attained. According to Wilson, deadwood faculty rarely engage in research activities and may rely on lecture notes that literally yellowed with age or base lectures on the sentences taken verbatim from textbooks. More intellectual mastery of knowledge and skills is not adequate. One must also go out and apply the skills.
4. 4.Outputs – Quality is best achieved when all learners attain the competencies for which the educational institution is accountable. Effectiveness is measured by how many learners attained competence. This means people gain access to the materials and achieved competence that must be varied and diverse including the use of a wide range of learning tools, techniques, agents and environments. The significant differences in this fourth concept of quality, therefore, will be the diverse models of teaching and caring persons in order to achieve the desired learning outcomes.

 

The real test of quality in education lies with results. Quality must be viewed in terms of outcomes. The educated person should display specific competencies in specific areas. The well-educated person is able to achieve a balance between individual freedom and responsibility to society, has developed a talent that is fully translatable into a self-satisfying career, and has a sense of self-worth and strong respect for other people and cultures.

 

Educated persons will utilize the skills and knowledge that can make the productive people who are useful to themselves and to the larger world community. Moreover, educated persons will comprehend the meaning of ethical, interpersonal relations, to have faith in and respect for others, and to have faith in themselves and man under the guidance of his intellect that can create their own destiny.

 

By: Geraldine C. Dimaculangan | School Principal – 1 | Bayview Elementary School | Mariveles, Bataan