Notes

mga posibleng PAMAGAT:






















pokus na katanungan ng editoryal:

1. Bakit nahihirapang makahanap ng trabaho ang mga K-12 graduates, at sino ang may pananagutan dito—ang mismong programa, ang sistema ng edukasyon, o ang merkado ng trabaho?
Posisyon Ko sa Isyu
Ang aking posisyon ay kritikal sa mismong implementasyon ng K-12 program. Naniniwala ako na ang unemployability ng K-12 graduates ay resulta ng mga hindi natutugunang pangako ng programa at ng kakulangan ng ugnayan sa pagitan ng edukasyon at ng totoong pangangailangan ng industriya.

Perspektiba at Pananaw
Ang K-12 Curriculum ay Hindi Sapat:

Sa aking pananaw, ang K-12 curriculum ay hindi ganap na naghahanda sa mga estudyante para sa mundo ng trabaho. Bagaman ang layunin ng K-12 program ay gawing job-ready ang mga graduates, ang kasalukuyang curriculum ay masyadong generalized at kulang sa specialized skills na talagang hinihingi ng mga employer.
Kakulangan sa Industry Alignment:

Isang malaking isyu ang kakulangan ng alignment o pagkakaugnay ng edukasyon sa industriya. Kadalasan, ang mga kurso at mga subject na itinuturo sa K-12 ay hindi tugma sa mga skillset na hinahanap ng mga kompanya. Ito ang nagreresulta sa mga graduates na hindi sapat ang kakayahan o hindi angkop ang natutunan sa mga trabahong available sa merkado.
Overqualification at Mababang Pagtingin sa K-12 Graduates:

Bukod dito, may mga kaso rin ng overqualification at ang mas mababang pagtingin sa mga K-12 graduates ng ilang employers. Mas binibigyang-pansin pa rin ang mga college degree holders, kaya’t mas nalalagay sa disadvantage ang mga graduates ng K-12 na walang sapat na work experience o advanced qualifications.

2. Nagbibigay ba ang K-12 program ng sapat na kaalaman at kakayahan sa mga graduates upang sila'y maging employable sa kasalukuyang merkado ng trabaho?
Aling Panig ang Aking Posisyon?
Nasa panig ako na ang unemployability ng K-12 graduates ay bunga ng mga pagkukulang sa implementasyon ng programa at ang kakulangan ng tunay na suporta mula sa gobyerno at mga pribadong sektor upang matiyak na ang mga graduates ay handa para sa mga totoong hamon sa trabaho. Sa aking pananaw, hindi sapat ang mga pagbabago sa sistema ng edukasyon kung walang konkretong hakbang upang siguraduhing tugma ang kurikulum sa tunay na pangangailangan ng industriya.

Mungkahi
Dapat magkaroon ng mas malalim na pagsusuri at pagbabago sa K-12 program, lalo na sa aspeto ng skills training at industry alignment. Kailangang i-reassess ang mga programang itinuturo upang matiyak na ang mga graduates ay hindi lamang handa sa trabaho, kundi karapat-dapat ding mabigyan ng mga oportunidad na kanilang pinagsikapan sa loob ng kanilang pag-aaral.

Kung itatanong kung kasalanan ba ng mga sektor o mga employer na mas pinipili nila ang college graduates kaysa sa K-12 graduates, narito ang magiging tugon ko:

Hindi Lubos na Kasalanan ng Mga Employer
Hindi natin masasabing ganap na kasalanan ng mga employer na mas pinipili nila ang college graduates. Sa totoo lang, ang kanilang mga desisyon ay batay sa praktikal na konsiderasyon ng kung ano ang talagang kailangan nila sa isang empleyado upang maging produktibo at epektibo sa kanilang negosyo.

Kailangan ng Mas Matataas na Kakayahan:

Sa maraming industriya, may mga posisyon na nangangailangan ng mas malalim na kaalaman at specialized skills na karaniwang nakukuha lamang sa antas ng kolehiyo. Ang mga employer ay may responsibilidad sa kanilang mga kumpanya na kumuha ng mga empleyadong may sapat na kasanayan upang matiyak ang kalidad ng kanilang produkto o serbisyo.
Kakulangan sa Kumpiyansa sa K-12 Graduates:

Maraming employer ang nag-aalangan na kumuha ng K-12 graduates dahil hindi pa tiyak kung sapat na ba talaga ang training na natanggap nila kumpara sa mga nakatapos ng kolehiyo. Hindi ito simpleng pagmamaliit, kundi repleksyon ng tunay na kakulangan sa mga graduates na ito—hindi lamang sa skills kundi sa experience na karaniwang hinihingi ng mga posisyon sa trabaho.
Kasalanan ng Sistema, Hindi ng mga Employer:

Ang problema ay hindi dahil mas pinipili ng mga employer ang college graduates, kundi dahil hindi pa naipapakita ng K-12 program na ang kanilang mga graduates ay handang harapin ang mga hamon ng trabaho. Kung ang sistema ng edukasyon ay nagawa sanang maging mas malapit sa pangangailangan ng industriya, maaaring magkaroon ng mas mataas na kumpiyansa ang mga employer sa K-12 graduates.
Ang Pagtugon
Sa halip na sisihin ang mga employer, mas mainam na tingnan ang kabuuang sistema ng edukasyon at ang mga paraan kung paano maaaring mapabuti ang ugnayan ng sektor ng edukasyon at industriya. Ang tunay na solusyon ay nasa pagsasagawa ng mga reporma upang gawing mas handa at karapat-dapat ang mga K-12 graduates sa mata ng mga employer.

Konklusyon
Hindi natin dapat simpleng isisi sa mga employer ang kanilang kagustuhan para sa mga college graduates. Kailangan nating kilalanin na may mga lehitimong dahilan para sa kanilang mga pagpili, at ang solusyon ay dapat magmula sa mga hakbangin upang gawing mas competitive at employable ang mga K-12 graduates, na kasabay ng pagtugon sa mga pangangailangan ng industriya.



Kung ang mga firm o kumpanya ay hindi handa o hindi willing na mag-hire ng mga Senior High School (SHS) graduates lamang, may ilang bagay na dapat isaalang-alang upang maunawaan ang kanilang posisyon at kung paano maaaring tugunan ang sitwasyon.

1. Pag-aalinlangan Dahil sa Kakulangan ng Karanasan at Kasanayan
Rason ng mga Firm: Kadalasan, ang mga kumpanya ay nag-aalinlangan na kumuha ng SHS graduates dahil sa tingin nila ay kulang ang mga ito sa kinakailangang karanasan at specialized skills na mahalaga para sa mga trabaho. Ang mga firms ay may responsibilidad na tiyakin na ang kanilang mga empleyado ay may sapat na kakayahan upang maisagawa ang mga tungkulin nang maayos at epektibo. Kung sa tingin nila na ang isang SHS graduate ay hindi sapat ang kakayahan para sa posisyon, natural na maghanap sila ng mas kwalipikadong kandidato, tulad ng mga college graduates.
2. Pagiging Di-Handa ng Firm sa Pagtuturo at Training
Rason ng mga Firm: Maraming kumpanya ang hindi handa o ayaw gumastos ng oras at pondo para sa malawakang training o pagtuturo sa mga bagong empleyado na SHS graduates pa lamang. Mas pipiliin nila ang isang kandidato na hindi na kailangang turuan mula sa simula, dahil ito ay mas cost-effective at mabilis para sa kanila. Para sa mga kumpanya, ang mas experienced na empleyado ay mas madali nang sumabak sa trabaho at mas mabilis makakapagbigay ng resulta.
3. Kakulangan sa Industry-Specific Skills
Rason ng mga Firm: Ang mga SHS graduates, bagaman mayroon nang mga pangunahing kaalaman at kasanayan, ay maaaring kulang pa rin sa mga industry-specific skills na kinakailangan sa mga partikular na trabaho. Ang mga kumpanya ay kadalasang naghahanap ng mga kandidato na may tiyak na kasanayan na akma sa kanilang industriya, at kung ang SHS curriculum ay hindi sapat na aligned sa mga pangangailangan ng industriya, mahihirapan ang mga graduates na makuha ang mga trabahong ito.
Pagpapanukala ng Solusyon
1. Partnership sa Pagitan ng Paaralan at Industriya: Dapat magkaroon ng mas malapit na ugnayan ang mga paaralan at mga industriya upang masigurong ang mga graduates ay may mga kasanayan na akma sa pangangailangan ng trabaho. Ang mga internship, on-the-job training (OJT), at mga specialized programs ay maaaring makatulong upang maging mas handa ang mga SHS graduates para sa aktwal na trabaho.

2. Paghikayat sa mga Firm na Mag-Invest sa Training: Dapat hikayatin ang mga kumpanya na mag-invest sa training ng mga SHS graduates, lalo na kung ang mga ito ay may potensyal na maging mahusay na empleyado. Ang pagbibigay ng tax incentives o iba pang benepisyo sa mga firm na nagbibigay ng training at trabaho sa mga SHS graduates ay maaaring makatulong na mapataas ang kanilang kahandaan na mag-hire ng mga ito.

3. Pagreporma sa K-12 Curriculum: Upang maging mas handa ang mga SHS graduates sa trabaho, kailangan ng reporma sa K-12 curriculum na mas nakatuon sa praktikal na kasanayan at real-world applications na direkta sa mga pangangailangan ng mga industriya.

Konklusyon
Ang reluctance o di-paghahanda ng mga firm na mag-hire ng SHS graduates ay hindi simpleng isyu ng pagkiling o diskriminasyon, kundi repleksyon ng mga pangangailangan ng industriya at ang perceived readiness ng mga graduates. Upang matugunan ang isyung ito, kailangang magtulungan ang edukasyon, industriya, at gobyerno upang mapataas ang employability ng mga SHS graduates, at upang masigurong handa ang mga kumpanya na bigyan sila ng pagkakataong makapasok sa workforce.




info:

Kasama sa lumagda sa circular ay ang Commission on Higher Education (CHED) at Depart­ment of Labor and Employment (DOLE) upang ibaon ang technical vocational training sa lahat ng SHS tracks upang mabigyan ng kinakailangang kasanayan at kaalaman ang kabataang Pinoy. Inaasahan na ito ay makakatulong ng malaki upang mabilis makapaghanapbuhay sa kanilang pagtatapos sa SHS.

Ang paglalabas ng mga memorandum ay ikinatuwa naman ng advocacy group na Philippine Business for Education (PBEd). “This is a step toward the fulfillment of K-12’s promise of employability. By design, the K-12 program aims to give students enough time to acquire skills to thrive in whatever path they choose to take,” ani PBEd Executive Director Justine Raagas. “The disjunction in implementation and collaboration among government, industry, and academe has been our biggest hurdle, and we are glad to see things moving along,” saad pa ni Raagas

Kumbinsido si Raagas ang TESDA assessment at certification ay magiging “ticket to employment” ng mga SHS-TVL learners. Base sa circular ang DepEd ang mangunguna sa pagdevelop at rebisa ng curriculum pa sa paglalagay ng TVET sa lahat ng SHS tracks.

Ang CHEd at TESDA ay tutulong magbibigay ng technical expertise sa DepEd. Siyempre TESDA naman ang mamamahala sa pag-certify sa SHS graduates habang ang DOLE ang makikipagugnaya sa industriya para mapadali ang paghahanap ng trabaho.

PBEd noted that the industry still "generally prefers" hiring applicants with a college degree. For instance, employers said they expect that 73% or 12,544 of their 17,273 entry-level jobs in 2024 would be filled by college graduates, leaving less than a quarter to senior high school finishers.


Offering high school graduates the chance to take up improved tech-voc programs would break the conventional high-school-to-college route that has long characterized Philippine education, according to House basic education panel chairperson Rep. Roman Romulo (Pasig City).




Specifically, in the proposed “Education Pathways Act,” junior high school graduates (students who finish Grade 10 or 4th year high school) will have these two options:

College Preparatory Pathway - Students in this pathway will advance to grades 11 and 12 and take up a curriculum developed specifically to prepare students for college / university studies.
In this pathway, the “college preparatory” program curriculum (formerly senior high school) will contain "fundamental subjects" to guarantee that students learn practical literacy skills, as well as "elective courses" to allow students to explore their interests and meet college admission requirements.

Technical-Vocational Education Pathway - Students who choose this pathway will enroll in their chosen technical-vocational program to develop practical skills.
Expected to accommodate students gearing for employment after two years of tech-voc education, TESDA will collaborate with industry and facilitate apprenticeship / on-the-job training programs for students.





“We want the industry to be directly involved so that a degree or diploma can also be obtained by graduates or those who will complete the tech-voc curriculum. We want Filipinos to understand that tech-voc is globally highly competitive now and it is a highly skilled profession already, unlike how it is being treated right now,” he added.



The technical-vocational programs shall include subjects that ensure students will attain functional literacy skills.

Under the bill, TESDA shall be tasked to collaborate with industry partners to ensure that the programs are aligned with current industry needs and standards.

TESDA shall also facilitate apprenticeship programs and on-the-job training opportunities for technical-vocational students to gain practical experience. Industry stakeholders shall be encouraged to provide apprenticeship opportunities and participate in skills development.

The bill also proposes that after completion of the technical-vocational program or upon certification from TESDA of eligibility for college admission, the student may avail of the ladderized education program and enroll in colleges or universities for educational advancement.


counter this:

Senior high school graduates are more likely to earn higher wages than graduates of the old high school curriculum, a new study by a state think found, lending new evidence in favor of the K to 12 program and its impact on students' employment prospects.

While these new pieces of evidence are in favor of the senior high program, “these do not necessarily imply that the implementation of the SHS program had been perfect,” PIDS said.

Previous studies by PIDS and other private sector groups have already pointed to low confidence among employers to hire senior high graduates. In 2017, the Philippine Business for Education found that only 20% of the country’s 70 leading companies were willing to accept senior high school graduates.


arguments:

Promised quick employment upon graduation, senior high school (SHS) students who finished the K-12 program are now flooding the job market but face less-than-bright prospects, as employers in the country still prefer applicants with undergraduate degrees.

“When the K-12 was created, its purpose was to produce [holistically developed Filipinos]. Meaning, if you are a K-12 graduate, assuming it was implemented well, you are OK, you are ready for a job,” the trade secretary said in Filipino.

But the prevailing impression of many people, including employers, that noncollege graduates are not prepared for the working world is wrong, according to Pascual.

“The mindset today is that you are not well-formed in preparing for a livelihood or in your life if you do not have a college degree, which is totally an erroneous mindset,” he said.

Pascual called on employers to review their hiring policies and consider removing tertiary education as a requirement for certain entry-level jobs.

counter to that:
Reached for comment, the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (Ecop) said it was open to the idea but reasoned that there were other factors at play in hiring people and determining their employability.

“The problem is that in a situation where there are a limited number of jobs, those who are college graduates have more advantage. That’s the reality,” Ecop president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. told the Inquirer.

“Also, if you will pay them the same level of salary, then why choose someone who is not a college graduate?” the Ecop official said.



center part:

Introduced in 2013, the K-12, or kindergarten to Grade 12, education system was made possible with the passage of Republic Act No. 10533, or the “Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013.”
or **The K-12 program, enacted by Congress during the Aquino administration, aimed to place the Philippine system of basic education at par with global practice of requiring 12 years of elementary, junior high school and senior high school.**


Before its implementation, the Philippines was the sole country in Asia, and among only three in the world, along with Angola and Djibouti, with a 10-year basic education curriculum.

In 2018, the graduation year of the first batch of SHS students, a study by the advocacy group Philippine Business for Education (PBED) found that the cohort possessed “theoretically” 93 percent of competencies suitable to the needs of the nation’s industries, such as critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

But a separate PBED study said only about 20 percent of 70 of the country’s leading companies across all sectors were inclined to hire senior high graduates.

According to PBED, many companies accept only job applicants with at least two years of college education, excluding SHS graduates from consideration.

This hiring policy explains the discrepancy between the graduates’ supposedly high competency and their low chances of getting a job, PBED said.




“Ginawa natin ‘yung K-12 dahil hinahanap ang years of training sa ating mga nag-apply at sinasabi dito sa Pilipinas, kulang dahil 10 years … that was the reason we did it para employable ‘yung mga graduate natin,” Marcos noted during a chance interview in Sulu on Friday.


Marcos said he and incoming Education Secretary Sonny Angara had talked about implementing some changes to the current K-12 curriculum shortly after the Palace announced the senator’s designation to the Cabinet post.

Among these changes, he said, were the possible introduction of “mini courses” spanning from three months to a year to allow senior high school graduates to specialize in specific areas in a bid to attract employers.
Marcos also said the government intends to coordinate with the private sector to determine and “guarantee the supply of skilled workers” needed in their respective industries.


“The K-12 curriculum promised to produce graduates that are employable. That promise remains a promise,” Duterte said.

“The ongoing review of the K-12 curriculum has revealed: that the Curriculum content is congested; that some prerequisites of identified essential learning competencies are missing or misplaced; and that a significant number of learning competencies cater to high cognitive demands,” she noted.


extra irrelevant info:

ISINABATAS ang K-12 program noong 2013 sa panahon ni dating President Noynoy Aquino. Sa simula pa lang, marami ang sumalungat sa K-12 sapagkat hindi pa ready ang Department of Education (DepEd) dito. Pero sabi ng mga nagsulong, panahon na para mabago ang sistema ng edukasyon sa bansa. Dapat makahabol ang mga kabataang Pilipino na napag-iiwanan na ng ibang bansa sa maraming larangan. Ayon pa sa mga nagsusulong, ang Pilipinas na lamang ang tanging bansa sa Southeast Asia na hindi sumasailalim sa K-12 program.

Sa ilalim ng K-12 program, ang mga mag-aaral ay dadaan sa: 1 taon sa Kindergarten, 6 na taon sa elementarya, 4 na taon sa junior high school, at 2 taon sa senior high school.

Pero nakakadismaya ang nangyari sapagkat sa loob ng 10 taon na ipinatupad ang K-12, walang nakitang pagbabago sa sistema ng edukasyon at bumaba pa ang kalidad. Sa halip na sumulong ang kaalaman ng mga estudyanteng Pinoy ay umurong pa.

Marami sa senior high school ang walang nalalaman sa mga simpleng tanong na may kinalaman sa kasaysayan ng bansa at geography. Nakakadismaya na marami ang hindi sanay sa pagbabasa. Marami ang hindi agad makaintindi sa mga simpleng tanong.

Ang kahinaan ng mga estudyanteng Pinoy sa Math, Science at Reading Comprehension ay nakita sa 2022 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) kung saan nangulelat sa 81 bansa. Mababa ang nakuhang marka ng mga estudyanteng Pinoy. Mahina rin sila sa creative thinking.

Tama ang mga sumasalungat noon sa K-12 na hindi pa handa ang bansa sa ganitong sistema. Maraming problema na dapat niresolba muna gaya ng ­kakulangan ng mga silid-aralan, kakulangan sa mga mahuhusay na guro at kakulangan sa pasilidad at equipment.

Maski si President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ay nababahala sa kahinaan ng mga estudyante sa Reading, Math at Science kaya inatasan niya si incoming Education Secretary Sonny Angara na rebyuhin ang K-12 program. Ayon kay Marcos hindi rin naging maganda ang resulta ng employability ng mga estudyante na dumaan sa K-12.

Walang kinatunguhan ang K-12 at nararapat na ngang rebyuhin at solusyunan ang mga problema. Isakatuparan ni Angara ang lahat ng ito para naman hindi mangulelat ang estudyanteng Pinoys. Sa totoo lang, walang mahinang estudyante, ang sistema at pagpapatupad nito ang problema. Magagawa naman ito dahil malaki ang budget na laan sa DepEd.



background or context and further opinions and analysis:

K to 12 programs is believed to be the key to increase the quality education of the country that addresses the demand of the global market where skills are essential to be possessed by any graduate to become employable all throughout the country. Thus, this chapter discusses the data that were gathered from different reviews that answer the questions of this paper. A. Challenges on the Implementation of the K to 12 Program in the Philippines The K to 12 Program covers Kindergarten and 12 years of Basic Education to provide sufficient time for mastery of concepts and skills, develop lifelong learners and prepare graduates for tertiary education, middle-level skills development, employment, and entrepreneurship (https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/k-12/). The implementation of the new curriculum was a solution to the different issues in the country but also, it came with different problems considering that it created a big change in the entire educational system of the country and Filipinos were affected by this change. Findings of Ednave, R., et. al., (2018) stated that the implementation of the K to 12 programs presented the following challenges: a) lack of preparation and professional development; b) excessive academic burden on students; and c) integration of lessons in the real-life context. This would be a great challenge for all teachers to engage in different training and to pursue higher education in order to manage the changes and ensure that their growth corresponds to the demands of society. The K-12 Basic Education Program proposed by the Department of Education adds two years of secondary education to allow graduates to pursue one of three paths: postgraduate employment, higher education or entrepreneurship. The reform faced challenges in the redesign of the curriculum, in the deployment and training of teachers at the start of the program, in ensuring the sustainability of the program, and in meeting the necessary infrastructure (Sergio, M., 2012). As mentioned in the study of Cocal, C. and Marcellano, G., (2017), it claimed that the current physical and educational facilities and services of the various public elementary schools in Pangasinan did not comply with the minimum specifications laid down by the Department of Education. There was a great need for schools to improve their physical facilities and educational resources in order to implement the K+12 program effectively and efficiently. The financial resource was a major problem for the schools with regard to the implementation of the K+12 program. Findings from different research papers should give an eye-opener to the government in particular to the Department of Education to come up with the necessary approaches to provide immediate solutions to address all these problems identified to ensure that the goals of this new curriculum can be achieved. The findings gave also provided the government with a road map of what was required to be done and that an immediate response was needed to avoid delay in the outcome, especially for learners who were key participants in this program. As a result, the partnership and coordination of the different experts in education have been essential to the creation of the best action plan that worked in addressing these issues arise upon the implementation of this program.


more:

The K to 12 programs had something that needs to be on top of the government’s priorities because this was believed to be the solution of all the problems that the country is facing today. Different researches had been conducted to know the things that needed to be worked on under the implementation of this new curriculum that gave different perspectives among teachers, parents, and students. Thus, this paper would like to recommend the following: 1. Engagement of teachers into different training and seminars must be maximized to make sure that they possessed the necessary competencies and skills to deal with the students who were become part of this new curriculum; 2. School facilities, laboratory and instructional materials must be enhanced for this new curriculum to make sure that learnings were supported among the students; 3. Schools should focus on engaging students into different research activities where they can create inventions to develop self -confidence, and independence; and 4. Further researches must be conducted to identify and to keep on track the progress on this new curriculum.