K-12 Education In The Philippines

ABSTRACT Before everything else, what is the K-12 education and where did it start? The K-12 education system is a kind of public education system practiced by the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and most European countries. It was first made available to public schools before the private schools began to adapt it. It is comprised of 13 grades from kindergarten to the 12th grade. “We are ready.” Affirms the Filipino President Benigno Aquino III, that the Philippines and the Filipino people are ready for the big change in the education system – that the Philippines is ready for the K-12 which adds two more years to the education cycle that they have now. Backed by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority

Thus, this idea of adding years to the present curriculum is not new.

The K+12 Curriculum envisions “holistically developed learners with 21st century skills” (Deped Primer, 2011). The K+12 program offers 12 years of basic education - six years of primary education, four years of secondary education and an additional two years of senior high school to provide sufficient time for mastery of concepts and skills, develop life-long learners, and prepare graduates for tertiary education, middle level skills development and employment, and entrepreneurship.

Now, Why does the Philippines need this new kind of educational system? The present curriculum is described as congested. This means that students do not get enough time to perform tasks because the curriculum is designed to be taught in a span of 12 years and not 10 years. The more obvious result of this is the fact that most high school students graduate without the readiness to take upon higher education or employment. These students are not equipped with the basic skills or competencies needed at work. Furthermore, the short duration of our basic education program puts Filipinos who are interested to either work or study abroad at a disadvantage. This is because other countries see our 10-year program as incomplete, which then, causes Filipino graduates to not

Though there are still some problems that the government needs to solve before they can successfully implement the plan. The proposed program is good but it still won 't work if the needed elements to make it work isn 't present.

Such elements includes the number of public school classrooms plus the adequate supply of classroom chairs, books, etc. If the government could allot a bigger budget to educational needs, then we could be one-step ahead towards the success of the K-12 program.

Furthermore, parents especially those who belongs in the poor sector should be properly informed and motivated of the advantages of the K-12 Education Plan. This is very important since parents plays a major role in providing the child 's school allowances, supplies, and fees for other school projects and activities. Add to that the support of parents towards their children in terms of guidance and teaching.

Once this succeeds, it is best hoped that Filipino students would be more literate, skilled, and competitive to be able to find jobs more easily and contribute to the country 's pride as well as the country 's