Playing with Fire
We are for pre-university
By Gonzalo Duque
WE wish to thank the nice souls of the regional development council and the NEDA through is director, Leo Quitos, and fellow educator Bobby delos Reyes of the Metro Dagupan College for our nomination as co-chair or chair representing the private sector of the RDC.
Actually, it would be either Dr. Bobby or us, and any which way, would be okay with us.
The government sector is a contest between our Governor Amado “Spines” Espino Jr., and Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson. The third governor, Imee Marcos, of Ilocos Norte, was not nominated.
It will now be up to President Aquino to choose his man and “co-man” for the region’s leaders of education, particularly the RDC.
We feel Pnoy is predisposed to tap Gov. Spines, and if that is so, can be far behind?
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The other hot issue discussed in last week’s educators meeting in San Fernando was the proposed increase of two years in the Philippines basic education curriculum, which, despite proponents’ scholarly endorsement, is encountering resistance due to the enormous costs involved.
Yes, the costs for hiring and training additional teachers, content development, new infrastructures, books and equipment, and the like.
Factor here the overburdening of the parents’ financial capacity to continue their children’s education. It’s unthinkable!
It’s not the end of the road though.
A new alternative which we can now implement in place of the additional years for basic education to ensure students’ preparedness for college is the pre- university system.
A recent Commission on Higher Education study shows that adding two more years in basic education would cost P57 billion; it would only cost P11.5 billion for one year in the pre-university system.
Discussants on the comparative matrix basic education versus pre-university have found out that in terms of classrooms and facilities, there will always be inadequate facilities under basic education, insufficient number of qualified teachers and there would be two years vacuum in higher education. In case of the pre-university, facilities are always available and supported jointly by the public and private HEIs, and the faculty will always be backed by public and private HEIs. This is also true to the inadequate supply of good learning materials, which will not apply in a pre-university.
The CHEd has already recommended the pre-university system because it is doable, practical and advantageous to the government.
It is held that after graduation, if a pre-university student desires to pursue a higher program, he would be required to take a scholastic test to determine what kind of program he is fittest to pursue. Flunkers will be guided on what to prepare themselves thru acquiring more skills.
The pre university scheme is more realistic, and most CHEd officials and well-meaning educators are for it. It is a come-from-behind maneuver that will save not only further education in this country but save everyone — government, parents and students — from shouldering greater financial burdens.
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