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K-12 CURRICULUM IN THE PHILIPPINES

I. K-12 in the Philippines
- what is k-12 program?
o Is a program which vision that is grounded in human development. It is a vision achieved
through enhanced and decongested curriculum. It also a vision that has socio-economic
relevance.
- covers kindergarten and 12 years of basic education;

1 YEAR OF KINDERGARTEN EDUCATION (AGE 5)

6 YEARS OF PRIMARY EDUCATION (AGE 6-11/12)

4 YEARS OF SECONDARY JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION (AGE 11/12-15/16)

2 YEARS OF SECONDARY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION (AGE 15-16-17/18)

- K-12 aims to provide sufficient time for mastery of concepts and skills, develop life-long learners,
and prepare graduates for tertiary education, middle level skills, development, employment and
entrepreneurship.
- A 13-YEAR PROGRAM IS FOUND TO BE THE BEST TIME PERIOD FOR LEARNING BASIC
EDUCATION AND IS THE RECOGNIZED STANDARD FOR STUDENTS AND PROFESSIONALS
GLOBALLY
- How will multi-grade teaching be affected by K to 12?
o Multi-grade teaching will continue and will use the K to 12 Curriculum.
- PHILIPPINES IS LAST IN ASIA TO IMPLEMENT K-12
- What is K-12’s importance?
o Improve the mastery of basic competencies
o Ensures seamlessness of primary, secondary, and post-secondary competencies
 o Improves teaching through the use of enhanced pedagogies (spiral progression) and
medium of instruction
o Expand job opportunities by reducing job-skills mismatch and provide better
preparation for higher learning
II. 2 Main Legal Bases of K-12 Program in the Philippines

RA 10533 Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 (D0 43, s. 2013) - has expanded the years of
schooling in basic education from 10 years to 12 years. In school year 2018-2019, an additional 2 years
representing Grades 11 and 12 will be introduced in the basic education system through senior high
school.

RA 10157 Kindergarten Education Act (DO 47, s. 2016)- states that kindergarten education is vital to
the academic and technical development of the Filipino child for it is the period when the young mind’s
absorptive capacity for learning is at its sharpest.

III. Salient Features of the K-12 Curriculum

1. STRENGTHENING EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION THROUGH universal kindergarten

Every Filipino child now has access to early childhood education through universal
kindergarten. At five years old, children starts schooling and are given the means to slowly
adjust to formal education.

- With K to 12, should schools prepare permanent records for Kindergarten students?
o Yes. While the assessment on readiness skills of students in Kindergarten is not
academically driven, a good measure of the child’s ability to cope with formal schooling
is needed for future learning interventions.

STUDENTS LEARN THE ALPHABET, NUMBERS, SHAPES, AND COLORS THROUGH GAMES,
SONGS, AND DANCES IN THEIR MOTHER TONGUE.

- Under K to 12, will Kindergarten be a pre-requisite for entering Grade 1?

o Yes. Republic Act No. 10157, or the Kindergarten Education Act, institutionalizes
Kindergarten as part of the basic education system and is a pre-requisite for admission
to Grade 1.

Children who complete a standards-based Kindergarten program are better prepared,

for primary education for the early years of a human being, from 0-6 years, are the most critical
period when the brain grows to at least 60-70 percent of adult size. [Ref: K-12 Toolkit]

- How will specific learning groups such as indigenous learners, Muslim learners, and learners
with special needs be affected by the k-12 program?
 o the k-12 curriculum was designed to address diverse learning needs and maybe adapted
to fit specific learner groups, this is shown in the second Salient Feature of k-12
program;
2. MAKING THE CURRICULUM RELEVANT TO THE LEARNERS THROUGH contextualization and
localization

“The curriculum shall be flexible enough to enable and allow schools to localize,
indigenize and enhance the curriculum based on their respective educational and social
context.” Stated under the RA 10533.

This makes the lessons relevant to the learners and easy to understand. This includes
the topics; Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Climate Change Adaptation , Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) .

STUDENTS PERFORM ACTIVITIES, SONGS, POEMS, STORIES, AND ILLUSTRATIONS THAT

ARE BASED ON LOCAL CULTURE, HISTORY, AND REALITY.

3. BUILDING PROFICIENCY THROUGH LANGUAGE THROUGH mother tongue-based multilingual

education or MTB-MLE

Students are able to learn best through their first language; their mother tongue. There
are 12 mother tongue languages that have been introduced for S.Y. 20212-2013, namely;
Bahasa Sug, Bikol, Cebuano, Chabacano, Hiligaynon, Iloko, Kapampangan, Manguindanaoan,
Meranao, Pangasinense, Tagalog, and Waray.

In Kinder to grade 3, the child’s dominant language is used as the language of learning
wherein Filipino and English language proficiency is being developed gradually.

- Which Mother Tongue will be used as the language of instruction in multi-cultural areas?
o The principle of MTB-MLE is to use the language that learners are most comfortable and
familiar with; therefore, the common language in the area or lingua franca shall be used
as the language of instruction

Mother tongue is used in instruction and learning materials of other areas, IN THIS WAY
NOT ONLY THE LEARNERS RETAIN THEIR ETHNIC IDENTITY, CULTURE, HERITAGE AND VALUES
BUT ALSO THEY LEARN BETTER AND ARE MORE ACTIVE IN CLASS. Children can also learn a
second language even faster when they are first taught in a language they understand.

4. ENSURING INTEGRATED AND SEAMLESS LEARNING THROUGH spiral progression

Subjects are taught from simplest concepts to more complicated concepts through
grade levels in spiral progression. This is somehow connected to tabas model of curriculum
 which is inductive in nature WHICH MEANS FROM SPECIFIC TO GENERAL. This strengthens
retention and enhances mastery of topics and skills as they are revisited and consolidated time
and again.

As elementary students gain knowledge in areas such as biology, geometry, earth

science, chemistry, and algebra this ensures the mastery of knowledge and skills after each
grade level WHICH ALLOWS THE LEARNERS TO LEARN TOPICS AND SKILLS APPROPRIATE TO
THEIR DEVELOPMENTAL AND COGNITIVE STAGES.

5. Gearing-up for the future (senior high-school)

- What is senior high-school?
o Senior high-school covers the last 2 years of basic education which are the grades 11
and 12. Students in these levels will go through a core curriculum and subjects under a
track of their choice. in these 2 years will equip learners with skills that will better
prepare them for their future whether it will be employment, entrepreneurship, skills-
development, or higher education.

Senior high-school has 2 years of specialized upper secondary education.

Students will go undergo assessments to determine their strengths and interests, this
include;

Aptitude test- MEASURE THE ACADEMIC POTENTIALS OF AN EXAMINEE,

NATIONAL ASSESSMENT TEST (NAT) TAKEN ON GRADES 6, 10, AND 12.

Career assessment test- NATIONAL CAREER ASSESSMENT EXAMINATION (NCAE)

TAKEN ON GRADE 9

Occupational interest inventory for high school- IS AN INVENTORY/CHECKLIST

OF OCCUPATIONAL INTERESTS WHICH PROVIDES AN ASSESSMENT ON
INCLINATIONS/PREFERENCES FOR COMPREHENSIVE CAREER GUIDANCE,

career advocacy activities will also be conducted to help guide students in choosing their
specializations or track. Students may then choose a specialization based on the aptitude,
interests, and school capacity.

- Will SHS mean two more years of High School?

o Yes. These two additional years will equip learners with skills that will better prepare
them for the future, whether it be: Employment ,Entrepreneurship, Skills Development,
skills(Further Tech-Voc training) Higher Education (College)
 The schools of an area will offer specializations or tracks that are according to the;
resources available in the area, needs and interests of most students in the area, and
opportunities and demands of the community.

The choice of career track will define the content of the subjects as students take grades
11 and 12. Senior high-school falls under either the core curriculum or specific tracks; EACH
STUDENT IN SENIOR HIGH-SCHOOL CAN CHOOSE AMONG 4 TRACKS;

1) Academic (COLLEGE PREPARATION TRACK)– Choosing this track means the

student is looking forward to go to college. This track will help them prepare themselves
for the subject specialization of the college course they will take in the future. It has 4
strands; 1) Accountancy, Business, and Management (ABM), 2) Humanities and Social
Sciences (HUMSS), 3) Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), and
4) General Academic strand (GAS) WHICH WAS CO-DEVELOPED BY CHED TO ENSURE
ALIGNMENT OF CORE AND CONTEXTUALIZED SUBJECTS TO THE COLLEGE READINESS
STANDARDS (CRS) AND NEW GENERAL EDUCATION (GE) CURRICULUM.

2) Technical-vocational-livelihood (WORKFORCE PREPATION TRACK)– Choosing

this track means that the student is not sure if they will be able to pursue any degree
after Senior High or if they want to earn money immediately after graduation, this track
will equip the learner with job-ready skills in the future even without college. This track
invests primarily on skills that can gain the student requisite COCs (Certificates of
Competency) and NCs (National Certifications) which would be essential when looking
for better career opportunities in agriculture, electronics, and trade. THIS IS ALSO
IMPORTANT WHEN APPLYING ABROAD WHERE THE SKILLS THEY GAIN WOULD PREPARE
THEM AS THEY JOIN THE WORKFORCE. TVL related subject TLE also has been integrated
in the grades 9 to gain experience and insight on mock-jobs inside the school. This track
has 4 strands; 1) Home Economics (HE), 2) Agri-Fishery Arts, 3) Industrial Arts, and 4)
Information Communication Technology (ICT) WHICH WAS CO-DEVELOPED BY TESDA TO
INTEGRATE TVET SKILLS, COMPETENCIES, AND QUALIFICATIONS, ENSURE THAT GRADE
12 TVL GRADUATES ARE ELIGIBLE FOR TESDA COMPETENCY/QUALIFICATION
ASSESSMENTS; COC, NC-1 OR NC-2, AND PREPARE LEARNING RESOURCES THAT ARE
CONSISTENT WITH PROMULGATED TRAINING REGULATIONS.

3) Sports (PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND AND RECREATION TRACK)– this track aims
to give understanding of the basic principles and techniques in relation to physical
education and recreation. It will also offer discussions of various factors that affect
social, psychological, and cognitive development in sports leadership and management.

4) Arts (CREATIVE INDUSTRY PREPARATORY TRACK) – this track will prepare the
learner as they wander around the design, performative, and creative industry. It aims is
to get the learner a career in the creative field after they graduate, to instill the right
employment skills, to expose to various form of media such as architecture, interior
 design, industrial design, graphic design, animation, painting, fashion design,
photography, and film.

Students in K-12 will then undergo immersion which may include earn-while-you-learn
opportunities to provide them relevant exposure and actual experience in their chosen track.

Students in grade 11 may obtain certificates of competency (COC) or national certificate

level-1 (NC-1). After finishing the TVL track in grade 12, a student may obtain a national
certificate level-2 (NC-2), provided that the student passes the competency-based assessment of
the technical vocation and skills development authority (TESDA)

TESDA’S COC, NC-1 AND NC-2 IMPROVES THE EMPLOYABILITY OF GRADUATES IN FIELDS
LIKE AGRICULTURE, ELECTRONICS, AND TRADE.

TO SEE THE QUALIFICATIONS OF THE STUDENT THE PHILIPPINE QUALIFICATIONS

FRAMEWORK WAS MADE. It describes the levels of educational qualifications and sets the
standards for qualification outcomes. It is a quality assured national system for the
development, recognition and award of qualifications based on standards of knowledge, skills
and values acquired in different ways and methods by learners and workers of the country.
 Senior High school, as part of the K to 12 Basic Curriculum, was developed in line with the
curriculum of the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) – the governing body for college and
university education in the Philippines. THIS ENSURES THAT BY THE TIME THE STUDENT GRADUATE
FROM SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, THEY WILL HAVE THE STANDARD KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND
COMPETENCIES NEEDED TO GO TO COLLEGE.

- Will senior high school ensure employment for the graduates of the program?
o senior high-school creates standard requirements that will be applied to make sure that
the graduates are knowledgeable and experienced enough to be considered as hireable.
o students in TVL with Certificate of competency issued by TESDA and national certificates
will be provided with better work opportunities, as these certificates show that the
student has excelled and has gained experience enough to be able to enter the
workforces, especially school or Deped-partnered companies, associations, and
organizations. Students could also be hired by the workforce they entered to complete
their immersion period.
o Entrepreneurship courses will now be included. Instead of being employed, students can
choose to start their own business after graduating, or choose to further their education
by going to college.
IV. Preparations For k-12
- on 2010 – 2013, DepEd has built 66,813 classrooms for the K-12 program
- on 2010 – 2014, DepEd has filled 128,105 new teacher items, which targets teachers that teach
the core subjects and those who will teach the specialized subjects per track.
- on S.Y. 2011-2012, Universal Kindergarten was implemented (RA 10157)
- on S.Y. 2012-2013, Enhanced Curriculum for grades 1-7 was implemented
- on 2013, the K-12 program was enacted into the law (RA 10533)
- on 2014, the curriculum for grades 11-12 was made
- on 2015, the country was getting ready for the implementation of Senior high-school (SHS) for
the S.Y. 2016-2017
 o ALL 221 DIVISIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (DEPED) HAVE FINISHED
PLANNING AND FIGURING THE ENROLMENT OF THE STUDENTS A YEAR IN ADVANCE. THESE
PLANS WERE REVIEWED BY A SEPARATE TEAM AND WERE FINALIZED UPON CONSULTATION
WITH THE OTHER STAKEHOLDERS.
- on June 22, 2015, DepEd has issued professional permits to 2,847 private schools set to offer
senior high-school education for the year of 2016.
- on 2016, DepEd has hired 37,000 teachers for senior high school education.
- Is senior high-school necessary?
- students who did not enter senior-high school program will be called grade 10
completer and not high-school graduate.

V. Old Curriculum vs K-12 Curriculum

- Educational Structure

2002 BE Learner's K to 12
Curriculum Age Curriculum

16 - 18 Senior High School

Grades 11 to 12

High School 11 - 17 Junior High School

Year 1 to 4 Grades 7 to 10

Elementary 6 - 12 Elementary
Grades 1 to 6 Grades 1 to 6

Optional Mandatory
5
Pre-School Kindergarten

- Will the additional two years of High School mean additional expenses?
o Not necessarily. Senior High School “completes” basic education by making sure that the
high school graduate is equipped for work, entrepreneurship, or higher education. This
is a step up from the 10-year cycle where high school graduates still need further
 education (and expenses) to be ready for the world. SHS will be offered free in public
schools and there will be a voucher program in place for public junior high school
completers as well as ESC beneficiaries of private high schools should they choose to
take SHS in private institutions. This means that the burden of expenses for the
additional two years need not be completely shouldered by parents.
- What is the Voucher Program?
o This program enables Grade 10 completers from public and private Junior High Schools
(JHS) to enroll in a (1) private high school, (2) private university or college, (3) state or
local university or college, or (4) technical-vocational school, which will offer the Senior
High School program starting School Year 2016-2017. Through the Voucher Program,
students and their families are able to exercise greater choice in deciding the Senior
High School program that is most relevant to their needs and career goals. A certain
amount will be subsidized by DepEd to private SHS to offset the cost of tuition.
- Who will benefit from the Voucher Program?
o All JHS completers from public junior high schools are qualified to receive the full
voucher values. Private junior high school completers who are on Education Service
Contracting (ESC) grants will receive 80% of the full voucher value. JHS completers from
private schools and non-DepEd schools can also apply for vouchers worth 80% of the full
voucher value. Students will be notified of their eligibility prior to completing Grade 10.
No monetary value is given to the student directly instead the subsidy is remitted to the
Senior High School where he/she will enroll.
- What are the advantages of the Voucher Program?
o For Students - The voucher program can provide high-quality education for all types of
students. Even those who normally do not have the financial means will be able to
choose from different schools. They will not be limited to the schools that are provided
by the DepEd.
o For Private Schools - Private schools with SHS will be able to tap into an expanded
market — students from public junior high schools
- Educational Curriculum Theme
 K to 12 Basic Education
Secondary Education Curriculum
Basic Education Curriculum
Curriculum (SEC) 2010
(BEC) 2002 2012
The revised 2002 BED
The restructuring of the Is geared towards the
incorporating
NESC (1903) and the NSEC development of holistically
Understanding by Design
(1989) developed Filipino with 21st
(UbD)
century skills

BEC - IN ORDER TO RAISE SEC - WHICH SEEKS TO K12 - WHO US READY FOR
THE QUALITY OF THE CONTRIBUTE TO FUNCTION EMPLOYMENT,
FILIPINO LEARNERS AND LITERACY FOR ALL AND THE ENTREPRENEURSHIP,
GRADUATES AND EMPOWER DEVELOPMENT OF 21ST MIDDLE LEVEL SKILLS
THEM FOR LIFELONG CENTURY CORE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AND HIGH
LEARNING. NEEDED FOR GLOBAL EDUCATION UPON
COMPETITIVENESS. GRADUATION.

- Educational Curriculum Plan

Areas BEC K-12

Integrative and interactive teaching- Reflective, collaborative,

Pedagogical approaches learning approaches constructivists, inquiry-based

Grading System Numerical using the cumulative method Levels of Proficiency:

Promotion and Promotions shall be by subject and by
Retention number of units. A student who fails in 3
units or less is promoted to the next
curriculum level, and those who fails
more than 3 units is retain in the year
Beginning - 74% and below
Developing - 75-79%
Approaching Proficiency - 80-
84%
Advanced - 90% and above
Promotion and retention shall be
by subject. Students whose
proficiency level is Beginning at
the end of the quarter or grading
period shall be required to
 level. undergo remediation after class
hours so that they can
immediately catch up as they
move to the next grading period.
If by end of the year, the
students are still at the
Beginning level, then they shall
be required to take summer
classes.
Overall Goal Empower Filipino learners for lifelong Functionally-literate and
learning. holistically developed Filipinos.
Medium of Instruction Bilingual (English and Filipino) Mother Tongue-Based
Multilingual Education
Assessment National Achievement Test for Grade 6 National Achievement Test for
Grades 6, 10, and 12, and
National Career Achievement
Examination for Grade 9.

- How will K to 12 affect the college curriculum?

o The College General Education curriculum will have fewer units. Subjects that have been
taken up in Basic Education will be removed from the College General Education
curriculum.
- But are we really sure that it will work in the Philippine education system?
o In SY 2012-2013, DepEd tested the SHS program to over 10,000 students in a total of 56
schools around the Philippines. The results of this modelling program, including best
practices and learning experiences of students, have influenced the creation of the
current SHS curriculum.

REFERENCE:

https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/k-12/