K-12 program’s aim on enabling employment ‘remains a promise’ —VP Duterte

Published January 30, 2023, 5:02 PM

by Raymund Antonio

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte on Monday, Jan. 30, revealed that
the K-12 curriculum that aimed to equip Filipino senior high graduates with globally
competitive skills failed in its promise to bring employment. The o cial bared this
during her presentation of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) Basic Education
Report (BER) 2023 at the So tel Hotel in Pasay City.
The agency is currently assessing the country’s K-12 curriculum.

“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 identi ed essential learning competencies are
missing or misplaced; and that a signi cant number of learning competencies cater to
high cognitive demands,” she noted.

And while the work immersion program for Senior High School contributed to a passing
rate of 90 percent in the National Certi cate assessment administered by Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), DepEd’s industry partners

Vice President Sara Duterte speaks at the Basic Education Report 2023 event held at
the So tel Hotel in Pasay City, with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Senate President
Miguel Zubiri, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, and Congressman Roman Romulo also
present. (Photo by Ali Vicoy/MANILA BULLETIN)

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 expressed concern “that the time allotment for work immersion is only for
familiarization and not for actual skills acquisition.”

“Today, most Senior High School graduates nd the need to pursue higher education in
order to nd employment. The National Senior High School tracer study conducted by
the Bureau of Curriculum Development showed that 83 percent of the respondents
pursued higher education while only a little over 10 percent of graduates were
employed,” Duterte reported.
The Vice President also took note of the “weak teaching methods” of the teachers in
addressing 21st century skills, though she clari ed this is not their fault but of the
system.

Quoting a study done by the Research Center for Teacher Quality, the World Bank, and
the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the o cial said
that teachers need “further support,” especially in teaching critical thinking and problem-
solving skills.

“While critical thinking was the most evident in the curriculum, it was also the least
taught to students by teachers. Instead, lessons leaned towards conceptual or content-
based teaching. And lessons lacked in-depth processing to cultivate critical thinking and
problem-solving,” she added.

As she recognized the “dedication, integrity, and the commitment” of teachers, Duterte
also cited the “sad reality” that “the system has failed them.”
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.

Source: https://mb.com.ph/2023/01/30/k-12-programs-aim-on-enabling-employment-
remains-a-promise-vp-duterte/

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 Duterte: K-12 students ready for work right after graduation 'still a promise’
Cristina Chi - philstar.com
January 30, 2023 | 7:57pm

K-12 students at a high school in Marikina City during their in-person graduation
ceremony on July 2, 2022.
Walter Bollozos
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte, who is also education secretary,
acknowledged on Monday that most senior high school graduates since 2016 struggled
to nd employment without a college or university education.
Only a little more than 10% of senior high school graduates landed a job, while 83%
continued on to higher education, according to the National Senior High School tracer
study included in the DepEd’s Basic Education Report (BER), which discussed the state
of education in the country.

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

Even though the senior high program has contributed to a high 90% passing rate in the
national certi cate assessment of the Technical Education And Skills Development
Authority, Duterte said that few employers have been willing to hire senior high
graduates who have undergone work immersion. 
"Industry partners have expressed concern that the time allotment for work immersion
is only for familiarization and not for actual skills acquisition," Duterte said.

The K to 12 program, which introduced two additional years of high school in 2016,
replaced the old curriculum with one designed to qualify students for employment even
without a college degree.

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 Ongoing K to 12 review reveals congested curriculum

The ongoing review of the K to 12 program has so far found a curriculum that was
overstuffed with content and yet missing several prerequisites for essential learning
competencies, Duterte said.
A number of these learning competencies also required "high cognitive demands" from
students — a nding that previously appeared in the DepEd’s Basic Education
Development Plan (BEDP) 2030, the agency’s rst long-term plan to improve the quality
of education.

A commissioned study cited in DepEd’s BEDP found that the K to 12 curriculum was
"more demanding in terms of the number of learning competencies than Australia,
Canada and Singapore" before it was downsized during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Duterte also said that "the assessment on K-12 curriculum revealed the weak teaching
methods of our teachers in addressing 21st-century skills."
"Studies done by the Research Center for Teacher Quality, the World Bank, and UNICEF
 showed that teachers need further support, particularly in explicitly and strategically
teaching critical thinking and problem-solving skills," Duterte added.
Duterte said DepEd will revise the K to 12 curriculum to make it more "relevant to
produce competent, job-ready, active and responsible citizens."
Among the revisions being eyed is reducing the number of learning areas in early grade
education (Kinder to Grade 3) from seven to ve to focus on improving students’ literacy
and numeracy.
DepEd is targeting to nish its review of the senior high school curriculum by June 2023.
It nished its K to 12 curriculum for Kinder to Grade 10 in September.
Duterte also said that DepEd will implement evidence-based programs to improve
students’ skills in reading, science and mathematics — subjects where Filipino students
scored the lowest (reading) and second lowest (math and science) globally in the 2018
Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).
PISA assessed the reading, science and mathematics competencies of 15-year-old
students from 79 countries. 
The 2018 National Achievement Test results also showed that only an alarming 2.8% of
Grade 12 students were considered pro cient at math, which was included in the
education portion of the Philippine Development Plan 2023 - 2028, the government’s
economic roadmap.

Source: https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2023/01/30/2241367/duterte-k-12-
students-ready-work-right-after-graduation-still-promise

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DepEd to revise K-12 curriculum

THIRD ANNE PERALTA-MALONZO
January 30, 2023

Vice President Sara Duterte during the Basic Education Report (BER) 2023 (Screengrab
from DepEd Philippines Facebook live)

THE Department of Education (Deped) will revise the Kinder to Grade 12 (K to 12)
curriculum in order to make it relevant in producing more “competent, job-ready, active
and responsible” citizens.

During the presentation of the Basic Education Report 2023 on Monday, January 30,
2023, Vice President Sara Duterte, the concurrent DepEd secretary, bared the
department’s “Matatag” education agenda.

It includes making the curriculum relevant to produce job-ready; active and responsible
citizens; taking steps to accelerate the delivery of basic education services and
provision of facilities; taking good care of learners by promoting learner well-being;
inclusive education; and a positive learning environment and giving support for teachers
to teach better.

Duterte said that in revising the K to 12 curriculum, the department will reduce the
number of learning areas in Kindergarten to Grade 3 from seven to ve and instead put
focus on foundational skills; strengthen literacy and numeracy programs; revitalize
reading, science and technology and math programs by utilizing the gains of previous
programs; and improve English pro ciency while recognizing linguistic diversity.

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 She said they will also review the implementation of the mother-tongue based
multilingual education policy; intensify the values formation of learners in curriculum
and teaching; embed the culture of peace; be transparent with curriculum guides and
test scores; share test items with schools and teachers to strengthen the use of
assessment; and engage with the Commission on Higher Education and Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority and various industry partners to address
issue of skills mismatch in the Senior High School program.

“We will integrate peace competencies such as social awareness responsibility, care for
the environment, value for diversity, self-esteem, positive character, resilience and
human security to the various areas of the K to 12 curriculum,” said Duterte.

The Vice President appealed to the industry and employers to accept students in work
immersions and hire them after they graduate.

Duterte said the K to 12 curriculum was found to be congested noting that some
prerequisites of identi ed learning competencies are missing or misplaced in the
curriculum and that the signi cant number of learning competencies cater to higher
cognitive demands.

Duterte committed to closing gaps in school infrastructures noting the budget

allocation for the construction of 6,000 classrooms, with policies to eliminate
corruption.

She said the DepEd created a separate strand dedicated exclusively on matters of
school infrastructures and facilities.

The Deped also aims the establishment of fully-functional library hubs, the provision of
electricity in all public schools across the country and provide e-classroom packages for
teaching and learning in which each consists of 46 laptops, two charging carts, two
wireless routers and a smart TV to accelerate information, communication and
technology in teaching and institutionalize the blended learning programs.

“We will optimize the use of technology both online and o ine to ensure that learners
have opportunities to learn even in the events of a pandemic or other emergencies,” said
Duterte.

Duterte also vowed to digitize essential processes including the national assessments,
strengthen the complementarity between public and private schools and launch the
National Education Portal (NEP) to provide a dynamic platform for basic education
stakeholders.

She said the NEP will substantially cut down the manual process, reduce transaction
cost and eliminate errors due to human intervention.

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 Amid efforts to promote the well-being of learners, Duterte said the department will:

*Provide education to children and youth in situations of disadvantage;

*Strengthen the mechanism in safeguarding learners against all forms of discrimination

and dangers;

*Seek out mental wellness experts to form interventions at the school level;

*Strengthen inclusive education programs including alternative learning system, last

mile schools and programs for the indigenous people learners and learners with
disabilities;

*Establish inclusive learning centers;

*Provide assessment assistive mechanisms to students with disabilities;

*Eradicate literacy through relevant policy issuances, and community literacy program
interventions;

*Involve parents and guardians in education of children.

Duterte said Filipino learners are not academically pro cient and oftentimes, experience
emotional abuse and exhaustion, suffer from psychological fatigue and many of them
failed to meet the standards of the demanding and competitive world because of being
academically insecure.

She said these are caused and triggered by conditions present at home, in the
communities, even in schools, as a result of problems engrained in the system.

“We will improve our learning environment to encourage support, discourage bullying,
strengthen the implementation of child protection policies, make students feel safe,
respected and belong,” said Duterte.

“We commit to seeking out mental wellness experts to form interventions at the school
level. We will also ensure that all learners have access to relevant guidance and psycho-
social services, managed and delivered by mental health professionals,” she added.

Duterte said they will work with the Department of Budget and Management to obtain
higher salary grades for guidance counselors and propose the creation of additional
items that will focus on providing learners support services including guidance related
services in schools.

She said that for the teachers, the department will provide more professional
development programs; support in terms of innovative, responsive and inclusive

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 teaching approaches; capacitate them in utilizing technology in remote learning to

maximize the bene ts of digital learning; fast track implementation of career
progression policy’ implement merit selection policy; make teacher and education
council and secretariat fully functional; and advocate additional bene ts for the.

Duterte also noted the importance of a policy on distribution of teacher workload and
payment of teaching overload; expansion of coverage for the grant of special hardship
allowance; address issues affecting the not-take-home pay of teachers; provision of free
annual physical examination; and improved and superior bene ts package for all Deped
personnel.

She said the heavy workloads of teachers particularly on administrative matters

affected the teaching methods in schools.

She said it was found during the review of the K to 12 curriculum that the teaching
methods are weak especially in addressing 21st century skills of the learners. (SunStar
Philippines)

Source: https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1952164/manila/local-news/deped-to-
revise-k-12-curriculum

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