WESTERN COLLEGES ,INC

NAIC, CAVITE

TOPIC: CURRICULUM REFORM IN THE PHILIPPINES

REPORTER: MAY AILEEN C. ABIN

INSTRUCTOR: DR. EDITHA GREGORIO

SYSTEM

The Philippines has a vibrant and diverse education system, with the government, assisted by the
private sector, providing a wide range of education from early years up to college and university across
the archipelago. The Department of Education (DepEd) oversees the provision of basic education. The
private sector includes kindergartens, international schools and religious schools. In 2015/16 there were
14.9m children enrolled at primary school and 6.01m at secondary level

HISTORY

Today’s system has been shaped by the Philippines’ colonial and post-war history. Under the Spanish,
education was largely provided by missionaries and the study of religion was compulsory, but most
Filipinos were not included. It was only in the 19th century that they were able to attend the universities
that had been established two centuries earlier, and it was only when the US took control of the
Philippines in 1898 that consideration was given to non-religious education, English-language teaching
and free primary school education for all.

The country was ill-prepared for the sudden expansion of education and did not have enough teachers
to meet the new demand, so the colonial authorities established a teacher-training school and brought
in 1000 teachers from the US to provide training. An emphasis on vocational and adult education was
introduced in the early 20th century, while bilingual teaching – with maths, science and literature taught
in English – was introduced under Ferdinand Marcos in 1974. The commitment to a bilingual education
and universal access was enshrined in the 1987 constitution
K-12 IMPLEMENTATION

• Three years since the Enhanced Basic Education Act (EBEA, known as the K-12 law) was signed,
the Philippines has finally embarked on its most ground-breaking change to the schooling
system in decades, the K-12 reform.

• K-12 extends compulsory schooling to grades 11 and 12, adding two years to secondary school,
and makes secondary education compulsory. Prior to its implementation, the Philippines was
the only country in Asia, and one of only a few in the world, to have a basic education system of
just 10 years. The EBEA also mandated kindergarten as the start of compulsory formal
education, while the Kindergarten Act of 2012 made pre-school free.

• In August 2016, 1.5m Filipino children attended 11th grade, with senior school students
choosing between four tracks through the system: academic, technical-vocational, sports or the
arts. Much of the opposition to the initiative, which triggered five separate petitions to the
Supreme Court, centred on whether the country’s teachers, schools and administration were in
a position to implement the reform. President Duterte expressed scepticism about the
programme before he was elected, but changed his mind in May 2016 after a delegation from
DepEd told him that the change was necessary, as Filipino students were falling behind their
neighbours.

• Indeed, increased spending on basic education – including an expanded Alternative Learning

System (ALS) – is a centrepiece of the new president’s 10-point socio-economic agenda.
President Duterte insists that the development of the Philippines’ human capital is a priority of
his administration. Building on existing programmes, the education secretary, Leonor Briones,
said that the Duterte administration’s education policy intends to ensure that the country
provides a quality education that is accessible to all and relevant to the needs of the nation.
Filipinos should also find education “truly liberating” through the development of critical
thinking skills and an appreciation of culture and the arts.
10- POINT PLAN

The shift to K-12 began under President Duterte’s predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, who
approached education as an investment in Filipinos, and offered a 10-point plan for improving education
as part of his election campaign. As well as K-12, the 10 fixes included pre-schooling for all, technical-
vocational training as an alternative in senior high school, working with local governments to build new
schools, proficiency in science and maths, and working with private schools as “essential partners” in
basic education. The plan is to expand the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private
Education, supporting as many as 1m students at private high schools through the Education Service
Contracting Scheme.