Technically Jurisprudence: DePed wants to mess up with the original Philippine schooling System; Quality, not Quantity. DepEd’s K+12 Program is not the Solution

Some people in the DepEd are about to make a big mess out of our educational system. Inspite of all the hardships of the Filipinos to struggle through earning a degree, the DepEd still wants to add two more years into the admitedly rotten system of education.

yep! we are again doing some copy catting again from other countries education system and it seems the depEd wants to play and screw with billions of Pesos worth of money and properties if they try to implement this K12 system to the current education system;

It should be quality first before quantity. The realities are that almost 80% of elementary students in the provinces do not finish college. About half do not finish high school. About one-third do not finish elementary. TESDA admits that the absorption rate of their students into the work force is only about 30%. Eh, supposedly, TESDA “scholars” na sila! DepEd is even saying that the new program will ensure that even only with high school education, they will have enough skills to be employed. Eh, hello!! Uulitin ko, 30% lang ang absorption rate ng TESDA scholars. Nasaan ang connect dun?

The 12 years is supposed to make Filipinos competitive internationally. But do we really need those 12 years to make them competitive enough in the Philippines?

We often admire our elders that they were better educated compared to the students now. Did they go through 12 years of basic education?

Riot na nga ang set up in the public schools with the supply problem (rooms, teachers, etc.), then dadagdagan pa ng 20% na super unnecessary volume? One high school in Los Banos (that’s LOS BANOS!) has more than 100 students per class. Sabagay, with the really depressing attrition rate, baka DepEd knows much better….

I think the DepEd people should make better use of their brains and resources and not choose the easy way out and declare that we have to follow the international trend. Bakit? do we really have to study so we can find employment abroad? So, its like we have to do this so we can perpetuate the culture of leaving this country for greener pastures? Parang nakakalungkot yata yun, ah……

Well, the middle ground would be to make 12 years an optional or voluntary thing for people (and parents!) who are considering going abroad for further studies or employment. But don’t drag the entire country into this foolish course by implementing it even before we improve the QUALITY of education.

The basic math on this is quite easy to understand. Lets look at the givens on the typical Filipino student studying in a public school:

Daily allowance = Php50
No of school days per month = 20
No. of months per year = 10
No. of years = 2
Subtotal = Php20,000

If the Pinoy student is forced to study for another two years, he will lose the opportunity to be employed for two years:

Average minimum wage per day = Php300
No. of days per month = 20
Salary per month = Php6000
No. of months per year = 12

Now, lets look at the final equation:

Additional Expense = Php50 x 20 days x 10 months x 2 years = Php20,000
Lost income = Php300 minimum wage x 20 days x 12 months x 2 years = Php144,000

TOTAL = Php164,000

And that’s only for ONE student. Try to imagine a poor Filipino family with four kids. Try to imagine a poor Filipino family that believes that a diploma is the way out of poverty. How much more do they have to endure the hardship that they are trapped in?

Want to have goosebumps? Then see these other figures:

The website, www.inquirer.net ran a story that says there will be 3.8 million additional enrollees in the elementary. I checked DepEd’s online data and it said that in 2009, there were about 13.8 million elementary students. Try to do the simple math of multiplying the additional cost and loss of income with the number of affected students. (http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/talkofthetown/view/20100814-286806/Cost-of-setting-up-two-additional-years-and-universal-preschool )

That 3.8 million would be equal to Php623 BILLION!!

And that 13.8 million (minus 1/6 assuming one level graduates before the k+12 is implemented)…. they would represent more than 1.8 TRILLION pesos!! I know, this may sound so fantastic and absurd!! But test your simple math skills and lets compare notes.

The present government says that it can adequately cover the required Php100 Billion to implement the project. But can their conscience be able to face squarely the socio-economic costs to the Filipino families that run in hundreds of billions? Even trillions? And every peso of which represents the struggle and dreams of ordinary and largely poor Pinoy families.

DepEd will steal a lot of Filipino’s dream to a decent life. Sa kultura ng Pinoy, Edukasyon ang isa na lang na pinanghahawakan para maka-ahon sa hirap. Magiging mas madali at dadami ang susuko kapag ninakaw ng gobyerno ang hibla ng pag-asa na yun.

Education is like cooking. If you’ve cooked an awful meal, do you cook more of that same kind of awful food, or do you improve your cooking? My gulay!! its as easy as A Ba Ka Da!!!

At this point in time, what the Filipino people deserve is quality education, not another two rotten years of mediocre learning.