MISEDUCATION. SOLUTIONS. PHILIPPINE EDUCATION.

"MISEDUCATION: The Failed System of Philippine Education" is the title of the Education Commission 2 (EdCom 2) year one report. The report encapsulates what it unequivocally admits as an education crisis. And a commissioner of EdCom 2, Sen. Sonny Angara, has the chance to lead the Department of Education (DepEd) out of the education crisis — a legacy he may want to embrace as he exits his second term as senator.

Educated with a Master of Laws (Harvard University), Bachelor of Laws (University of the Philippines), Bachelor of Science in Economics and Political Science (London School of Economics), A-levels (Douai School, England) and basic education (Xavier School), will the son of his iconic father, Edgardo Angara, be able to navigate DepEd out of the crisis that is felt in the very bones of the nation — parents, educators, employers and by students themselves? Will his legislative and political experiences, since 2016, suffice to alleviate the urgent call for the resuscitation of Philippine education? Secretary Sonny Angara is a politician and a seasoned legislator. If used properly, it will enable him to influence the government bureaucracy. His charismatic personality should make him a loud voice and a pleasant face of influence to the stakeholders of the education sector and around it.

This article echoes the challenges of the miseducation that need to be confronted, not only by the incoming secretary but by the "village" that intends to raise one Filipino child at a time.

Below are 11 recommendations for immediate action that will have a positive impact on education. Note that the first letter of each proposed solution form Secretary Sonny Angara's name.

Secure and assert the highest budget allocation for education. This is a constitutional provision which the new secretary must assert. The budget allocation that is spent well will ensure availability of resources that are essential in the delivery of accessible quality education — from infrastructure, learning environment, resources, maintenance and other operating expenses. The new secretary may have mastered the power of the purse of Congress.

Organize the "village" around the learner. The new secretary, through the years in government, must have already established good influence with local government executives who sit as chairpersons of the local school board. This will make available additional resources and benefits for the schools and the learners. He may also easily tap other government agencies like the Interior and Local Government, Social Welfare and Development, Agriculture, Health, Labor and Employment Departments, including their divisions and bureaus. Through these collaborations, the nongovernment and socio-civic sectors may be inspired to engage for sustainable linkages, including international and local philanthropic entities and funding agencies.

Nourish the learners' holistic health and mental health. Malnutrition and other health conditions are serious issues that impede learning. The brain-based learning dictates that the holistic health of the learner should be prioritized. Local governments need to feed and save malnourished children in school. Mental health matters for learning, too. The availability of school nurses for every school and the professional health services in schools is long overdue.

Negotiate the salary increase of teachers. The education sector should be able to attract the best and brightest. But the salary of Filipino teachers remains low as compared with our Asian neighbors. It is lower than other professionals like nurses and those in the uniformed services. While there are new perks added to their regular remuneration, the amount is not catching up to the cost of living of teachers. Amid the interest of many countries, like Thailand and China, for Filipino teachers, the government needs to make teachers' salaries at par with Asean counterparts. There may be a need to subsidize the salary of teachers in the private sector.

Yearn to operationalize complementarity between public and private schools. The private schools can never compete with the "free" nature of public education. The highly competitive coexistence of private and public schools may be addressed by the complementarity wisdom of the Constitution. More assistance for private education institutions has to be provided by the government to enable them to contribute to quality education, especially in the specialized programs that they exclusively can provide — with which the public schools need not compete against for a more strategic collaboration.

Align curricular competencies with demands of the world of work. The outcomes of education must be relevant to the demands of the workplace. There has to be alignment of the curricular outcomes and the prescribed skills requirements of the world of work. The standards for the training and the outcomes as well as credentials and qualifications of graduates must emanate from the industry and the foreseeable emerging demands of the future job market. There has to be genuine inclusive education and special education so that no one is left behind in the diverse society.

Navigate meritocratic career path and positive workplace in schools. The DepEd must revisit the career path of teachers and administrative personnel based on objective and equitable meritocracy. This will increase job satisfaction and productivity of education personnel, and in effect will attract the best and the brightest to the education sector.

Generate the promises of K-12. The additional two years in basic education should not only be perceived by parents and society as a useless burden. It should be appreciated based on its original intent to provide for exits leading to employability, entrepreneurship, skills development and not only the usual higher education. Competencies and qualifications must make graduates of basic education job- and career-ready.

Accelerate digital transformation and reduce digital divide. There has to be massive investment in digital transformation not only for learning but also as learning. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) must expand to include agriculture to be more relevant to the Philippine context as an agriculturally endowed country. Education must be directed to the future, which is technology.

Revisit the relevance of trifocalization of Philippine education. The trifocalization, as an outcome of the first EdCom, has to be revisited and operationalized to align and harmonize, and ensure seamless transition toward Filipinos' lifelong learning. Differing and fragmented policies, standards and strategies among the DepEd, Commission on Higher Education, and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority lead to missed opportunities for collaboration for the benefit of the Filipino. There is also a need to integrate early childhood care and development, sports, culture, arts, global citizenship and values in mainstream education.

Abort corruption in the system. The killer of any system is this deeply rooted corruption, which still is in the bureaucracy. There has to be an end to this evil in the very system that should teach values against it. The good senator, as an esteemed legal luminary behind some legislations to curtail the menace, may be up for a challenge in the department with the highest budgetary allocation and widest operational dynamics — and the most critical responsibility for nation-building.

The late senator Edgardo Angara once said that "every Filipino deserves a fighting chance." The son now holds the baton of Philippine basic education that will give every Filipino not only a fighting chance but a winning chance. After Matatag education, Angara ng Edukasyong Tatak Pinoy is waving.

Godspeed, Secretary Juan Edgardo Manalang Angara.

2024-07-04T16:21:20Z dg43tfdfdgfd