What is K+12 Enhanced Basic Curriculum Program?
The education chief recently announced his plan to implement President Noynoy Aquino’s agenda of increasing the basic education cycle from the current 10 years to 12 years, a plan that he referred to as the “enhanced K+12 basic education program.”
“K” refers to “Kindergarten” while the number “12″ refers to the sum of 6 years of grade school and six years of high school.
It is a reform to our Basic Education program which will aim to ensure that future high school graduates are ready to be productively employed even without completing college.
The new K+12 curriculum will be offered to incoming Grade 1 as well as First Year Junior High School students by June 2012.The DepEd intends to implement Senior High School education by school year 2016-2017.High school graduates will become ‘employable’The K+12 program specifies six years of high school education composed of four years of junior high school and two years of senior high school.Students will receive a diploma after finishing junior high school. They will be given another diploma upon finishing senior high school.The two years of senior high school aim to provide students with skills and competencies that will help them become employable upon graduation.The curriculum will provide “specializations” based on the career that a student wishes to pursue.”We will make high school graduate employable, so that a tertiary education is not a necessity to get a job,” he said.
Is Additional HS Years will replace college Education?
Luistro clarified that the two years of senior high school will not replace tertiary education.
He explained that the K+12 program will actually allow more students to enroll in tertiary education.
“If senior high school [graduates] can be employable, there should be more self-supporting, working students,” he said.
He added that senior high school graduates do not have to enroll in college immediately after graduation but may choose to work for a few years to save enough money for a college education.
The Education Secretary said the department will work closely with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to align the new basic education program with the existing programs of CHED and TESDA.
HOw K+12 system could enhance quality of education?
The education chief recently announced his plan to implement President Noynoy Aquino’s agenda of increasing the basic education cycle from the current 10 years to 12 years, a plan that he referred to as the “enhanced K+12 basic education program.”
“K” refers to “Kindergarten” while the number “12″ refers to the sum of 6 years of grade school and six years of high school.
It is a reform to our Basic Education program which will aim to ensure that future high school graduates are ready to be productively employed even without completing college.
The new K+12 curriculum will be offered to incoming Grade 1 as well as First Year Junior High School students by June 2012.The DepEd intends to implement Senior High School education by school year 2016-2017.High school graduates will become ‘employable’The K+12 program specifies six years of high school education composed of four years of junior high school and two years of senior high school.Students will receive a diploma after finishing junior high school. They will be given another diploma upon finishing senior high school.The two years of senior high school aim to provide students with skills and competencies that will help them become employable upon graduation.The curriculum will provide “specializations” based on the career that a student wishes to pursue.”We will make high school graduate employable, so that a tertiary education is not a necessity to get a job,” he said.
Is Additional HS Years will replace college Education?
Luistro clarified that the two years of senior high school will not replace tertiary education.
He explained that the K+12 program will actually allow more students to enroll in tertiary education.
“If senior high school [graduates] can be employable, there should be more self-supporting, working students,” he said.
He added that senior high school graduates do not have to enroll in college immediately after graduation but may choose to work for a few years to save enough money for a college education.
The Education Secretary said the department will work closely with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to align the new basic education program with the existing programs of CHED and TESDA.
HOw K+12 system could enhance quality of education?
Luistro countered that the additional school years under the K+12 system will address the problem of deteriorating quality education in the country.
He cited the problem about a congested curriculum, which crams 12 years worth of basic education into 10 years.
According to him, the new program will spread out the subjects that students are taking. It will allow them to take electives that will develop their skills in music and the arts, literature, and entrepreneurship.
He also said that in the current basic education program, high school graduates do not possess the basic competencies and emotional maturity that one needs in the workforce.
Currently, graduates of high school at 15 or 16 are not mature enough to handle higher education disciplines, he said.
Luistro also said that the program will have positive effects on the country’s economy.
He cited studies showing that improvements in the quality of education increases a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) by as much as 2 percent.
The education secretary also expressed confidence that the department has enough time and resources to implement the K+12 program.
