simply guscepss: of mr.holland's opus and jovit baldovino

simply guscepss: of mr.holland's opus and jovit baldovino

of mr.holland's opus and jovit baldovino

i saw the movie mr. holland's opus at hbo.....and the movie made me cry. i cried on the part where mr. holland sang for his son who lost his hearing when he was still a boy. an irony for mr. holland, who is a music teacher and a composer. but the reason why i wrote something about the movie is not about the emotion i felt. it is something else.

it is about education.

on the latter part of the movie, mr. holland was told by the principal that the music program will be cut including arts and drama. mr. holland felt it was a personal vendetta of the principal because since the start of mr. holland's music program, this principal (he was then an assistant principal) was against it. there were many attempts by this principal to cut it before, but he did not succeeded. and now that the board of education has to cut budget because of financial constraints, the principal saw an opportunity to implement his desire, and decided that of all the programs in the school's curriculum, the music program of mr. holland should be the first to go. this scenario made me reflect.........

is it not also true that in our school system, music and the arts are not given much attention?

schools all over the country are focusing on reading. they are measured by the nat and if the nat score of the students are low - the reading skills of the students are always referred to as the culprit. so teachers are focusing their energy on reading. the efforts of the teachers and even the resources of the school are directed on enhancing reading skills and even in the review of students for the national achievement test or the nat. music and the arts are not given much attention. it is not even taught in some schools.

but inspite of this total neglect for music, arts and drama in the schools, thousands would flock for auditions in singing competitions such as pilipinas got talent.....talentadong pinoy, search for the singing stars.....pinoy idol, etc. many more would try their luck to acting.....dancing....miming.....and other acts which are closely related to music , arts and drama. filipinos love to sing. in fact the karaoke fever started in the philippines - yet, it is the most neglected subject in the schools.

recently, the philippine music industry saw the rise of one jovit baldovino, the pilipinas got talent 2 million winner. a poor kid from batangas who tried his luck to audition and ultimately won the prize.

but the BIG QUESTION IS... did the school make a JOVIT BALDOVINO?
there were many jovit baldovinos before - like nora aunor and recently charise pempenco. but did the school made all of them?

if filipinos are that good in music then schools should overhaul the curriculum and their programa offerings.

i believe that for the schools to become so meaningful it should make the curriculum relevant and cause the making of a - jovit baldovino. what i mean is that the talent of students in music , acting, dancing, and the arts should have been nurtured and refined in the schools....a nurturing that should have been the reason why they make it big in the music industry or in the film industry.

COME TO THINK OF THIS: is it not meaningful for the school, if mr.baldovino won in the contest because A CERTAIN MR. HOLLAND TRAINED HIM IN THE SCHOOL UNDER THE MUSIC PROGRAM ?


just thinking........

being an innovative teacher using ict?

just attended the innovative teachers forum sponsored by microsoft and the awarding of innovative teachers using ict in the classroom. the venue smx convention center at moa

whoa! what avenue .....

the dream is big.....the vision noble.....but i think ....only a small number of teachers can really....really integrate the use of ict in the classroom.

the big divide is still present.....the problem still exist.....hardware...software....the basic.

its hard to force teachers and students to use ict where in the first place they don't have the tools. remember the hardware ...expensive....the software the more expensive......

why don't we focus first on improving the economy of the country ...... and when all will become so affordable...then all these things will be added ....without that much effort.

just thinking.....

Happy 2011

2011....new year....new struggles.. new hopes and dreams.

This year a lot of changes will occur. In my blog and in my life.

My blog has a new title. It has new gadgets to spruce up the page. It will feature everything my "kulot" mind can think of.

This year will be different...

2 Decembers

ONE DECEMBER

I used to hum a tune to him while he crawled on the floor over an over sized banig and when he heard the tune he w

ould stop crawling and started to sway to and fro as if dancing to the tune. When the tune stopped, he would continue crawling, until he would hear the tune again. That innocent act amused everybody in the family especially Papa Perpe and Mama Nayang, the proud grandparents.

Lowell grew up to be a good boy. He was close to me and always asked me questions about his studies, his career and shared to me his dreams.

However, in December 22, 2002, he met a motorcycle accident that sniffed out his vibrant youth. He has just finished his apprenticeship in a ship and about to apply overseas as a seaman.

We were shocked. We almost could not believe that he was gone, most especially on Christmas time. On December 25, 2002, we grieved over the remains of Lowell while the world rejoiced for the birth of Christ.

Life is so unfair....so I thought.

TWO DECEMBER

Eight years after the death of Lowelll on the same date December 22, I received a call from CESBOARD telling me that I passed the Assessment Center, considered the waterloo in acquiring CES Eligibility. I was euphoric - in ecstasy actually. I almost could not believe that I passed the test because after the whole day assessment , I felt I did not do well. I thought this was the best gift God gave me during Christmas and suddenly, I remembered Lowell.

Life is fair after all.

The Lesson:

God has very mysterious ways of touching our lives. I believe that God wants us to suffer pain to enjoy the best things in life. Life must be balanced. The yin and the yang must exist. Electricity is possible with negative and positive flow of electrons. Planes fly and land because of positive and negative lift.

So when your down today expect that you will be lifted tomorrow, but only after you will make an effort and learn your lessons. Remember also the lesson of Juan Tamad....it's not enoh to watch and wait for the guava to fall into one's mouth. One must climb the tree to pick the fruit.

Institutions and Community Based Student Tracking ( ICB-ST)

PROJECT NAME/REFERENCE: Institutions and Community Based Student
Tracking (ICB-ST)

Why do you want to do this project?

This project is aimed at raising the transition rate of the Division of Bukidnon. Data from the planning office disclose that the transition rate of the Division is low. The graph below shows a decreasing participation rate in the secondary level. While the participation rate in the elementary is sustained at around 70-75% level, the participation rate in the secondary level decreased by 7.8% over a two year period. This condition reduces the ability of the Division to achieve one of the Medium Term Development goals on universal education in basic education.

By setting up a system and a network of people from concerned institutions and community people, a web will be created that will track school age children. The project will also provide avenues for interventions so that the school age children that will be tracked will be provided with an opportunity to finish basic education. The basic education mentioned is aimed at providing them with knowledge, skills and attitudes that will allow them to be gainfully employed after graduation. This empowerment will open –up opportunities for them to continue higher education as self employed students or venture into entrepreneurships which will uplift their standard of living.
This project will be undertaken so that children who are forced to be pulled away from the formal basic education either because of economic constraints or lose interest in the schools because of access problems will be rescued and brought back to the school system in any modes as necessary.

What will you have at the end that you don’t have now?
At the end of the project, a functional data base of all elementary Grade VI children in the pilot district will be established. It will also create a network of people that will be involved in tracking school age children who will not enroll in the secondary education. These include the District Supervisors, School Heads, Parents, Local Officials in the municipality and in the barangay, and DSWD Officials. The project will also provide a system of tracking elementary graduates identifying among others where they go after graduation and whether or not they are in school.
This system and processes are unknown in the division hence this is an innovation that will try to solve losing school age children from the elementary to secondary.


Will you (should you) deliver anything else?
In its pilot stage the project will only involved one district. After its completion and evaluation this will be adopted throughout the Division. In its expansion stage it will not only involve data basing of the Grade six children but all the children from Grades One to Six. The expansion will try to solve drop-out and improve cohort survival.

Is anything explicitly excluded from the project?
The performance on achievement (NAT) is excluded in the project. The systems and program that will be designed and executed will not necessarily result to improved performance in the NAT.

Are there any gaps or overlaps with the projects?
Because of its uniqueness, it is believed that the project will not overlap with other projects. First, there is no known data base of all school age children even in the school only. Second, there is no known system of tracking children from the elementary to secondary. Third, there is no known intervention program that will provide opportunities for children who did not enroll in high school. Fourth and most importantly, there is no known agreement , cooperation, collaboration of the mentioned institutions and community that will track children who dropped from the formal school.

What assumptions (if any) are you making?
This project is founded on the following assumptions:
1. If a well designed system of tracking school age children is set up using available technology then schools will not lose the children in the formal school system.
2. If a network of institutions and community people will agree on one goal - that of providing universal basic education to all school age children by owning a system and processes , then no children will be left behind.
3. If the formal school system will be restructured such that it will include various alternative delivery modes to cater to the special needs of the children in the community, then no children will be left out.
4. If the curriculum will be designed such that it will employ community based teaching-learning and informal school set up (apprenticeships) will be adopted then children with bodily-kinesthetic intelligence will be interested to complete basic education.

Are there any significant problems you are aware of that you must overcome?
This project will have to clear several issues before it can be executed:
1. Commitment of the executives of the institutions involved in the project. The project has to be advocated to them. They should understand its overlying principles and they should believed in the attainment of the MDG goals.
2. Executives in the school system have to follow the systems and processes so the tracking can be successful.
3. Education executives have to be open to alternative modes to be employed as intervention.
4. School executives’ passion to strengthen Tech-Voc education as a tool in providing knowledge, skills and attitudes for employment opportunities.


Date Prepared: Prepared By: Approved by:
March 9, 2009 Agustines E. Cepe Gloria D. Benigno, Ph.D. CESO V

Education Overhaul

The sign is clear. The economic condition of the Philippines is the ultimate gauge of the kind of education it provides to its people. The fact that the country lags behind its neighboring countries in terms of economic development , is a sure fire indicator of how it handles its educational system. Much has been said about the declining educational outputs schools are generating. Many have been said about its causes which have been repeated over and over again. The Department of Education annually cried for more classrooms, teachers, trainings, etc. It is just like crying for more funding, funding and more funding. But, have these officials really cared about the total education of the children? Have they truly assessed what ails the educational system.
It is time for the education officials to reflect how it can revolutionize the educational system and this paper might just give them an idea how to start.

Basic step

Return to who we are. This country needs to find its roots. The country had been colonized by many foreigners and had assimilated diverse cultures from the foreign invaders. In fact, up until now we have been colonized mentally by our last conqueror. In order for the Philippines to succeed in its educational reform, it has to go back to its roots. The first step in rediscovering our heritage is to learn to LOVE our language. Nothing can be so patriotic for any citizen than to love its own language. This language we fondly called the mother tongue should be the basis for acquiring the fundamentals of learning. According to Jeff Brooks of the Auburn University, education is not about preparing one person for work. It is about preparing him to decide for himself , to rationalize and improve oneself , to do what he likes to do for his entire life. If this is the purpose of education, then why should we make a fuss about learning a foreign language?
So, the first step towards revolutionizing education is to teach the basics - the 3R’s . But it should be based on the mother tongue.
UNESCO findings show that young children learn how to read and acquire numeracy faster and better when taught in their mother tongue. Their achievement rates in higher-grade levels are better than those who are taught in a language other than what they speak at home. (Juan Miguel Luz , English First’ policy will hurt learning , Inquirer First Posted 01:31am (Mla time) 01/22/2007)
The world has seen the result of this policy. One need not look farther west. China, Taiwan, Japan, Hongkong, Malaysia, India, Korea (North and South) are best examples. The models are right in our midst, but we refuse to see and remained blind to the glaring truth.
These findings have been replicated by the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL), which uses the mother tongue for teaching young children in Bukidnon and in other areas with indigenous people. These pupils have had relatively high literacy and numeracy scores in DepEd (Department of Education) tests. (Luz, 2007)

There is no need for more proof to this contention that children learn better and faster in literacy and numeracy when they use their mother tongue as the medium of instruction. Therefore for someone to change the way we teach our children, one has to allow the use of the regional languages.



First Stage – Restructure the educational organization
The structure of the Department of Education should be decentralized up to the grass roots level. There are tiers of the structures that has to come off.
Proposed Organizational Chart of DepED


The structure of the Department of Education should be mainstreamed. The Regional Office should come off from the branch to simplify operations. The directorship should be transferred to the Division Level, the office in-charge for the provincial operations. The superintendent should be based in the District Level (Municipal or City) . School Principals should have full autonomous power in terms of administration and instructional innovations.
Delineation of Roles
National Office - Office of the Secretary
• Set up the national policies on education . These policies should be generic in nature and should be geared towards national development.
• Set up standards of the outputs in basic and higher levels of learning.
• Facilitate budget for approval in Congress for the operations of the department but with the budget inputs from the Divisions and the schools.
• Conduct quality control and accreditation program for all schools in the country as basis for the classification of schools. Schools should be classified as level 1 , Level 2 and Level 3. Each level have different salary schedules, the highest being is Level 3.
• Conduct the annual assessment examinations. These exams are used for national assessments and quality control. They should also conduct examinations that would earn students units in mathematics or science, such that when students from high school are certified by passing the test, they are no longer required to take the subjects in their university or college years.
Divisional Office – Office of the Division Director
• Consolidates all budget proposals from the districts.
• Implements monitoring and evaluation of the standards set by the national office.
• Implements the testing from the national office.
• Serves as the final arbiter of conflicts arising from the schools which are not settled in the District Level.
District Office- Office of the District Superintendent
• Conducts instructional supervision in all schools.
• Responsible in hiring/firing of all personnel.
• Prepares budget for the District with inputs from the schools.
• Promotes personnel in the schools.
• Conducts performance and financial audit.
• Hires or fires teachers.
School – Office of the School Head
• Manages the financial resource of the school including the Personnel Services (Salaries and Benefits, Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses). This would mean that the salaries and other benefits of the teachers are handled by the school. In this system, schools can provide salaries for teachers in a weekly or semi-weekly basis. This is very important so that teachers and other personnel can have their salaries immediately on the weekends or after two weeks.
• Implements instructional innovations in the school. Conducts instructional supervision to all teachers.
• Manages instructional resources including selection of what books to buy and how many books to buy but with approval from the School Governing Council. The School Governing Council is the policy making body of the school. It is comprised of the school head, PTCA, Student Leaders, Teachers, and Community Leaders.
Process of Budgeting and Fund Releases
A. Budgeting
Schools ------- Districts -------Division----- National----Congress

B. Fund Release
DBM ----releases funds directly to:
Divisions Districts Schools

This process is very crucial for the efficient operation of the schools. Funds should be directly released to the school from the Department of Budget and Management for the schools to independently manage their resources without having to go through so much bureaucracy.


Second Stage- Reengineer the Curriculum
1. Grades 1-3 should focus in teaching literacy, the basic 3 Rs only; reading, writing, and arithmetic in the mother tongue (regional languages).
2. Books, reading materials should be in the mother tongue. The purpose of this reading materials is to entertain. This should sustain the children’s love for reading. If teachers let children read for the purpose of giving them test afterwards, this will end up children losing their enthusiasm for reading. Reading materials in the mother tongue is for entertainment and information. Nothing less , nothing more.
3. Mathematics in these grades . should also be taught in the mother tongue. Its purpose will be for mastery of the number sense and problem solving. It should be used to solve community problems related to the children’s background.
4. At the end of Grade 3, children should be functionally literate in their mother tongue. They can solve problems and knows how to communicate solutions. They should not only be able to read but also be able to write their ideas. They should be able to explain, argue, debate, propose, measure and do calculations applicable to real world situations. They should know how to follow directions.
What is the role of the universities and colleges in this endeavor? The colleges and universities should feed the curiosities of these young children who are hungry for many reading books. The College of Bachelor of Arts or the College of Education should require their students to either write books for children in Grades 1 to 3 or they should translate children’s books from other countries. This forms part of their college education and part of the educational revolution in the other end of the yard stick.
5. Classes in grades 1-3 should start at 9:00 am and end at 2:00 p.m.
This should allow for the children to rest well. Their education should not hamper their development.
6. Grades 4-6 should still use the mother tongue but Filipino considered the national language should be introduced. However, the introduction of the Filipino language should not increase the number of subjects. The offerings in grade 4-6 should be Math, Science, Social Studies, Music, Arts and PE. Here is the catch. Social Studies, Music Arts and PE should be integrated. Schools should maximize the use of content based instruction. Social Studies integrated with Music, Arts and PE should use Filipino as the medium of instruction. This scheme provides for the functional use of Filipino. The teaching of Social Studies together with Music, Arts and PE should be in the form of community learning. The subject should be about solving social issues. It should focus on project based learning, research , drama, theater arts. Social Studies should focus on how people live and allows the discovery of children how they live. This is about discovering who they are and what they would like to be when they grow up. Math and Science should be taught in the mother tongue but it should be focused more in learning how to solve real life problems. It should be about explaining phenomena and conducting investigations.
7. Grades 7-9 should start exposing students to technical and vocational courses. The trade schools should be returned to its proper place in the educational system. It will provide the needed specializations needed to propel the country towards development. But the trade schools should not only focus on the basic technical-vocational skills development. It should be research oriented. For example while learning the basic welding skills, students as science students also, should investigate new techniques in welding, perhaps better tools, better fuel. Anything along this line. In food technology it is not only about cooking the foods in the recipe books. It is about discovering new kind of food and new type of presentations, or new ways of preserving nutrients and tastes. At this level, English is introduced as a subject only. However, it should be communicative English. Students should be trained how to effectively use English as a means of communication. By this time, the students should be able to discover what their potentials are and began considering how to pursue and develop their potentials.
8. Grades 10-12 should prepare the students for the world of work. The graduating students are now 18 years old. They are considered at the legal age and if they choose not to continue to university, they should have the special skills to enter the industry. At this level schools should focus on mastering special skills. Centers of excellence should be established. There should be higher schools (10-12) specializing in various life skills development which ranges from drafting to dancing, to learning different languages. Other languages should be introduced not only English. Students should be given an option to learn other languages such as Asian, Western , and European languages. But this should be optional. Students should choose which language they feel they should learn. The purpose of learning other language is to provide our country with people who can translate works from other countries aside from becoming interpreters. However, students when learning a new language should be able to communicate it effectively. At this level schools and students will discover on what field of endeavor they are good at. Those who excel in academics can proceed to become teachers, doctors, lawyers , etc. Those who excel in Math and Science especially in calculus and physics can become engineers and scientists. Universities should only accept students in their specialized field if the students show potentials for the degree.


Third Stage – Overhaul Higher Education Curriculum
University life should also be revolutionized. It should not focus on English language development. It should use Filipino as the medium of instruction in the arts and sciences. Universities should put more emphasis on Research and Development. R and D should be on finding new things, discovering something to contribute to the development of the country. Professors should have written books in their fields. They should quest for new knowledge using their students as mentees. It should be noted that when the students graduated from the basic education at the age of 18, they are proficient in the basic math and science and the language (Filipino). The curriculum on the degree pursued should start directly in training for the degree. What is happening now is the first year students are taking again the very subjects they have learned in high school. Luz (2007) pointed out that it is because our basic education is shorter that it should be. Ten years of basic education does not prepare a student for university or college work, hence the relearning, which adds up the number of years required to finish a degree. But the only thing is - the degree itself is inadequate because the relearning in the first 2 years robbed off very critical study time for the students to specialize on the nitty-gritty of the degree.
College work should immerse students directly on the kind of work they choose. Let us take a look at how teachers are trained under this altered educational system.
“Teacher training institution should immerse students directly in different specializations. It should offer various specializations such as early childhood education or primary education. This should not include teachers for college. Why? College professors should be practicing professionals in their fields. So teacher training institutions should train teachers for basic education. Students teachers should choose their specialization on the first day of school. They can choose to become a reading teacher in (Filipino, Regional Dialects, English) , science , teacher, math teacher, social, studies teacher, music, arts or physical education teacher. The degree on Bachelor of Arts in Elementary or Secondary should be scrapped. A teacher must be a specialist in reading, math, science, etc. There is also a degree in reading teacher for special children (gifted and children with special needs). No teacher should become a generalist. They must have a specialty. These teachers can become teachers across the multi-level of 12 years of basic education. They can be assigned in the primary school 1-6, middle school 7-9, or high school 10-12.
How do universities train teachers to become excellent reading teachers in the Regional Dialects? Reading teachers should be exposed to action research based education. It should be patterned after a mentor –mentee structure. At the very first day , student teachers in reading should be put in an on the job training position. Colleges and universities should have a laboratory or extension project to teach reading to the children. This laboratories are the laboratories of the students teachers in reading. They have to solve problems in reading, perhaps find new ways of teaching reading, or discover new principles in reading. These teachers should be on the field. They should try teaching reading in different situations such as urban children, rural children, street children, indigenous people’s children and even adult literacy. These activities should be the kind of training the would be teachers should be getting.
For those who would like to teach science, they must choose what field they are interested in. They should specialize first in Biology, Chemistry, Natural Science, Astronomy , etc. This should be done in the first two years of their education. The second two years should be an on the job training in teaching science. They should be immersed in teaching science in the actual classroom situation. The same is true to the other sciences. It should be noted that the first two years should be spent for the mastery of the field of specialization. There should be no other unnecessary subject to be taken by these student teachers. For those who want to specialize in Biology then the first two years must focus in biology, biology and only biology such that after two years , the student teacher can be considered a graduate of a masteral program in Biology. The student teacher should not be allowed to continue in learning pedagogy if he can not present a research in his chosen field of specialization. After learning his field, the student teacher should then proceed in teaching biology to the laboratory much the same way as the reading teachers. Then he should undergo a certification from the Professional Association of Biology Teachers or the Professional Regulation Commission. The written board exam should be scrapped. Certifying for a license in teaching should be performance based. Once the student teacher gets his certificate of teaching , he will graduate for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Science Teaching major in Biology. It should be noted here that this new graduate in Biology teaching is not proficient in English. He is a certified Biology teacher speaking in the Regional dialect or Filipino.
Stage 3
Intellectuals in the universities and colleges should help in revolutionizing the educational system. In their hands lie the job of translating every book in sciences and arts into the Filipino language (Filipino and Regional dialects). University press with funding from the government should publish reference books in Math, Science , Arts ,etc. everything in the universities library must be translated into our own language. Books for the schools should be translated into our own dialects. This is the revolution that would take place in the learning institutions. New discoveries published from any country must be translated into our own language. Even books for entertainment like Harry Potter should be translated into Filipino and Cebuano. If this happens children in the remotest barrio can enjoy the thrills of the adventure of Harry Potter. Even the book of Sun Tzu , The Art of War, has to be translated into our own language. Writers should write only in our language. No authors should write stories in English.
The ultimate test of the universities’ contribution in revolutionizing the educational system is for them to overhaul google and yahoo and other search engines into our own language. This is very important because the basic education will be harnessing the power of information and technology therefore the internet that can be accessed in the Philippines should be in Filipino. The universities research and development should also try to discover new operating systems and new applications that would make the computers cheap. The menus of this operating systems and applications should be in Filipino or Cebuano. It should be offered for free like the open office. It is time for us to be free from the bondage of Bill Gates. This is what is happening in Africa with the Ed Ubuntu application for education. In Africa , one can buy a cheap PC. Why ? because there is no installed OS and Application. To install an OS and Application, one can go to a mall. There is some kind of a vending machine there and one can burn a cd for the OS and Applications and install it in the PC. Access to technology has become so easy in Africa. That should be duplicated in the Philippines. We have to have our own OS and Applications for free which can make computers very cheap and accessible.
Universities should develop interactive educational programs in our own language online which can be accessed by students in schools. They should produce instructional materials and guides based on research and experience online for teachers to access in the internet. All of these should be in our own language. This undertaking should be done by students of IT mentored by their professors. It is the kind of education the tertiary level should provide to the students in college. Their education should be about solving problems that would contribute to the development and economy of the country.



Stage Four – Change the Society
The society should also be revolutionized. It should be changed and should find its roots also. Since the graduates of our schools are speaking the country’s language then society has to change. The tri-media should be in the native tongue. Congress should debate in their mother tongue. Interpreters should be hired to translate a congressman speaking in Ilocano to other regional dialects. In this way, they, the speakers can articulate very well and the listeners can understand what the other is talking. The laws should be translated into Filipino or Cebuano. All legal documents should be translated.
Communications in the government bureaucracy should be in Filipino or Cebuano. This should be the first step in uniting the country. Industries, business , and corporations should use Filipino or Cebuano. Contracts should be in our own language so every citizen can understand.

The fundamentals
The ideas of the revolution is based on experience and deep reflection. It is ignited by the passion to rekindle the spirit of nationality and redeeming the almost lost culture of the forefathers. The suggestions in this paper is also corroborated by the following articles which talk about how important language is to the development of the country. It is imperative for the reader to understand that there is nothing wrong in learning a second language or a foreign language . However, learning it, should be for the sole purpose of communicating ideas, discoveries and collaboration. It should not be the basis or used as the foundation for learning or conditions of branding as intellectuals or not , or used as the standard for quality education.
The following articles should elaborate the ideas mentioned.
Article 1:
System-wide solutions needed, not band-aids
By Juan Miguel Luz
Inquirer
First Posted 02:11am (Mla time) 11/26/2007
MANILA, Philippines -- Education is a long-term play with no quick fixes. If we want to turn around our poorly performing education system, we need to look at system-wide solutions -- not band-aids -- that can impact positively on all schools at reasonable cost.
This is all about returning to the basics: Reading, writing and arithmetic -- the three Rs --in the early years, solid math and science in the middle years, and a balance of academic and technical/vocational education in the higher years.
This isn’t about looking for a silver bullet to solve the problems of poor education (e.g., cyber education) or just dealing with classroom, furniture or textbook shortages. It has to be about changing the way we structure learning and how we manage schooling. It is about quality outcomes first and foremost.
To focus on quality, we need to think of student outcomes 10-15 years in the future to guide how we manage the education system today. This is not about guesswork; it is about thinking deeply about what we need to invest today to realize the change we envision in the future.
The change we want is the transformation of young children with curiosity into productive adults with competence who can contribute to a competitive economy. Today, we are the opposite -- a small percentage of competent adults who can think for themselves and a largely uncompetitive economy, by global standards.
Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea transformed themselves from low-income economies to newly developed nations by focusing on building a strong base in primary education that could translate into strong science and math middle and high school outcomes.
From this, they moved a low technology environment into the high technology society that they are today. This is also how America is reengineering its education system to focus on better literacy and stronger science and math so that “no child is left behind.”
Where should we start? I suggest five disconnects in the education system that need to be dealt with immediately.
12-year cycle needed
Disconnect 1: The Philippines has a two-class education system. For the few who can afford it, an elite school education is anywhere from 12-14 years of schooling before college, including pre-schooling and Grade 7. For the rest, schooling -- in both public and non-elite private schools -- is 10 years with less than 20 percent attending preschool.
In a world where every country is going to at least 12 years of basic education to be competitive, we provide this only to those that can afford it. Under this setup, the rich will get richer; the rest will just manage to survive.
The key: The Philippines, like the rest of the world, needs to move to a 12-year basic education cycle for all -- not 10 years -- excluding preschool. We are now the last country in Asia that requires only 10 years of basic education before university.
Teachers not paid enough
Disconnect 2: Teachers are subsidizing public and private education with their low pay. We talk about education getting the largest departmental share of our budget. In truth, the real measure is how much we spend per child -- around $150 per year.
Thailand spends six times as much; Malaysia, over 10 times more. If we are not spending more per child, how are we able to survive? In reality, it is our teachers who are actually subsidizing parents through low salaries.
The key: A multiyear program to gradually raise teacher pay in both public and non-elite private schools to reflect the real cost of education and to attract the brightest graduates into the teaching profession.
Set entry age at 6
Disconnect 3: Filipino children are starting school too late, leading to high dropout rates later.
In 1995, entry age for Grade 1 was set at 6 years. A decade later, only a little more than a third of all Grade 1 pupils are 6 years old (the “right age”: 38 percent); more than a third are slightly older at 7 years (39 percent); the rest are overage at 8 years or older (23 percent) [school year 2005-06]. Why does this matter?
In Grades 1-3, the right-age kids are the ones dropping out most because of poor health and nutrition. But from Grades 5 onward through the end of high school, it is the overage kids who are dropping out in larger numbers.
Once the right-age kids get to Grade 4, they are the ones who will most likely finish the entire basic education cycle. The large number of dropouts from Grades 5 on through high school are overage kids leaving for a variety of reasons, including peer pressure (hiya), poor achievement, or the lure of work.
The key: Get kids to school at age 6 and initiate in-school feeding -- not rice distribution -- to lessen the dropout rate in Grades 1-3. Once these kids get to Grade 4, their chances of finishing basic education are markedly better than overage kids.
Male underachievers
Disconnect 4: We are fast becoming a nation of male underachievers.
From Grades 5 through the end of high school, boys are dropping out 2 to 2.5 times more than girls. By the end of high school, there are as much as 6 percent more girls graduating nationwide.
On top of this, more girls are interested in going to college than boys (58 percent to 52 percent). Within this generation, girls will have a better education than boys and the job market will reflect this. In our male-oriented society, where husbands are considered heads of household, there will be increasing levels of domestic violence and spousal abuse.
The key: Find ways to keep boys in school, including the use of school sports and technical-vocational education as incentives. Dropouts lose out in society.
Muslim kids left behind
Disconnect 5: Muslim Filipino children are not getting half the education other Filipino children are getting.
Mindanao lags behind the rest of the country in terms of education and other indicators. Areas with significant Muslim-Filipino populations lag even further behind. In the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, less than 30 percent of all children who enter Grade 1 will complete Grade 6. Less than half that number will finish high school. This is a continuing recipe for disaster.
The key: Increased investment in a competency-based madaris education system.
The solutions to the disconnects have to be a combination of making additional investments in the right place and in the correct manner, and enacting proper policy and implementation.
For the first time in this administration, education spending is gaining ground, thanks to a multiyear budget planning process introduced four years ago and adopted by the economic and budget planning agencies. But raising revenues is not sufficient if it is not linked to outcomes.
The only outcome that matters is graduating with achievement. That is the first step to competence. Education has to be about quality keeping pace with quantity.
Elite education
In this country, an elite school education is available for the few who can afford it, giving their children anywhere from 12-14 years of schooling before college.
For the rest, basic education is limited to 10 years of elementary (six grades) and high school (four years). A small percentage of these (less than 20 percent) add another year with preschool, giving them 11 years of basic education.
Who do you think scores better in college placement exams and will be better equipped for work?
In contrast, the rest of the world has moved to a minimum of 12 years of basic education, excluding preschool and/or kindergarten. Worldwide, the experience is: More years of basic education is good for a country as a long-term poverty reduction and development strategy.
Here, except for the rich, everybody else is being given less education and expected to do well.
Postwar situation
After World War II, a decision was made in 1946 to expand basic education from 11 to 12 years in keeping with the rest of the developed world (six years elementary, two years junior high, four years senior high). To set this in motion, the first step was to take away Grade 7 (making elementary “complete”). At that point, however, nothing else was added.
Thus, while the rest of the world marched forward to a 12-year basic education; we “retreated” to a 10-year cycle.
Why 12 years?
When a child enters Grade 1 at age 6, he or she will graduate from high school at 18 years of age. Psychologists the world over concur that at 18, a child is a young adult capable of making logical decisions and choices. This is the “age of majority” (legal age) for many countries and the age when they can first vote.
At age 18 and with 12 years of basic education, other countries assume that the individual is also ready to work. Thus, this is the age at which an individual is given full protection under the law to engage in full-time gainful employment.
Question of maturity
In the Philippines, we start Grade 1 at 6 years (as a policy, not necessarily in fact). After 10 years, a high school graduate is 16 years old. Two questions immediately pop up: Are these graduates ready for university? Will you hire them if they choose not to go to university?
The first is a question of maturity; the second of competence. The answer to both is no.
Universities will accept 16-year-old high school graduates. But the freshman year of “general education” is actually a repeat of high school courses: algebra (Math 101), grammar (English 101) and general science.
Most university degrees today cannot be completed in the four years that represent the global norm because of a freshman year of “review.” Accounting is now a five-year course, engineering is stretching to six years; other courses now include summer sessions to keep within the four years.
Few employers hire 16-year-olds unless for menial or domestic work. Even Jollibee and McDonalds require at least two years of university. Why? Those two years, plus the 10-year basic education cycle, adds up to the 12 years that constitute the cycle elsewhere.
‘Smorgasbord’ learning
Our basic education curriculum (BEC) is patterned after that in most countries. But because we compress ours into 10 years when other countries space it out over 12 years, our kids undergo what I call “smorgasbord” learning. A little bit of this, a little bit of that. Nothing deep, little learned.
The classic example is math. The BEC includes calculus in fourth year high school. Yet, 99-plus percent of our high school seniors never get to calculus. There just isn’t enough material time in four years of high school to learn enough math to get to calculus. Yet it is what other countries prescribe if high school seniors are interested in getting into the hard sciences and engineering.
The sad reality is that those that have the means are spending their own resources to make sure their kids get 12 to 14 years of basic education before college. (Preschool, prep and kindergarten are not defined globally as part of basic education. But their contribution to basic learning cannot be discounted.)
Key to change
For all other Filipino households, children have to take what is available. And this is 10 years for the most part. Preschools are not part of public education (where 94 percent of elementary-age children go), except where parents get together to form one. Public schools also have no Grade 7.
Because non-elite private schools in the provinces compete with public schools, many have taken out their Grade 7 to “ease the burden on parents who cannot afford an additional year of schooling.”
We are deluding ourselves in thinking that 10 years of basic education is sufficient. In a world where 12 years of basic education is the norm, we are providing this only to those that can afford it. Under this setup, the rich get richer (better); the rest will just manage to survive. In short, a two-class basic education system.
The key to change is to move aggressively to a 12-year basic education cycle available to all Filipino children. It’s time to bring back a universal Grade 7 and add another year to our high school cycle.

Article 2
English First’ policy will hurt learning
By Juan Miguel Luz
Inquirer
First Posted 01:31am (Mla time) 01/22/2007

THERE IS MUCH TO BE SAID ABOUT THE DECLINE IN English proficiency in this country. But legislating English as the medium of instruction—as proposed by the Gullas Bill—is not the solution. In fact not just English, but also Science and Math proficiency will decline should this law pass.
Rather than propose that English be the sole medium of learning, we should in fact promote multi-lingualism: English, Filipino and the local language or dialect.
The Japanese will never forego Nihonggo for English, nor will the Chinese abandon Mandarin or Cantonese for the so-called global language. Neither would the Scandinavians, Germans or (mon Dieu!) the French. Why then are we so quick to ditch Filipino for English?
The overall concern about the decline in English proficiency is both correct and misplaced. Many employers speak of job applicants with appalling spoken and written English skills. They argue that this deficiency is a “lost comparative advantage” as shown by the dismal hiring rates of the growing call center industry.
But is poor English proficiency really the cause of our global uncompetitiveness? Or is it our low productivity and the inability to deliver consistent quality that hurt us?
The problem is not poor English. It is poor English, Science and Math skills. Weak English proficiency is not the sole determinant of poor overall achievement; it is merely a factor.
UNESCO findings show that young children learn how to read and acquire numeracy faster and better when taught in their mother tongue. Their achievement rates in higher-grade levels are better than those who are taught in a language other than what they speak at home.
These findings have been replicated by the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL), which uses the mother tongue for teaching young children in Bukidnon and in other areas with indigenous people. These pupils have had relatively high literacy and numeracy scores in DepEd (Department of Education) tests.
The TIMSS (Trends in Math and Science Survey) test is administered here in English, making us one of the very few countries that take the test in a language that is not generally spoken at home. We do poorly in TIMSS. (The Japanese take TIMSS in Japanese; the Finns in Finnish.) But would taking the test in Filipino make for better scores?
The Department of Science and Technology did conduct such a test in Filipino and the results were equally dismal. Therefore, it’s not so much language; it is simply that children aren’t learning Science and Math well enough to solve problems.
On the other hand, “Sine’skwela,” the Science program on television, is broadcast in Filipino.
Dr. Milagros Ibe, then head of the National Institute of Science and Math Education (Nismed) at the University of the Philippines wrote: “Testing in English does not significantly disadvantage pupils who are taught in ‘Sine’skwela’ using Filipino as a medium. Understanding of the concepts in Filipino appears to facilitate transfer of learning to English.”
These children however are not fluent in English. In fact, “[they] find it hard to communicate and express themselves in English during recitations and discussions.”
But clearly, these children learn Science and Math: “Pupils in Grades 2 and 3 who watch ‘Sine’skwela’ attain master-level in 50-67 percent of the concepts learned, while those not exposed to the program master only 20-33 percent of the same …. Pupils in the lower grades are capable of responding to 4-option multiple choice questions .… Longer tests (i.e., more than 30 items) can also be used for them.”
In East Asia, the national or local language is used as the medium of learning for young children. English is taught as a subject—not as the medium of learning—and proficiency is seen as a key to connecting to the world, not as the key to learning.
We, however, seem to want to shortcut learning. We want to connect to the world to be competitive before we learn the fundamentals.
The current DepEd policy on the medium of learning set by former Education Secretary Andrew Gonzalez is sound. Brother Andrew was after all a linguist.
The policy says that the child’s mother tongue shall be the medium of learning in Grades 1 to 3 because the 3 R’s and fundamental Math and Science concepts are introduced at these grade levels. Makabayan (Social Studies) shall be taught in the mother tongue as well.
English and Filipino are to be taught as subjects.
If Mandarin someday became the global language for business, would you—an English speaker—learn your Science and Math concepts if it were taught to you in Mandarin? Probably not. The same would hold true for the young learner anywhere in this archipelago who does not speak English—or Mandarin—at home.
For Grades 4 to 6, there is a progressive shift to English as the medium of learning for English, Science and Math subjects. By this time, the concepts have taken root, and problem-solving and application are the learning objectives. Filipino will still be used to teach Filipino and Makabayan subjects.
For high school, the mid-grade policy on language is expanded.
The Gullas Bill is now in Congress, having been passed at the House of Representatives. Ironically, it does not deviate from the current DepEd policy. It is a dangerous bill, however, because it places a misleading emphasis on English as the medium of learning. As such, the young learners and their teachers will concentrate on the language, not on Science and Math and literacy (that is more fundamental to learning).
The key to better English is better implementation; more teacher training in grammar, composition, vocabulary; more mechanisms to expand English usage in schools such as campus journalism, campus radio, assigned days for English and Filipino communication and the like, more bilingual reading books and elocution contests and spelling bees (both in English and Filipino).
English is essential for communication, but Science and Math are crucial for competitiveness.
We need to be more creative and committed to better English teaching, but not at the expense of Science and Math. Legislation is not necessarily creative. The Gullas Bill in fact ignores world experience on learning by prescribing a solution that misses the problem completely: Why are Philippine schoolchildren not learning?

Article 3:
Why GMA’s language policy on English should be reversed (Part 1)
By the Coalition for a Correct Language Policy
OUR coalition of educators, writers and students has petitioned the Supreme Court to stop the Department of Education from continuing to carry out Executive Order 210. That EO strengthens the use of English in the school system at the expense of Filipino and other Philippine languages.
We are asking the Court to order the administration to desist from carrying out EO 210 and any of its implementing regulations, principally Dep¬Ed Order 36 S 2006. We also ask the Court to declare EO 210 and DepEd Order 36 null and void because these violate the Constitution.
The educators seeking EO 210 to be repealed include Dr. Patricia Licuanan, President of Miriam College; National Artists Bienvenido Lumbera and Virgilio Almario; University of the Philippines sociologist Randolf David; President of WIKA Inc., Isagani R. Cruz; and Efren Abueg, writer-in-residence at De La Salle University. Atty. Pacifico A. Agabin, former dean of the UP College of Law, is our legal counsel.
EO 210 and DepEd Order 36
Article 14 of the 1987 Constitution, which declares Filipino the national language and mandates the government “to initiate and sustain [its] use … as a medium of official communication and as language of instruction in the educational system.” EO 210 and Department f Education Order 36 violate the Constitution. The implementation of EO 210 would emaciate this constitutional provision propagating the use of Filipino.
An important Congressional study in 1991 refutes both EO 210 and a House bill with a similar intent, written by Rep. Eduardo Gullas of the First District of Cebu.
HB 4701 on “Strengthening and Enhancing the Use of English as the Medium of Instruction in Philippine Schools,” certified as urgent by President Arroyo, passed the House but was not acted on by the Senate in the Thirteenth Congress.
The Gullas bill goes against the findings of the Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM) in 1991.
The commission—made up of ten senators and congressmen, and chaired by Sen. Edgardo J. Angara—recommended specifically that Congress make the vernacular and Filipino the medium of instruction for basic education.
The EDCOM report was written only after 11 months of serious study. It became the basis for reform laws that restructured the Department of Education and created a separate Commission (CHED) to supervise higher education.
EDCOM also ordered the DepEd to develop instructional materials in Filipino. EDCOM envisioned that all subjects in elementary and high-school education—except English and other languages—would be taught in Filipino by the year 2000.
Pupils taught in mother tongue learn faster
Dr. Licuanan, a psychologist, has found that since students learn more and faster when taught in their mother tongue, the emphasis on English in basic education “will actually have a damaging effect on Filipino student learning.”
She says the “English-first” policy will further disadvantage the Filipino poor who drop out of school at elementary and secondary-school level.
According to DepEd’s statistics, of every 10 pupils who enter Grade 1, only 5 finish Grade 6. Only 2 students go on to high school but only 1 make it through to college.
In most provinces, net enrollment rates continue to decline, because of economic hardship. Negros Oriental has begun to provide school lunches for some 135,000 pupils in its 527 public elementary schools—in an effort to keep these children in their classes.
Dr. Licuanan warns that early dropouts revert to illiteracy. In 1989, functional illiterates made up 16.8 percent of the Philippine population aged 10 years and above.
These high dropout rates make an effective way of teaching at elementary level imperative. The very limited time that so many Filipino children spend in school must be put to the best use.
English-first policy will hurt learning
Former Education Undersecretary Juan Miguel Luz has associated himself with our (the petitioners’) complaint. He points out that the emphasis on English is “misleading and dangerous” because it will force both the young learners and their teachers to concentrate on the language and not on Science and Math and literacy, which are more basic to learning.
Luz cites Unesco’s studies which show that young children learn how to read and to do sums faster and better when taught in their home-language.
These international findings were validated at the national level by research in Bukidnon province. There, the Summer Institute of Linguistics teaches indigenous people in their mother tongue. The Bukidnon pupils score relatively high in literacy and numeracy tests given by the Department of Education.