This school year is the beginning of a new era of education in the Philippines. The K+12 education system will have its pilot schools and students. What is K+12? According to the resource speaker of our research seminar in school, the country is already left behind when it comes to education, to the number of years of education. It’s high time to add more years to the 10 years basic and complementary education, 6 years elementary and 4 years high school. K+12 means that elementary will have its seventh grade and there’ll be fifth year high school.
Do we really need longer basic education system? Definitely, that’s what they say. The Philippines is the only country in Asia that still adopt the 10-yr basic and complementary education.
What does K+12 mean to Filipinos? Since we will have longer years of basic and complementary education, we will need more teachers, classrooms, textbooks. Parents will spend more. The employment of these students in the labor force will be delayed as well. But looking at the other side of the coin, prolonging education, perhaps, can make education of quality. Students will learn more. But there is no certainty that quantity is the measure of quality education. It doesn’t make sense at all.
Whatever be the case, this change hopefully is for the better and not an avenue of corruption and other evil works.
