House approves education pathways bill on 3rd reading
College students at the University of the Philippines (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — A bill to allow graduating junior high school students to pick alternative education pathways has been approved on third and final reading by the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
House Bill (HB) No. 11213 or the proposed Education Pathways Act was ap proved with 200 lawmakers voting in the affirmative, three in the negative, and zero abstentions.
Under the bill, junior high school students can choose whether they would take up a preparatory program for college under the Department of Education (DepEd) — or the Grade 11 and Grade 12 of the senior high school system — or a technical-vocational program of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda).
“The DepEd shall develop and implement a comprehensive curriculum for Grades 11 and 12 that prepares students for admission to colleges and universities. This curriculum shall encompass fundamental subjects to improve and guarantee that students acquire functional literacy and practical skills, and elective courses to allow students to explore their interests and meet college and university admission requirements of their chosen degree,” the bill stated.
“The DepEd shall include the University Preparatory Pathway in its education roadmap and collaborate with the CHEd (Commission on Higher Education), colleges, and universities to guarantee alignment between the curriculum and college admission standards. Colleges and universities must ensure that students can easily obtain information about their program of study or curriculum guide to adequately prepare for their college studies,” it added.
Article continues after this advertisementThe bill also states that Tesda would partner with industry players about offering a “variety of technical-vocational programs based on an industry-driven and industry-approved curriculum that is designed to equip students with practical skills and competencies that are at par with industry standards.”
Article continues after this advertisement“The curriculum of these programs must further ensure that students acquire functional literacy skills to guarantee their employability upon completion of their chosen program and undergoing the necessary assessment for certification,” the bill read.
The bill would also allow those who would take technical-vocational programs to pursue a ladderized education program, where they will be given a test that would determine if they are qualified to enroll in colleges or universities that avail of this system.
The bill was approved on second reading last January 22.
Over the years, there have been calls for the government to restudy the viability of the K-12 program, as many observers believe that the initiative did not bridge the learning gap experienced by many Filipino students.
One major problem before the K-12 system was that Filipino workers lacked two years of basic academic experience, as a lot of countries operated on a 13-year pre-university program — one year for kindergarten, six years of elementary school, four years of junior high school, and two years of senior high.
Results of different assessments, however, showed problems regarding the provision of quality education.
In December 2023, the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) said that Filipino students who took part in their assessment were five to six years behind in mathematics, science, and reading compared to their 15-year-old counterparts from most of the participating countries.
