Senior high school enrolment reaches 1-M mark

MANILA, Philippines - Enrolment in public and private senior high schools yesterday breached the one million mark, with the Department of Education (DepEd) saying numbers are expected to increase in the next days.

DepEd said data in its learner information system showed that there are 1,009,139 million students enrolled in Grade 11.

“DepEd is expecting numbers to rise further since, as of June 17, DepEd records show that over 1,600 schools have yet to submit and report their senior high school enrolment data,” said the agency.

More than 1.4 million Grade 10 students completed junior high school in March.

Education Secretary Armin Luistro said yesterday that they expect senior high school enrolees to be at 90 percent of Grade 10 completers, with the department saying they would aim for higher enrolment rate by mapping the students.

“If we finish the registration, I think we will be at an all-time high of the number of fourth year high school completers or their equivalent taking on another year or two of education,” he said.

Various sectors raised concerns after Luistro said on Monday that between 200,000 to 400,000 students may not proceed to senior high school.

“Our enrolment in public schools would be between 700,000 to 800,000 (in Grade 11). At least 400,000 will be enrolled in SUCs (state universities and colleges), LUCs (local universities and colleges) and private schools,” he said during the school opening.

DepEd assistant secretary for governance and operations Jesus Mateo later clarified that the initial estimate of Luistro was based on the progression of enrolment data at the time and that it has been updated in succeeding days.

Of the over one million learners already in the DepEd data as of yesterday, around 691,000 senior high school students are enrolled in public schools (DepEd-funded schools and public universities and colleges) while more than 317,000 are in private schools.

There are over 11,000 public and private senior high schools operating across the country.

More than historic figures

DepEd officials maintained that the percentage of students who are expected to proceed to senior high school this year is higher than the number of high school graduates who usually proceed to higher education.

Incoming education secretary Leonor Briones earlier said that historically, only around 50 percent of high school graduates proceed to college.

In a Facebook post yesterday, DepEd assistant secretary for programs and projects Elvin Uy said there are around 800,000 to 900,000 first year college students each year, noting that the senior high school enrolment has breached that number.

“This is the promise of K-12 and senior high – that more students will have 11th, 12th and more years of education that better prepare them for further education or the world of work,” said Uy.

“That the additional years of schooling in basic education are largely, if not entirely, state-funded. That the pathway to a productive life does not necessarily go through college. That honing our human resource goes beyond rhetoric or promises into actual programs, schools, teachers, learning resources and services,” he added.

Minimal displacement 

 Meanwhile, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) yesterday reported minimal displacement of teachers due to the full implementation of the K-12 program.

Dominique Tutay, DOLE Bureau of Local Employment director, said they only recorded a termination of 40 teachers from two schools in Metro Manila.

“There are reported displacement based on establishment termination report, but officially, we have only two Metro Manila schools reporting termination of 40 teachers,” she said.

Tutay noted that only a handful have filed an application to avail themselves of the government’s financial assistance for teachers and school personnel affected by the K-12 program.

“Of the 40, less than half have filed an application and we are now processing them,” she said.

But Tutay said all DOLE regional offices nationwide have been directed to accept applications from teachers and other school personnel displaced by the program.

According to her, the DOLE also plans to set up an online system to allow more teachers and school personnel to get the financial grant from the government while they are still looking for alternative jobs. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Paolo Romero