DepEd begins review of K-12 math curriculum

MANILA, Philippines — Contradicting the Department of Education (DepEd), a teachers’ group has expressed belief that the K-12 program has contributed to the dismal performance of Filipinos in a recent international assessment of students worldwide.

Jocelyn Martinez, chair of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), said the implementation of the K-12 program had an impact on the learning of students.

“There is a correlation between the class sizes and the K-12,” she said in Filipino during an interview with “The Chiefs” aired on Cignal TV’s One News on Monday night.

“The subjects that the students have to study increased. There are a lot of competencies, content that the students have to study despite having limited time,” she added.

Martinez also noted problems on teacher competencies, noting cases wherein teachers have to teach subjects that they are not really familiar with because there is no one else available to handle them.

“There is a mismatch,” she said. “The teachers were not ready for K-12.”

Earlier, ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro also attributed the dismal performance of the Filipino students in the 2018 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) to K-12.

“The results of the 2018 PISA only prove that the K-12 system did not enhance the quality of basic education in our country,” she said after the release of the results of the triennial assessment.

“How can we expect to perform in assessment tests if the government continues to turn a blind eye on the perennial problems of shortages in the basic education system?” she added.

The Philippines ranked the lowest in reading comprehension and second lowest in mathematics and science out of 79 countries that took part in the assessment.

Education Secretary Leonor Briones said the K-12 program is not the reason for the low scores of the students.

“K-12 needs to be reviewed, but it is not the cause of the low ranking,” she said in a separate interview with “The Chiefs” last week.