DepEd heightens K to 12 preparations

CEBU, Philippines - The Department of Education Cebu City division will need P307.1 million for the implementation of the K to 12 program for the school year 2016 to 2017.

Faviolito Alberca, Education Program Supervisor of DepEd-7 said the amount would be needed as they would need to align their implementation plan for the K to 12 program with the City Development Plan.

“(We will be) linking up with the Local Government Units and DepEd partners, especially on the construction of new SHS classrooms and provision of equipment,” he said yesterday.

Included in the P307.1 million would be the amount to purchase 9,472 chairs, 241 classrooms and for the hiring of 395 teachers for the beginning of the Senior High School (SHS) on the said school year for the public schools in the city.

He added that they will prepare the teachers for the National Certificate Accreditation while they will also convince Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies, Information Technology (IT) companies, hotels, resorts, restaurants and tourism industry to partner with them and cluster schools to share vital resources.

“(Furthermore, we will) plead support from LGU for the creation of two stand alone SHS (North and South), work in tandem with private schools, universities and colleges particularly in sharing their facilities, teachers and equipment and link up with industries in the students’ own localities for OJT (on-the-job training) opportunities and ultimately for long-term jobs,” he added.

Ester Cubero of the City Scholarship Committee said that since there would be no incoming first year college students by 2016 and 2017, the city government would be able to save around P150 million from the scholarships they usually provide. She proposed that if the budget can be realigned, it could help out with DepEd Cebu City’s needs.

Further, in an executive session yesterday, when Alberca was asked by the City Council on what will happen to those students who despite undergoing the K to 12 program still plan to pursue a four year degree, he said the Commission on Higher Education is still preparing for the curriculum for the students.

“We are not aware of the number of years as far as CHED is concern but we are aware that there are lots of subjects in college that are now being downloaded in the senior high school especially the general education subject- around 50 to 60 units,” Alberca said.

He said despite the crucial needs of DepEd for the implementation of the K to 12 program, they are hopeful to reach the goal to fully execute it.

“We can do significant strides, and there are clear indications that we can reach the goal, not by taking the same pace but by being bolder and more aggressive in the steps we take. We need to continue running least the rest of the world pass us by. We cannot slacken our pace because the race for quality is one with no finish line,” he said.

He also told the members of the council that with the help of the city government, DepEd could pursue the program.

As part of their preparation, Alberca said they have conducted orientations, consultations and focus group discussions with stakeholders of the K to 12 program implementation.

“(We have) prepared the K to 12 curriculum with the support of CHED and TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority)and worked with CHED to align Core and Contextualized subjects to ensure college readiness of students,” he said. —(FREEMAN)