MANILA, Philippines — The year 2011 was a promising year for Philippine education as innovations and changes were introduced all with one end goal — to improve the quality of teaching and learning.

While new courses and curriculum, strategies and modes of learning were introduced in formal and non-formal schools, educators were also urged to adopt a whole new system of thinking to provide relevant, quality and apporpriate education that every student deserves.

Here are some issues, new concepts, controversies and innovations that shook, rattled or simly sent people in the education sector curiously rolling with the punches.

Are you ready for K+12?

The Department of Education has actively campaigned for the K+12 program in 2011 by holding a series of consultations with stakeholders in a bid to get their support for the said ambitious proposal. In June, it rolled out the universal kindergarten program, the first phase of the enhanced basic education program, in 38,000 public schools.

The K+12 (or K to 12) program adds two years to the current 10-year basic education cycle purportedly to make it at par with global standards and to produce employable high school graduates. The model K-6-4-2 involves kindergarten, six years of elementary education, four years of junior high school or Grades 7 to 10, and two years of senior high school or Grades 11 to 12. Students are expected to consolidate the acquired academic skills and competencies in senior high school.

In addition, the new curriculum will also provide specializations in science and technology, music and arts, agriculture and fisheries, sports, business and entrepreneurship among others.

But things will not be easy for K+12 proponents as teacher and student groups have raised concerns about its political and financial sustainability, legislative and budget issues, as well as doubts in its effective and efficient implementation. They called on the government to address first the shortages in classrooms, textbooks and teachers and the need for greater subsidy to education.

The Anti no permit, no exam bill

Representatives in the Lower House unanimously voted for the passage of the anti No-permit, No-exam policy bill in August. The landmark bill, if adopted by the Senate, is expected to put an end to the long-standing policy in schools which have caused shame and trauma to many students and parents.

House Bill 4791 penalizes the imposition of a ‘No permit, No exam’ policy that prohibits high school and college students from taking exams due to unpaid tuition and other school fees. The bill also forbids schools from compelling students to pay, upon enrolment, a down payment of more than 30 percent of the total amount of the tuition and other school fees. But students are obliged to pay an interest of six percent per annum for the unpaid tuition and school fees.

Meanwhile, the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) and the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (PACU), called the bill unconstitutional and believe it will adversely affect schools which get their income from tuition fees.

Teaching Bonifacio

A course on the life, works, and ideals of Filipino hero Andres Bonifacio is being pushed by Kabataan Partylist Representative Raymond Palatino through House Bill 4353.

Just like the Rizal course, the proposed subject on the revolutionary hero will also tackle the contributions of the KKK movement (Kataas-taasang, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan) which struggled to achieve independence against the Spanish colonial rule through armed revolution. The bill aims to inculcate among college students the values of nationalism, collective action, civic consciousness and patriotism as these help shape the character needed for personal, community and national development.

Palatino and UP Diliman professor Michael Francis C. Andrada believe now is the best time for a more comprehensive teaching of Bonifacio because his personal and political life experiences remain relevant and mirror the experiences of majority of Filipinos today.

Peace someday

Muslim and Christian high school students have started their own peace talks, through a classroom video conference program (CVC) introduced by PeaceTech, the Australian Government Overseas Aid Program (AusAID), and the Department of Education.

With this, PeaceTech hopes to eliminate prejudices and build better understanding between and among Muslims and Christians who are being separated by distance, religion, and cultural backgrounds.

The one-and-a-half to two-hour CVC is integrated in the Values Education or Technology Livelihood Education subjects and held once a week for two months at selected schools in Mindanao and Manila. Mass videoconferences are also conducted at the end of the program to reinforce the lessons and further build solidarity between the students. Later on, participants are trained on youth leadership and start their own technology projects as peace ambassadors.

Empowering the IPs through education

A culturally-appropriate alternative learning system curriculum for the indigenous peoples (IPs) had been launched to help them in their quest for cultural preservation, survival and empowerment.

The IP curriculum, created by the Department of Education Bureau of Alternative Learning System and the National Commission for Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), is equal and parallel to the learning competencies of the formal school but differs in content and the method of teaching.

The five learning competencies are on communication skills; problem solving and critical thinking; development of self and a sense of community; the practice of ecological sustainable economics; and expanding one’s world view for appreciation of cultural integrity and diversity as well as peaceful co-existence with all members of the community. Learning materials based on this curriculum were created in 15 languages of the tribes as well as in Kapampangan and Cebuano.

Taking ALS to the next level

The eSkwela project, an Information and Communications Technology (ICT)-supported program for non-formal education, is slowly narrowing the gap between students in schools and the undergraduate and unschooled learners in the Alternative Learning System program.

These learners, mostly out-of-school-youth, drop-outs, housewives, utility workers, senior citizens, and even sex workers, are not only acquiring the knowledge that they’ve missed in school but are also learning to use the computer and the internet like everyone else.

The Human Capital Development Group of the commission on information and Communications Technology (CICT) is implementing the project in four community-based e-Learning centers. Print core modules used in the A&E are converted into digitized format to help them further understand the lessons using the computer. The modules are about practical life skills that learners can readily apply in their day-to-day and work endeavors. Learners are also asked to make projects using Powerpoint, slide and video presentations, and radio plays.

Schools that learn

A group of education innovators led by American educator Peter Senge are rallying behind an aggressive global campaign to change the mindset of people, and work towards the creation of effective schools that learn.

In his book “Schools that Learn: A Fifth Discipline Fieldbook for Educators, Parents and Everyone who cares about Education”, Senge urges schools to veer away from its traditional, industrial-age system of education. Instead, he advocates for an apprenticeship form of education which is the ideal method in helping students apply the lessons they learned in school, and in exposing them to real-life people and processes.

He said schools should also teach about the local culture and traditions to make students appreciate their identity and develop a love for country.

“Ultimately, this has to do with imagination and a different concept of school. It’s about creating space for kids to help each other, about respect, listening and educating others through higher learning skills. It’s about teachers and students learning together, connecting to the world, and developing a sense of responsibility to their communities,” Senge says.

Unconventional thinking is the name of the new game

Educators involved in organizational development believe that to cope with the fast-changing times, people must think out of the box and take their thinking to a new level of functioning.

According to Dr. Perla Rizalina M. Tayko and colleague Dr. Marina Luzon Reyes Talmo, the Whole Brain Literacy (WBL) is the key to survive and thrive in today’s challenging world. This brain-based framework for curriculum and instruction development is the subject of their book “Whole Brain Literacy: Key to Wholistic Education and Success in Today’s World.”

WBL is a new approach in decoding, discovering, classifying and addressing issues, conflicts, convergence, complexities. It encourages learners to maximize all parts of the brain by thinking through each quadrant, and then creating and connecting the meanings and nuances of information and finally relating all these to the center core.

Tayko said this holistic approach to teaching and learning is even ideal for educating the illiterate.

Keeping children safe in school

The Department of Education (DepEd) has partnered with the Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Sexual Abuse (CPTCSA) to strengthen the implementation of Personal Safety Lessons (PSL) in public schools.

Personal Safety is a series of lessons that help students of each grade level (from preschool to fourth year high school) to protect themselves from abusers inside or outside the school. PSL puts emphasis on preventing child sexual abuse and provide early intervention through the empowerment of the child, teacher, and parents. Lessons include stories with illustrations for elementary students and role playing for high schoolers.

PSL is being integrated in Sibika at Kultura/Heograpiya, Kasaysayan at Sibika (SK/HE KASI) for the elementary level and Araling Panlipunan (AP) for the secondary level as well as in revived Character Education and Values Education.

UST celebrates 400th milestone

The University of Santo Tomas, the country’s oldest university celebrated its quadricentennial year in 2011 with a series of celebrations that kicked off on January 28. No less than Pope Benedict XVI became its first well-wisher, delivering his message through Vatican official Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski in the first Mass held for the occasion at the UST campus.

The Holy Father praised the achievements of the only Pontifical university in Asia and urged it to ensure that education given to its students is centered on faith in Christ.

Opening festivities also included the unveiling of the QuattroMondial monument, a 10-meter-high bronze statue consisting of four human figures representing UST’s core values of excellence, spirituality, tradition and erudition.

Throughout the year, various events such as concerts, education conferences, and large gatherings of alumni were held to celebrate its 400th year.