The Department of Education (DepEd) on Thursday, April 27, expressed commitment to participate in the hearings on the proposed bill to replace the existing K to 12 basic education program.
(DepEd / MB VISUAL CONTENT GROUP)
On April 26, House Senior Deputy Speaker and former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo proposed the conversion of the K to 12 education program into the K + 10 + 2 system through House Bill (HB) No.7893.
In the bill’s explanatory note, the Pampanga representative noted that the proposed bill seeks to replace the existing K to 12 education program in the country which covers Kindergarten and 12 years of education with a “K + 10 + 2 program covering compulsory Kindergarten and 10 years of basic education with, for those seeking to proceed to professional degree studies such as accounting, engineering, law, medicine, an additional two years of post-secondary, pre-university education.”
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2023/4/26/arroyo-wants-to-replace-k-to-12-with-k-10-2-find-out-more
Currently, the K to 12 program is composed of mandatory Kindergarten, Elementary (Grades 1 to 6); Junior High School (Grades 7 to 10); and Senior High School (Grades 11 and 12).
Asked to comment on the “K+ 10 +2” proposal, DepEd Spokesperson Michael Poa said that “DepEd commits to participate in the congressional hearings on the proposed bill.”
K to 12 review
Meanwhile, Poa said that the review of the K to 12 curriculum --- particularly the SHS program --- is still ongoing.
The K to 10 curriculum guide, Poa said, has already “been published for comments.”
In September 2022, DepEd said that it has completed the review of the K to 12 curriculum for Kinder to Grade 10.
DepEd also said that the review of the curriculum for the additional two years in the country’s basic education cycle or the SHS Program started last November.
Introduced under the administration of the late former president Benigno S. Aquino III, the K to 12 program aims to “provide sufficient time for mastery of concepts and skills, develop lifelong learners, and prepare graduates for tertiary education, middle-level skills development, employment, and entrepreneurship.”
During the presentation of DepEd’s Basic Education Report (BER) 2023 in January, Vice President Sara Duterte said that promise of the K to 12 curriculum to produce employable graduates “remains a promise.”
In October 2022, in an interview on the sidelines of the 48th Philippine Business Conference and Expo, Duterte said that DepEd is still “continuing our meetings and discussion on how to make our Grade 12 graduates ready for employment.”