Manila Bulletin
Philippines
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Gov't urged to fast track reforms in PH education to boost Filipinos' skills competitiveness
Philippines
National
Gov't urged to fast track reforms in PH education to boost Filipinos' skills competitiveness
Gov't urged to fast track reforms in PH education to boost Filipinos' skills competitiveness
Published Jun 18, 2023 05:31 am
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Sunday, June 18 renewed his call for the government to fast track reforms in the Philippine education sector to boost Filipinos competitiveness especially in the international market.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian (Senate PRIB Photo)
Gatchalian made the call following the release of a report which showed the Philippines lagging behind its East and Southeast Asian peers in terms of skills. Out of 100 countries, the Philippines placed 99 in online learning platform Coursera’s 2023 Global Skills Report, which ranks skills and proficiency of learners in business, technology, and data science. Gatchalian lamented that the Philippine’s ranking fell by 29 spots from 70th place out of 102 countries in 2022. The report also showed declining scores for the Philippines in terms of proficiency in business, technology, and data science. Based on the study, the Philippine’s business proficiency percentile rank fell from 62 percent in 2022 to 16 percent this year. Also, from 29 percent last year, technology proficiency in the country fell to five percent, while data science proficiency dropped from 21 percent to a whopping one percent. The survey used skills insights for 100 countries from Coursera’s registered learner base of 124 million learners, 1.8 million of which are in the Philippines. “Sa pagsulong at pagpapatupad natin ng mga reporma sa edukasyon, dapat tiyakin nating hindi mapag-iiwanan ang ating mga kabataang Pilipino pagdating sa kahandaan sa trabaho at sa paggamit ng mga bagong teknolohiya (As we advance and implement educational reforms, we must ensure that our Filipino youth are not left behind when it comes to job readiness and the use of new technologies),” Gatchalian said. “Tungkulin nating siguruhin na akma ang kanilang mga kakayahan sa kinakailangan ng ating mga industriya (It is our duty to ensure that their skills match the requirements of our industries),” the senator added. The Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) has begun its assessment of the country’s education sector. Gatchalian, a member of the EDCOM II, maintained the need to boost Filipinos’ proficiencies in areas covered by the report, especially as more companies adopt new technologies to boost productivity. He said there is a need for the senior high school program to deliver on its promise to ensure the work readiness of graduates, while higher education institutions focus on equipping students with the much-needed skills needed in the workplace.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian (Senate PRIB Photo)
Gatchalian made the call following the release of a report which showed the Philippines lagging behind its East and Southeast Asian peers in terms of skills. Out of 100 countries, the Philippines placed 99 in online learning platform Coursera’s 2023 Global Skills Report, which ranks skills and proficiency of learners in business, technology, and data science. Gatchalian lamented that the Philippine’s ranking fell by 29 spots from 70th place out of 102 countries in 2022. The report also showed declining scores for the Philippines in terms of proficiency in business, technology, and data science. Based on the study, the Philippine’s business proficiency percentile rank fell from 62 percent in 2022 to 16 percent this year. Also, from 29 percent last year, technology proficiency in the country fell to five percent, while data science proficiency dropped from 21 percent to a whopping one percent. The survey used skills insights for 100 countries from Coursera’s registered learner base of 124 million learners, 1.8 million of which are in the Philippines. “Sa pagsulong at pagpapatupad natin ng mga reporma sa edukasyon, dapat tiyakin nating hindi mapag-iiwanan ang ating mga kabataang Pilipino pagdating sa kahandaan sa trabaho at sa paggamit ng mga bagong teknolohiya (As we advance and implement educational reforms, we must ensure that our Filipino youth are not left behind when it comes to job readiness and the use of new technologies),” Gatchalian said. “Tungkulin nating siguruhin na akma ang kanilang mga kakayahan sa kinakailangan ng ating mga industriya (It is our duty to ensure that their skills match the requirements of our industries),” the senator added. The Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) has begun its assessment of the country’s education sector. Gatchalian, a member of the EDCOM II, maintained the need to boost Filipinos’ proficiencies in areas covered by the report, especially as more companies adopt new technologies to boost productivity. He said there is a need for the senior high school program to deliver on its promise to ensure the work readiness of graduates, while higher education institutions focus on equipping students with the much-needed skills needed in the workplace.