To help more agriculture students pass the Licensure Examination for Agriculturists (LEA), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) on Friday, May 3, formally announced their partnership to offer free online review classes.
Officials of CHED, UPLB, and 15 selected State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) attended the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signing to launch ExcelLEArate: A Review and Strategy Program to Empower Students for Licensure Examination for Agriculturists.
“We will use the expertise of the UP Los Baños to conduct free licensure classes for our agriculture students who are preparing for the LEA,” said CHED Chairman Popoy De Vera.
“We do this because I recognized the struggles faced by the graduates from SUCs in remote regions during my visits,” De Vera said. “Hence, we came up with this project on a free review program on agriculture approved and funded by CHED,” he added.
Low passing rates
Based on its data analytics, CHEd said many SUCs are offering BS in Agriculture that are “performing below” the National Passing Percentage (NPP) for the last five years.
CHED noted that the average national passing rate of the LEA Board Examination for the last five years, 2019-2023, is 35.56 percent.
Students in these areas, CHED said, fail the licensure tests because “there are no review schools in the area or they have to travel far to attend review classes.”
Another factor is the high cost of review classes from ₱10,000 - ₱15,000 plus the living expenses during the duration of the classes.
Recognizing these challenges, De Vera tapped UP President Angelo Jimenez, UPLB Chancellor Jose Camacho Jr., and the presidents and representatives from identified SUCs to come together for the initiative.
For his part, Jimenez said UP's vision is transformative education and service to the nation --- thus, all the academic achievements of UP will only be meaningful if they change the lives of the Filipino people.
“Hence, we extend our support and expertise to CHED through these free review classes for agriculture students. Rest assured, this will be replicated in our Fisheries program,” he added.
Camacho, on the other hand, shared that De Vera instructed him to utilize the ILab Project granted to UPLB by CHED to extend help to SUCs by providing free review classes to students after he heard of their struggles during his campus visits.
“Actually, this is just one of many projects of CHED and UP for capacity building,” he said. “This will ripple to faculty development, coaching, mentoring, and many more,” he added.
Giving more agri students a boost
Through the review program, CHED expressed confidence that agriculture students in 15 SUCs will now get a boost in passing the LEA.
Among the objectives of the free online review program is to help students from SUCs in far-flung areas address the challenge of not having review centers.
Sulu State College President Charisma Ututalum shared that one of the problems in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is the lack of a review program.
“Our students have to travel to Dipolog to take review classes. Hence, we are grateful to CHED and Secretary De Vera because he heard and took action to resolve our concern,” she said. “We are also grateful to UP for opening their door by partnering with SUCs to help our agriculture students achieve their dreams,” she added.
A total of 15 SUCs were identified to participate in the online review class based on their performance in the LEA, geographical location, presence of internet connectivity, and absence or presence of review centers within their areas.
Among which are Basilan State College, Batanes State College, Capiz State University (Tapaz Campus), Isabela State University (Palanan Campus), Kalinga State University, Mindanao State University (Sulu Campus), North Eastern Mindanao State University (San Miguel Campus), Northwest Samar State University (San Jorge Campus), Quirino State University, Romblon State University (Cajidiocan Campus), Southern Luzon State University (Tayabas Campus), Sulu State College, Tawi-Tawi Regional Agricultural College, University of Eastern Philippines (Catubig Campus), and University of Rizal System (Tanay Campus).
CHED said the review program is expected to start in June of this year before the 2024 October LEA.