The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) should step up efforts in boosting the job readiness of senior high school (SHS) graduates, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said.
Gatchalian made the call as he received the Special Kabalikat Award from the agency, during its recent 30th anniversary celebration. The award was in recognition of his advocacy and support for the development of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the country.
It can be recalled that Gatchalian proposed funding and implementing TESDA’s Free National Certification Assessment Program under the 2024 national budget.
“Nagpapasalamat ako sa TESDA dahil katuwang natin sila upang gawing libre ang assessment at national certification para sa ating mga senior high school graduates sa TVL track (I am grateful to TESDA because they are our partner to make the assessment and national certification free for our senior high school graduates in the TVL track),” Gatchalian said.
“Patuloy nating isusulong ang mga reporma upang lalong mapatatag ang TVET at matiyak na handa ang ating mga graduates na magtagumpay sa mga pipiliin nilang larangan (We will continue to promote reforms to further stabilize TVET and ensure that our graduates are prepared to succeed in their chosen fields),” said Gatchalian.
Under the 2024 national budget, P438 million is allocated under the TESDA for conducting free competency assessments and issuing national certifications to senior high school learners under the technical-vocational-livelihood (TVL) track.
This allotment is expected to benefit 420,967 SHS graduates in the TVL track.
Gatchalian also proposed a P50 million allocation under the 2024 national budget to expand TESDA’s pool of assessors to ensure that the agency is capable to implement the free assessment and certification program.
The senator noted that the prohibitive cost is one of the reasons why the certification rate is low among SHS graduates under the TVL track. The cost of assessments is about P1,008.29 per student.
In School Year (SY) 2019-2020, only 127,796 (26.3%) of SHS-TVL graduates took the assessment. However, among those who took it, 124,970 or 98 percent passed and received their national certifications (NCs). The overall certification rate decreased to 6.8 percent in SY 2020-2021.
By increasing the certification rate among SHS-TVL learners, Gatchalian said hopes to improve their chances of securing quality jobs.
Currently, he noted 50 percent of SHS-TVL graduates who joined the labor force after graduation are employed in elementary occupations such as cleaners, vendors, and domestic helpers, based on a study done by the Labor Force Survey data by the Senate Committee on Basic Education.