Youth Groups Say Adding Two More Years to Basic Education, Not A Solution But An Added Burden

Youth Groups Say Adding Two More Years to Basic Education, Not A Solution But An Added Burden

Published on October 16, 2010

“Filipino students could hardly finish up to sixth grade. How much more with K+12?” – Kabataan Party-list.

By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Bulatlat.com
MANILA — Like most parents, Al Hermogeno, 30, has no other dream but to see his children graduate from college, believing that education would be the only way to uplift the family from poverty. However, his income as a water delivery boy is barely enough for his family to survive, making it impossible to even send his children to a good school.

CJ’s Kindergarten graduation in a public school in Pasay City(Photo courtesy of Al Hermogeno/ bulatlat.com)

For every five gallons of water he could deliver to a household, Hermogeno earns only P5.00 ($0.11. He is lucky if his regular customers give him a tip. Late last year, his family was forced to live separately to survive. His wife Maricar, 28, and their youngest Maxene, 5, left for Laguna because they could no longer pay for the room they were renting in Pasay City. The eldest CJ, 7 years old, followed his mother to Laguna after finishing the school year in March 2010.
 
“I work hard so that my children could finish schooling and hopefully graduate from college, even at a state university,” Hermogeno said in Filipino, adding that it is the only treasure that he could pass on to his children. However, the recent pronouncements of the Department of Education (DepEd) dashed Hermogeno’s dreams for his two children.

The DepEd is proposing to add two more years to the 10 year-basic education in the country, saying that it would address the deteriorating quality of Philippine education. The proposed educational reform, dubbed as K12, will supposedly equip its graduates with the necessary knowledge and skills to land a job.
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Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://www.bulatlat.com/main/2010/10/16/youth-groups-say-adding-two-more-years-to-basic-education-not-a-solution-but-an-added-burden/