I remembered one daughter of mine asked me if she can be a doctor in Italy, when she grow up, because my parents and most of our relatives are based there. Her brother, told her that before she becomes a doctor, she needs to finish six years in elementary, four years in High School, and ten years in college. She was then six years old, now she is in high school. I also remembered their Dad rebutting in, saying "and once you finish everything and become a doctor here, you will still get a few more years to undergo Italy's basic education and get more years to study there to be considered a Medicine Graduate." Funny she said, "then I will be a doctor in the States, instead, and take care of Lola (grandma)!" Her Dad said, "still you need to study more years, because your degree is not enough to serve them." She asked disappointedly, "how about in HongKong? There are Filipinos there, right Daddy?" Let me cut the story and ask the same question back at you?
In a rapidly changing world, how do you think educated Filipino workers stand against the global competition for jobs? Can our doctors professionally get the jobs they want or is it that these countries give the jobs that they think we fit in? Let me quote this conversation at a certain forum in the net, PinoySG.com...
A question was raised (a doctor applying in Singapore): "i was wondering if there are any filipino doctors currently working in sg who can let me know how the accreditation process is there for filipino graduates goes.
i plan to go there for fellowship and i also am considering possibly practicing there since my boyfriend is working there already."
One answer quoted from the rest: "I am a fellow at NUH and marami ngang Filipino doctors doon at present, pero mostly as fellows. I personally 3 other Filipino doctors working as medical officers in Tan Tock Seng for 2 to 3 years now, and another one in Alexandria. I am not aware if the SMC is not allowing more Filipino doctors lately as per policy, pero I notice that in NUH there are new MOs coming from Myanmar, so I dont know why not from the Philippines. Are you already a specialist sa atin? Ang alam ko, if fresh graduate ka mahirap mag-start dito, and their system is different. THe SMC din is strict..."
Sad to say, this is what is happening across the world, for most Filipino workers aspiring for good jobs abroad. It is but high time to mark the launching of the much-awaited reform the country need to stave-off deficiencies in our education system, that thwarted many Filipinos to extend studies or trainings abroad and many land on secondary jobs or not having any job at all.
DepEd Secretary, Bro. Armin Luistro, FSC, together with the other DepEd officials, thinking beyond the possibility , have proved that change is inevitable even in educational system. As President Noynoy Aquino formally launched Department of Education's Kindergarten to Year 12, also known as K-!2 program in Malacanang's Rizal Ballroom last April 24, 2012. Under the K-12 program, the country's school system will have Kinder plus six years in elementary, four years in junior high school and two years for senior high school.
The event also coincided with the unveiling of the K to 12 curriculum for Grade 1 and First year High school or Grade 7.
According to the secretary's speech, the program is a product of the Enhanced K to 12 program which aims curricular reform and innovation with two main components: the content of the curriculum and the preparation of the teachers.
In lieu of this, DepEd has wowed us, as the President's Ten-point Basic Reform Education Agenda as a realization was presented.
Here they are in my own translation:
1. We can now start a foundation of extending our educational system in 112 years of basic education, although we still need to pass the law for the additional two years for the Senior high School to be opened nationwide on the year 2016, assuring that this will be backed off with a budget and that the future administrations will continue on this;
2. More than 92% of the five-year old children is going to Kindergarten already;
3. We are ready to promote Madaris education to the parts of the country with Muslims while we are start to promote Indigenous Peoples framework of education;
4. We are together with Sec. Joel Villanueva and TESDA in the approval techvoc education specially from Grade 7 to Grade 12;
5. Making sure that every student knows how to read before stepping to Grade 2;
6. We can now improve the knowledge of our students in Science and Mathematics as the Spiral approach is promoted in our new curriculum;
7. GASTPE grantees is coming to one Million and we can slowly raise our subsidy in private schools at a cost of P 6500 in every student every year;
8. We have enough materials to start the Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education or MTB-MLE for the 12 major language and we will try to add more languages starting with our vernavulars which are being in danger of disappearing;
9. There are enough number of books and chairs in the opening of classes (which means there is zero-backlog in textbooks and school furniture; and
10. There are 24 LGUs who signed in partnership in building classrooms coming to P 1.3 B for a total of 3473 classrooms (or 1700 classrooms coming from LGUs' budget)
Ending this with a hope, that if we are going to work with each other, Filipinos have a take on the global standards and can be assured with a brighter future.
So to all parents and teachers of incoming Grade 1 of 2012, the new program will be implemented and and a preparation for Junior High school, Grade 7 will follow thereafter. Many challenges are still at stake, all we have is faith and tons of cooperation to get our system through and by then we can say, our future doctors, lawyers, engineers, and other workers have the edge in the global opportunities.
