Crisis in Public Education

In a recent World Bank Report on Philippine education school teachers ranked “low public esteem” towards them as a major factor for leaving the profession. They also said they had 10 administrative functions they had to perform daily in addition to their academic responsibilities.

The opposite situation is true in Finland where teaching is considered by 18 year olds as the most admired profession. Teachers there prepare their own lesson plans and choose the reference books their students would use based on their interests and talents.

The new administration that will govern our country come July 2010 must do something drastic about our education system which American Steve Norris of Macrohon describes as more harmful than no education at all.
Our education officials should admit their shortcomings and provide our youth with an education that will prepare them for life. This is essential because the economic development of a country is dependent on the quality of its education. In other words, the better educated the people, the greater the chances of its economic development. For today we are living in a “knowledge society” where education and information are more valuable than traditional labor and capital and indeed has become a condition for international competitiveness.
With nearly ten per cent of our population working abroad the Philippines is a major part of the global economy. However this mass emigration constitutes an unparalleled brain drain with serious economic and psychological implications.

Unfortunately it’s the Filipino taxpayers who are paying for the education of these OFWs who will spend their most productive years abroad.

The Philippines educational problem is basically a crisis of public education since 95 per cent of all elementary students are studying in public schools.

Since the wealthy can send their children to private schools which can offer first-class education the system has become a mechanism that divides the poor and rich in our society.

The quality of Philippine education has been declining the past 25 years. This is an alarming report card for the politicians who have governed us during this period. From a democratic perspective it is depressing because it was during this time when democracy was reinstalled in 1986 after martial law.

No less than DepEd Undersecretary Luz admitted that our schools were failing to teach the average Filipino to become responsible, productive and self-fulfilling citizens. “We are graduating people who are learning less and less each year,” he lamented.

More than 17 million students are enrolled in our public schools. With an annual population growth rate of 2.3 per cent some 1.7 million babies are born every year and in the near future they will claim their share of our limited educational facilities. He said with our high population growth rate “we can’t build classrooms fast enough to accommodate them. There are too little resources for too many students.”
Under this scenario he admitted we have only two alternatives; either we increase investments in education, or reduce the number of our students. But the second alternative requires a draconian population policy. Which is easier said than done given the aggressive intervention of the Roman Catholic Church and the lack of political will of our elected leaders. (By ANTONIO REYES)

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