Republic of the Philippines

PALOMPON INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Palompon, Leyte

COLLEGE OF GRADUATE STUDIES

EEd 501
THE NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CURRICULUM:
THEORY AND PRACTICE

Submitted by:
JOEVEN SOCO BARQUIO

Submitted to:
FLORDELIZA M. SISON, Ed.D.

April, 2018
Position Paper

The
Enhancement of
K to 12
Program
Introduction
K-12 curriculum is an innovative education system. This area of education has a
dominance over the conventional educational systems as it puts more weight on thinking and
reaching own self-explanatory conclusions. The way of teaching here is completely different
and phenomenal. Teachers generally follow the tactic of asking students to work on a lot of
assignments since it develops an intellectual, yet interesting learning habit. In reality, this
method helps the students in revising what has been taught previously. In K-12 education
system, all the students are given individual attention and hence they understand their subjects
in a more practical way. The role of a teacher here is just to guide them in the right way and
provide them with learning opportunities. What really happens is that, the individual discovers
his own learning capacity and success depends on the thinking ability of the student. The
classroom activities might be similar to what is being practiced in a public school where
students go and get their notes and submit records but the key difference is that her in K-12
classes, the students are encouraged to bring about their personal thoughts and visions. Students
enrolled themselves in different forums and educational clubs where they get to discuss many
points for the same topic and get different views. The teachers here contribute so much as to
turning every discussion into a positive note cooperating with the students. K-12 education
system has revolutionized the education system in India. Over the years, the level of education
system and syllabus has greatly improved in time. The K-12 segment accounts for the lion's
share of India's educational market. Students are provided with the ultimate learning
opportunities. The school invests thousands of dollars in bringing the best infrastructures. It is
also equally important that the student utilizes this system in best possible ways. He must
always evaluate the available information to jump to a rational ending. This is the type of
educational platform any student can experience in the K-12 program. Therefore, it is no
surprise that this methodology is being introduced by most educational institutions in India.
The traditional learning styles have their own merits, but this new and innovative education
strategy is superior in that. It helps the students work individualistically and find solutions on
their own. This strategy makes students self-determining, reliable and indulgent. It also
improves the relation between the teacher and students and brings a warm classroom
atmosphere. Such a harmonious atmosphere can create masterminds who, in the long run, can
become assets not only to the school but to the society as a whole.

Advantage and Disadvantage of k to 12 Curriculum

Advantage - The Best:
The best, depends upon the school culture. If the teachers, staff and leadership do not
realize the great resource they have in their building, you will never see “the best”. But if you
do, it will be a place that the students really want to be. The best, for my school, was teaching
and expecting the older students to nurture the younger students. They were expected to tutor,
to gently and kindly discipline when the little ones were not treating each other well, to be role
models, to show and expect respect, and most importantly to just spend time with them. This
doesn’t just happen by itself.
 We had a “big brother/big sister program” where every 7th grader was matched with a
kindergarten or 1st grader, 8th graders matched with 2nd graders, 9th with 3rd … 12th with a
6th grader and once a week they would just hang out. The older would read a book to or with
the younger, sometimes they would share a candy bar or ice cream, but mostly they would just
talk. It got to be that that older mentor was who the little one ran to when “Suzy kicked me!”
Training the upper level students made it very clear, this is a fragile little soul you are
responsible for. They had to earn and deserve trust, because the older student is being entrusted.
My experience was that they took it incredibly seriously and relationships were built that
actually have lasted for 30 years. (This was 1988. There is a Facebook group called Red School
House Alumni. We still talk about old pictures and life today.)
But what was most important was this training, discussion and responsibility, set the
tone for the entire school, every day. Students who were angry or alienated were not met with
rules and consequences but rather with a real human embracing of our differences but common
concern. “We are in this together” is what sets a school apart.
This has been on my mind a lot this week after yet another school shooting. Much is
said about who to blame and what “consequences” should have been levied and how the boy
“should have been arrested earlier” and too many guns or not enough guns … whatever. I have
read no conversation about what students can do for each other when some lost soul is
obviously angry and suffering, who gathers around him and calls him “brother”?
Disadvantage - The Bad:
It has to be small. You cannot do this in a school of 2000 students. It has to be
intentional. The staff have to buy the idea. Staff have to plan it. They have to be good teachers
and support staff to begin with. They have to understand it. Community has to be presented as
“The” primary goal. Class time has to be spent on both training, planning and community,
meaning you will never get to the last page of the text book.
It helped in my school that the students chose to come to that school and it helped that
they had a common theme that brought them together. They were inner-city Native American
kids, mostly poor, and often failing in other schools. They came to learn what it meant to be
“Indian”, the good and the bad. So, they came to our K-12 in the belief that they could do things
differently.
It was a disadvantage that because it was small, there were no expensive facilities for
science and sports and all bells and whistles of a big, rich public-school system. But this is
trade off.
In today's competitive age of “testing” and outstanding achievement, good luck with
that. The goal was not to graduate the best and the brightest but rather to create a really good
quality of life in school that would encourage each student to feel safe in exploring their
education, and nurture their confidence, that if they chose it, they could be the best and the
brightest on their own terms. At the least, they would learn to live in community, a rare
commodity in “modern America”.

The role of K-12 education in building a child's future?

 A k-12 education is a way to standardize education. However, while this may sound
disgusting (like, you know, trying to make us all think and act the same way in some 1984 type
shit) in countries of millions and hundreds of millions of people, it would be much more
difficult to create completely individualized educations.
Imagine this: there are 8 people in a room. They all had the similar opportunities in
similar classes with similar teachers. People 1–4 averaged a B+ in their classes. People 5–8
averaged an A in those same classes. Now, imagine people 1–4 explored individual passions
which resulted in slightly lowered grades than people 5–8. Here are how people are hired into
entry level jobs with slight variation in their interests, individual characteristics, and
upbringing. That is a rough estimation of our job market.
Now imagine this: there are 8 people in a room. Since they were 5 years old, they have
only taken classes with regard to a decision their parents made in which they chose what job
their child of 5 years old would be living off at 60 years old. A world in which the individual
has no choice as to his/her profession. People 1–4 grew to love their parents and are thankful
for the decision they made for them. People 5–8 either committed suicide, hate their parents,
or hate themselves because the decision their parents made catered to the opposite of their
interests or their genetic disposition.
Here, we have 4 of roughly the exact same people who know exclusively how to do one
thing and nothing else, but they love that thing. Then there are 4 people who are dead or only
know how to do 1 thing and do not even want to know how to do that thing or have humiliated
their families because they are simply bad at that 1 thing.
A k-12 education is not perfect but the alternatives lead to more questions than answers.
If we want to improve the k-12 system, we must not look at an overhaul but rather a series of
slight changes (See: Tipping Point). The purpose of the k-12 system is to create a good
environment that allows for the flourishing of our country whilst personal evolution of those
that allow the flourishing. Not to allow individuals to go down the rabbit hole of what they
think is cool or interesting or a passion. Contrary to optimistic belief, it is more important for
civilization to improve than the passions of the people that make up the civilization.

Benefits of K to 12 Curriculum in the Philippines

The implementation of K-12 curriculum in the country drew negative reactions from
various societal groups. Since 2011, critics have been very vocal on their primary concerns.
They insist the government isn’t yet ready for this new system and that this is more of additional
burden to students and their parents.
Despite calls to suspend the program, the government remained firm saying this new
educational system offers opportunities for Filipino students and the national economy.
For its part, the Department of Education (DepEd) stresses that the country is prepared for a
big shift in education system. In fact, it has worked to fulfil the gaps on the number of
classrooms, teachers, and textbooks. Also, it has finished the planning phases along with
stakeholders.
 But what does K-12 scheme really have to offer to students?
To prove that K-12 system is more than just adding two more years to high school,
below are three of the many practical benefits of schooling under a 13-year education cycle:
1. Preparedness for tertiary learning – With adaptation of K-12 scheme, students are expected
to graduate at age a bit older than past graduates’. This is an advantage, according to DepEd,
as graduates will be considered young adults. Hence, they will be more equipped to deal with
much higher level of learning as they enter college education.
2. Readiness to join the workforce – Unlike the old system, K-12 does not compel each student
to take college after completing Senior High School (SHS). In fact, this scheme empowers
students to make a choice on their own. They may not pursue college education especially if
they have chosen a track other than academic track. The good thing is SHS graduates will be
equipped with skills (through electives) that will make them good at certain field(s).
3. Skill competency in the global job market – K-12 system aims to improve Filipino students’
mathematical, scientific, and linguistic competence. With the new curriculum, DepEd
promised to offer higher quality education through tracks. Each track will give students enough
time to master a field and enhance their skills. In the end, K-12 graduates will become globally
competitive and are set to obtain spot in the stiff labour market.
The government believes that K to 12 curriculum in the Philippines will put Filipino students
at par with the rest of the world. Truly, investing in education is the key toward reaching
national growth and development.

My Position:
K to 12 programs suit the quality of education because this curriculum focuses not just
on cognitive development of the learner but also in psychomotor skills that is indeed very
important. K to 12, though already implemented, is still a major issue in the country. Filipino
people cannot accept the fact that our education is now prolonged. Some are arguing that K to
12 is not the solution to improve the quality of education; while the others’ concern is to lessen
the burden of the parents and children particularly those who are living in poverty. Well, for
me I cannot blame these people and they are not being pessimistic because what they only want
is to have an assurance of a better and long-term future based from the decisions that our
government is making. I am not against K to 12 because I believe that it will be a benefit for
me since I am a teacher. But I would also like to clarify some programs under K to 12 that
create confusion to the people. One of the essential components of K to 12 is the
implementation of Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education (MTBMLE) in which the
first language will be the medium of instruction from Kinder up to Grade 3. I am certain that
this MTBMLE is also beneficial. Studies show that students learn better when taught in their
native language than in a foreign tongue. Through the use of the mother tongue, it will develop
their reasoning skills and higher order thinking skills of the students. Pupils can easily express
their different views and ideas during class discussion. Further, students will understand their
lessons better; at the same time infuse a sense of nationalism and they will also gain fluency in
their L1. Now, after stating the advantages, what about the disadvantages? The implementation
of MTBMLE will demand more time to translate books into different dialects knowing that
Tagalog is not the only dialect that Filipino people speak. We should consider the truth that
having a single language that everyone could speak and understand is better than having many
languages and cannot be understood by the learners and also some of the teacher.
I personally like the new educational system that we are applying right now because it
will help the students to be more equipped in the future, they will be more qualified to be in
College or even to go to work right after they finished Senior High School, though many are
complaining since our public school were lacking in the facilities, teacher, and many more, for
the K-12 program.
I believe that because of this new educational system we can have globally competitive
graduates thus our economic status will raise, this will give us a lot of opportunities to be better
in whatever field we are taking. Many have notice that the graduates of our old educational
system are not that good as the other graduates from the other countries with improve
educational system. It is because they spend more time in education than us, our typical college
graduate are 19-20 years old while their college graduate is 22-23, this means they spend more
years studying than us so they master what field they are in. but because of our new educational
system, the K-12 Program this will all change. Every 5 years old child will be mandated to
enter the kindergarten, after that they will spend 6 years in elementary education (Grade 1–
Grade 6) then 4 years of secondary education (Grade 7-Grade10) and after that there will be an
additional 2 years of high school (Grade 11-Grade 12) for the preparation of the learners when
they enter college.
The implementation of the K- 12 education plan in the Philippine Basic Education
Curriculum is the key to our nation’s development. Though the government will face many
problems in the long run of the implementation of the program, there really is a need to
implement it because the enhancement of the quality of our education is very urgent and critic.
More Skilled and Competent Labour Force is another good reason why we should support K-
12 is that the graduates of this program will be more prepared to enter the labour force. As we
all noticed, high school graduates of the current curriculum are not yet employable for the
reason that they are not yet competent and well – equipped with the skills needed in the
workplaces. In addition, most high school graduates are not yet reaching the legal age of 18.
With the new curriculum, senior high school students can choose a field that they are good at
and that they are interested in. As a result, they will be equipped with the skills needed for a
specific job even without a college degree. At the age of 18, the age when they graduate from
high school, they will be employable and competitive already. Thus, adding up to the nation’s
manpower. We know that Filipinos are known to be competitive in the international
community. While this may be true, our current education system hinders us in becoming more
competitive among other countries. Sufficient Instructional Time is what K- 12 implemented,
students will be able to get sufficient instructional time to do subject- related tasks which makes
them more prepared and well- trained on that subject area. On the other hand, if we remain on
the old system, Filipino students would continually get low achievement scores. For instance,
international test results revealed that we often come at the tail end in the exams compared to
other countries. More Skilled and Competent Labour Force is another good reason why we
should support K- 12 is that the graduates of this program will be more prepared to enter the
labour force. As we all noticed, high school graduates of the current curriculum are not yet
employable for the reason that they are not yet competent and well – equipped with the skills
needed in the workplaces. In addition, most high school graduates are not yet reaching the legal
age of 18. With the new curriculum, senior high school students can choose a field that they
are good at and that they are interested in. As a result, they will be equipped with the skills
needed for a specific job even without a college degree. At the age of 18, the age when they
graduate from high school, they will be employable and competitive already. Thus, adding up
to the nation’s manpower. So instead of questioning this curriculum why not let it glow as it
is? And as what planned for it?

References
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-K-12

https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-importance-of-K-12-education

https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-role-of-K-12-education-in-building-a-childs-future

http://k12philippines.com/three-practical-benefits-of-the-philippines-k-to-12-curriculum/