Public Education in the Philippines: Social Inclusion and Education Access

• Main Author: Benson, Emeeh Ofelia J.
• Other Authors: Combs, Mary Carol
• Language: en_US
• Published: The University of Arizona. 2016
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10150/612544; http://arizona.openrepository.com/arizona/handle/10150/612544

I have had many ask me questions about education in the Philippines so I decided to write this paper on education in my country beginning with the history. I am an advocate of multilingual education and initially wanted to concentrate on that approach. Schools were taught bilingually with English being the main second language. I actually learned English before Tagalog, the official language of the Philippines; my first language being Ilocano, the language of the Cagayan Valley. This paper will also touch upon the case of Multigrade schools in implementing educational innovation. I will be concentrating on the public education system of the Philippines and the organization of public schools as well as highlighting the effective means of macro level and micro level Multigrade programs. Studies suggest that Multigrade schools, i.e. those with classes that are mixed in age and ability, can be a cost effective means of raising students over all achievement in school. This study examines the association between teacher education, teacher effectiveness, and teacher morale. It will also show that teacher leadership is directly linked to student success. In particular, the time spent on direct instruction and other kinds of activities predicts positive achievement gains. In the process of learning in schools; teacher education, teacher effectiveness, teacher morale and teacher leadership are important standard measures for professional autonomy. The purpose of this study is to determine factors contributing to all these types of quality measures in both schools, public or private. The significance of Kindergarten to 12 grade in Philippine public schools as an approach to equity and opportunity for all Filipino children and changing the traditional nature of education in the Philippines indicates that they are ready to compete with other countries. I will discuss the evolution of literacy, describe adult literacy background and the influence of the development of literacy in both rural and urban areas of Philippine’s three largest Islands: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. It concludes that to overcome the stigma of literacy failure due to lack of informal knowledge or the effective formal schooling, youth and adults have tried to improve access to literacy education by providing more public spaces. Policies in literacy for adults can vary in the characteristics of teaching and teaching requirements. Adult literacy program expansion may attract more students who want to better educate themselves. This would alleviate the stigma of not knowing how to read.