Philippine President Inspects US System Education Freeway
A Main Education Highway, apparently patterned after the “seamless” learning system in the United States, is being pushed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as part of an aim to make Filipinos globally competitive.
The program, which removes the barrier between pre-school, grade school, high school, and college, will be a platform for change in the country as advocated by education experts.
“I happened to have a first-hand look at the improvements we need to make to advance our educational system. I have listened to what these science teachers, public servants, and stakeholders have to say. They came out with the Main Education Highway framework toward a knowledge-based economy,” she said at the awarding ceremony of the 2009 Ten Outstanding Teachers in Malacanang in Manila.
The seamless Philippine education system permits any person of any age to enroll in any subject he wishes, which is why a high school student can, at the same time, take college subjects.
“We envision seamless education from basic pre-school education all the way up to grade school and high school education, to vocational school or college to make the Filipino fit for whatever job and challenge life will throw his way,” she said.
The Philippine government has been carrying out reforms in education since 2001, especially in science and engineering.
The Chief Executive said government is pouring in 3 billion Phillipine Pesos for the scholarship program in science and engineering, which has so far enabled more than 600,000 students to complete their college, graduate, and post-graduate education.
“This is a huge P3 billion scholarship because of the need for scholarships in science and engineering,” she said.
The government has funded the Engineering Research and Development for Technology (ERDT), which involves a association of eight schools focused on engineering research in several areas.
The ERDT is a three-year program worth P3.5 billion aimed at four technology areas: ICT (information communication technology), semiconductor and electronics, energy, and environment and infrastructure.
The consortium members are De La Salle University, Mapúa Institute of Technology, Ateneo de Manila University, Mindanao State University Iligan, University of San Carlos, Central Luzon State University, the University of the Philippines-Diliman, and UP-Los Baños.
Experts have been prodding the government to adopt a “knowledge-based” economy, which increases the country’s human capital index ranking in the world.
“You need a good teacher to have a good education. In turn, you need a good education as a way to have a better life. Education is a great equalizer and allows every young Filipino a chance to realize his dream. That’s why our administrator invests so much in education including for teacher training,” the President said.
President Arroyo also reiterated that education is one of the primary priorities or her administration.
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