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EDITORIAL
K-12
(Basic Education Program)
K-12(Spoken as k twelve”,” K through twelve or “K to twelve”) is a term for the sum of primary and secondary education. It is in the United States, Canada, South Korea, Turkey, the Philippines, And Australia. P-12 is also occasionally used in Australia.[1] The expression is a shortening of kindergarten (K) for 4- to 6- years olds through twelfth grade (12) for 17- 19-year-olds, the first and last grades of free education in these countries, respectively. Also called ELHI, as a short for Elementary to high school.
What is the K to 12 pprogram?
-The K to 12 program covers 12 years of basic education:
1 year of kindergarten
6 years of primary Education
4 years of Junior High School
2 years of Senior High school
Why do we need to add two years?
Human Development of the child
o A Filipino is legally a child until 18 years old.
o Psychologists say children under 18 are not emotionally mature enough for entrepreneurship or employment.
o Educators say children under 18 are not intellectually mature enough to handle higher education disciplines.
Economic development of the country
o The employable base will expand if high school graduates are prepared for work.
o There will be more entrepreneurs if high school graduates are trained to start their own businesses.
o The country should have fewer nonworking citizens.
Curricular changes due to international conditions
o The knowledge economy, climate change, migration, etc., need to be addressed by the curriculum.
o International accreditation (e.g., Bologna, Washington Accord) assumes longer cycle.
How do we add the two years?
Building on what we already have rather than reinventing the wheel.
Looking at the entire education highway or system
Minimizing disruption in the system
Amending existing laws
Gradually or incrementally
With proper curricular planning
With teacher training one grade level at a time
Using instructional materials that are already available
With support from all stakeholders
