Catanduanes Forum

DepEd Order 90 to ensure students will become idiots

Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:39:00 10/23/2009

Filed Under: Education

Recently, Education Secretary Jesli Lapus issued Department of Education Order No. 90, series of 2009, directing elementary schools to reduce teaching and learning time. Lapus explained that the order was issued in response to the increasing number of students and to the public clamor for lesser learning loads, as well as for the safety of young pupils.

Good education equips children with the basics of survival and provides them with a strong foundation for building a better future for themselves and for society—a noble ideal in these times of financial crisis. Reducing learning time and sacrificing the quality of education to give way to a revised curriculum that is biased against social studies and Filipino subjects are not reassuring of a good future for our youth. Instead, Lapus’ new order ensures the teaching of our children to become idiots.

Lapus’ solution to the problem of overcrowded classrooms is totally absurd. Classroom shortage has been a Philippine problem due to the government’s misappropriation of budget for education. Government automatically appropriates the biggest chunk of our annual national budget to debt payments. This year 48 percent of our national budget went to debt servicing; only 14.5 percent was allocated for social services (e.g., health, housing and education).

The government started the cut-down on class hours a long time ago to address the shortages in classrooms and teachers. This was done by implementing the 2-3 “shifting of classes” policy, which actually meant shortened class hours.

According to DepEd records, in 2002, 596 elementary schools implemented the double shift, while 72 schools went triple shifts. The situation worsened in 2005 on to the present, with more schools being forced to follow the policy.

Gabriela Women’s Party believes that the “shortening of class hours” will just produce more out-of-school children who will be more exposed to violence and crimes. We also believe that this measure will increase the number of child laborers, which has reached more than 2 million, according to the Department of Labor and Employment.

Besides, the new order permits a lighter learning load, which also means the integration of several subjects into one subject. If we have to improve our elementary curriculum, we have to suit it to the learning capacity and needs of the students. The curriculum must also address the growing functional illiteracy in the Philippines and educate students to serve the interest of their country. The latter means teaching our students a sense of history and culture, for how else can we impart the values of goodness, heroism, sacrifice, patriotism and love of country if not through proper and complete lessons on History, Filipino and Science?

—NISA OPALLA,
spokesperson,
Gabriela Women’s Partylist-Southern Mindanao Region
gabrielawomensparty.smr@gmail.com