The Economics and Politics of the Shift from K to 10 Curriculum to K to 12: The Philippine Experience

Abstract

After several years of hesitation, the Philippine government finally adopted a 12-year basic education curriculum with the signing, in 2013, of Republic Act 10533, known as the K to 12 law. The law was a response to the perception that Philippine education as substandard which resulted in Filipino graduates being discriminated against in the global workplace. As a country dependent on earnings of skilled Filipino overseas workers, educational reforms were needed to keep pace with the rest of the world. The K to 12 law was implemented during Academic Year 2014-2015 by adding two more years to basic education totaling its duration to 12 years. Before the passage of the law, basic education in the Philippines was only 10 years. Aside from lengthening basic education K to 12 demanded a new pedagogy so the graduate can easily meet the challenges of the Twenty-first Century through the teaching of new skills and standards. This paper discusses the economic and political considerations of Filipino leaders in adapting the K to 12 curriculum; the changes made so far since its implementation through a comparison of the conditions under the old K to 10. It examines the new pedagogy now being implemented. On the other hand, the paper tackles the logistics needed to implement K to 12; the human cost in terms of teacher dislocation and unemployment during the shift to K to 12 and what the Philippine government is doing to address these problems.



Author Information
Augusto de Viana, University of Santo Tomas, The Philippines

Paper Information
Conference: ACE2018
Stream: Educational Policy, Leadership, Management & Administration

This paper is part of the ACE2018 Conference Proceedings (View)
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Posted by James Alexander Gordon