To boost manual skills among youth

K-12 incorporates TechVoc in HS Curriculum

25 May 2011

Technical and vocational education will find its way early on among young students with the K-12 model that will soon be integrated in the country’s basic education system, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Director General Joel Villanueva said.

With the new model, tech-voc education will be one of the tracks to be included during the latter years of the secondary level, particularly in the 11th and 12th years, allowing students to explore their potentials in hands-on skills-based training as an option for future career development.

“The K-12 model will make technical vocational education a staple for high school students, giving our youth the chance to develop their potentials in the early stage of schooling,” Villanueva said.

Villanueva represented TESDA during the National Education Forum on Wednesday at the Makati Shangri-la Hotel in Makati City, where he discussed the State of Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the country.

Together with the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), TESDA has been pushing for the full implementation of the K-12 model.

The K-12 program includes kindergarten, six years of elementary education, four years of junior high school, and two years of senior high school. The two additional years in high school was designed for in-depth specialization for students depending on the occupation or career they wish to pursue.

“The global imperative for more jobs and more productive jobs is a major challenge for development, and workers’ skills are at the core of improving individuals’ employment outcomes and increasing countries’ productivity and growth,” Villanueva said in his speech.
 
”It is important, therefore, that our three education agencies coordinate closely with one another in pursuing a seamless, harmonized and borderless education system. It is in this light that I see our joint involvement in preparing for the K-12 Basic Education Curriculum implementation as a key step leading towards that direction,” the TESDA chief added.

Villanueva cited two of major reforms that the agency undertook to strengthen the TVET sector, namely, the Competency-Based TVET Delivery-System and the Philippine TVET Qualifications Framework (PTQF).

All technical vocational education and training programs offered by public and private technical institutions are required to get prior authority from TESDA through the Unified TVET Program Registration and Accreditation System or UTPRAS.

Likewise, TESDA has also put in place a system requiring that its graduates undergo assessment to get a certificate of competency in the same manner that the Professional Regulations Commission issues the licenses for professionals.

In 2010, he said that the TVET sector produced 1.3 million graduates, who are equipped with the skills that are in-demand in the market. 

Graduates who underwent assessment and received certification in various fields of expertise reached 82 percent.

There are 126 Technology Institutions directly managed by TESDA that form part of the TVET public provision.  A total of 24,579 TVET programs in different qualifications are now registered with TESDA nationwide.

“Faced with global and domestic challenges and changing economic environment as well as skills development issues and concerns, our TVET system shall be directed towards the development of the skilled Filipino workforce that meets the requirements of the 21st century,” Villanueva said.

Stressing the need for the K-12 model, Villanueva said this will not only boost the students’ technical competence early in life, but will also build their creativity, innovation and adaptability to new technologies and opportunities.

“The basic education reform on K -12 program is envisioned to provide these foundational skills, especially for developing knowledge workers,” he added.

Integrating the TESDA system into the K-12 model, Villanueva said the DepEd and CHED have also agreed to include the TVET qualifications in the high school curriculum following the standards or the Training Regulations of the agency.

“In getting children off to the right start in the K-12 program by developing their technical, cognitive and behavioral skills conducive to high productivity and flexibility in the work environment early enough, we hope to see better results from our TVET and higher education program interventions,” Villanueva said.