PHL scientists slam DepEd: Science education should start early

Science and mathematics should be taught to Filipino students at an early age and comprehensively, so as to prepare them for the demands of the 21st-century workplace, scientists said as they slammed the Department of Education's (DepEd's) decision not to teach Science before Grade 3.

 

Graciano Yumul Jr., a Department of Science and Technology (DOST) undersecretary who advocates K-12 education, said Filipino students should pass global standards in science and technology subjects.

 

Otherwise, they would be left behind by students from our neighboring countries. Yumul noted that by 2015, there will be a “borderless” ASEAN region.

 

Thus, for example, a company from Singapore can bid for projects in the Philippines, said Yumul, who used to teach at the National Institute of Geological Sciences at the University of the Philippines.

 

Filipino scientists and engineers will face stiff competition from students in other countries who studied math and science thoroughly for 12 years.

 

“A student from Sri Lanka will be called an engineer. But our engineers will be just technicians because we are not up to international standards,” he said a talk at a forum at the University of the Philippines recently.

 

DepEd's 'worrisome' curriculum

 

The DepEd said it has overhauled the curriculum for elementary education in preparation for adding two years in the grade levels. Based on the design of the new curriculum for the K012 plan, Filipino first grade students will study Mother Tongue, Filipino, Edukasyon sa Pagpapakatao, Music, Art, Physical Education and Health (MAPEH), Mathematics, Araling Panlipunan, and English. The last subject which will be taught in the second semester and will mainly focus on oral fluency. 

 

Science, as a subject, will only be introduced in third grade.

 

Agham-Advocates of Science and Technology for the People, a progressive organization of scientists and researchers, slammed Deped for relegating science and technology to the backburner at a time when it is needed by the country.

 

“This move to limit the contact hours for science is worrisome, especially since the purported target of the shift to 12 years of basic education curriculum is to improve students’ competencies in English, Math and Science and prepare them for college,” Agham said in a statement.

 

It appeared that the Deped's move to put science on the third grade was a way to attract more business process outsourcing companies in the Philippines, which is competing with India for investments, Agham said in a statement yesterday.

 

Misplaced premium on English

 

“The premium for students now is on learning and speaking well in English, for example, rather than building the student’s analytical skills to deal with his natural (and social) world. This choice is usually driven by the government’s perceived need to join the globalization bandwagon such as its drive to cash in the business process outsourcing (BPO) boom (or bust, as US President Barack Obama had said),” the statement said.

 

The government's decision to focus on acquiring Englisgh language skills at the expense of math and science is misguided, the group said. It noted that the reduction in hours for the two subjects would not help Filipino students excel in these subjects. It would only make them “science-familiar” and unprepared to meet the demands of a technology-driven 21st century, Agham said.

 

“Learning how to view the world scientifically should be introduced as early as possible. Inquiry-based methods, wherein teachers guide their students in investigating the world, can be designed to be both useful and enjoyable to young students. We need this kind of analytical tack for our students on top of their other competencies as we use science, not only in the production of goods, but in many aspects of everyday life. This type of science teaching should be taught at all levels, if possible,” the group added. Purugganan said that teaching Science as early as grade 1 will “have an effect on our ability in the future to train scientists, engineers and doctors that can compete around the world.”— TJD, GMA News