The Department of Education (DepEd) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) in the Philippines are conducting the final survey on the “employability” of the Senior High School (SHS) graduates to gauge the long-term impact of SHS graduates in the labor market compared to those who did not proceed to Grade 11 and 12 during the K to 12 program policy transition period.
“We appreciate Jica’s support and collaboration in conducting this survey that will aid the department determine the effectivity of the curriculum in making every graduate a contributor to social development and nation-building,” Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones said on the final survey on “Impact Evaluation for Industrial Human Resource Development Policy.”
The DepEd said that the impact evaluation survey is in relation to the former technical cooperation project, “Supporting Senior High School [SHS] Program in Technical Vocational High Schools” conducted by Jica Ogata Sadako Research Institute in 2012 as a baseline survey and the subsequent 2015 mid-line survey.
With this, DepEd and Jica are calling the attention of the graduates of the 29 senior high schools that were included in the previous surveys to take part in the final survey.
For his part, Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instruction Diosdado San Antonio said that every curriculum created by DepEd would always be based from various data and researches from their stakeholders.
“Conducting this survey on the employability of our graduates is welcome as this will serve as inputs and references in crafting education policies,” San Antonio said.
Target respondents of the survey were the 2,313 graduates of 29 SHSs who were interviewed in the previous survey in 2015.
Jica identified seven participating schools from Region 3, six from National Capital Region (NCR), four from Region 10, and three each from Regions 2, 4, 6, and 7.
Meanwhile, Bureau of Curriculum Development Director Jocelyn D. R. Andaya noted that the K to 12 curriculum made their graduates more equipped in the field they wish to take.
“Our office is calling on the participation of everyone concerned in this survey and help us in improving the curriculum that will cater to the needs of our learners, the labor market, and our country,” she said.
In 2012, DepEd implemented the K to 12 Basic Education Program in close coordination with the Commission on Higher Education, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and representatives of the business community to produce locally and globally competitive individuals.