Educational system of South Korea ... by Joel Jayme

Dear Professor Olga,

Greetings of Peace!

When I read the facts about the educational system of South Korea, I learned that their education is viewed crucial and competition is consequently very neatly heated and fierce. A centralized administration oversees the process for the education of children from Kindergarten to the third and final year of high school. Their kindergarten is not publicly administered program, parents send their children to private schools. Most are taught in Korean, many of those have English class, and some kindergartens are taught almost entirely in English, it is true to some kindergartens in Korea for Upper Class. Kindergarten is composed of children from ages 3-7, most children do not attend preschool but are lumped together in a kindergarten class with other children who maybe within 3 years old age difference.

Elementary education consists of grades 1 to 6. Usually, the class teacher covers most of the subjects; however there are some specialized teachers in professions such as Physical Education and Foreign Languages, including English.

Secondary education is composed of middle school and high school. In South Korea, the grade of a student is reset as the student progresses through elementary, middle and high school. Middle schools are called in Korean jung hakgyo which literally means middle school. High schools are called in Korean godeung hakgyo which literally means high level school.

In middle school, it consists of three grades, most of the students enter at age 12-13 and finish at age 15-16. These three grades correspond roughly to grades 7-9 in the North American Sytem and years 8-10 in England and Wales system.

From the insights that I gained, I realized that there educational system composed of 12 years in schooling whereas in our country is only 10 years.

Therefore, as a school administrator, we have to support on the implementation of the K+12 enhanced basic education in our country to enhance the skills and capabilities of our students to compete globally.


* Joel L. Jayme

Educational system of Africa * Joel L. Jayme

Dear Professor Olga,

Greetings of Peace!

When the reporter, Mr. Abdon R. Bacayana shared his information about the educational system of Africa, I learned that public preschools are provided by some of the provincial departments of education. They are aimed to children of up to 7 years of age. Preschool is split up into two grades; a Pre-Grader for children of up to 4 years of age, and a Grader for 5 and 6 years olds. In both grades children attend language, mathematics, life skills, technology, arts, and culture.

The junior primary phase of schooling lasts 3 years. Children learn to read, write, calculate, and the basics of a second language. During the 3 years of senior primary phase students learn mathematics, history, geography, and science. They also acquire reading and oral proficiency in both their first and second language. Students have to attend one handy craft skill class such as needlework, woodwork or art. School uniforms are compulsory and the school code of conduct must be followed.

Secondary education in South Africa runs from grade 10 to 12 in the school system, levels 2 to 4 of the National Qualifications framework, or the National Certificate Levels 1 to 3 in technical colleges. After completing the 12th grade or the Senior Secondary Education, students take a written exam covering a minimum of six subjects to obtain the Senior Certificate. Students attend classes from Monday to Friday starting 8:00 o’clock in the morning to 2;30 in the afternoon. After their class, students can take part in after class activities or visit the local after care center. Their academic year is from January to December split up into 4 terms. First term begins on mid January and ends on April. It is followed by Easter Holidays which last 10 days. Second term is from mid April to June. It is followed by the Winter Holidays that last 21 days. Third term begins in mid July and ends on September. Spring holidays follow it and last 10 days. Fourth term is from October to December, Christmas Holidays are 40 days long.

From the information shared by the reporter, I realized that the wearing of uniform in Africa for public school students is compulsory and the code of ethics inside the school must be followed. From the point of view, wearing of uniform was given importance by the government.

Therefore, from the insights I gained, as a school administrator, even though wearing of uniform in public schools in our country is voluntary we have to try our best to convince all the parents to let their children wear uniforms. There are so many advantages rather than disadvantages if our students in public schools will wear their school uniform.


* Joel L. Jayme

China’s basic education system ... * Joel L. Jayme

Dear Professor Olga,

Greetings of Peace!

When I heard the report of Ms. Mercy O. Caronia regarding the educational system of the Republic of China, I learned many things from it. The basic education of this country involves pre-school, nine year compulsory education from elementary to junior high school, standard senior high school education, special education for disabled children, and education for illiterate people. China has over 200 million elementary and high school students, who, together with pre school children, account for one sixth of the total population. For this reason the Central Government has prioritized basic education as a key of infrastructure construction and educational development.

In recent years, senior high school education has developed steadily. In 2004 enrolment was 8.21 million, 2.3 times that of 1998. Gross national enrolment in senior high schools has reached 43.8 percent, still lower than that of developed countries. The government has created a special fund to improve conditions in China’s elementary and high schools, for new construction, expansion and the rebuilding of run down structures.

Government’s aim for the development of China’s basic education system is to approach or attain the level of moderately developed countries by 2010. The development of primary education in so vast a country as China has been a formidable accomplishment. In contrast to the 20 percent enrolment rate before 1949, in 1985 about 96 percent of primary school age children were enrolled in approximately 832, 300 primary schools. This enrolment figure compared favorably with the record figures of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s.


* Joel L. Jayme

Educational system of Japan...* Joel L. Jayme

Dear Professor Olga,

Greetings of Peace!

When Ms. Mitchel M. Villaceran shared to us about the Educational System of Japan, I learned Japan government adopted the US model for their educational system and they adopted also the France model for centralized administration system and the school district system. In the year 1990 the government of Japan decided to abolish the school fees for elementary education and a system of automatic progression was adopted. They applied the 6-3-3-4 educational pattern, Grades 1 to 6 for elementary education with 4 science subjects namely; biology, chemistry, physics, and geology. As what I have observed their elementary pupils are very much advance in terms of scientific theories and actual hands on of the technological activities not like in the Philippines that the normal curriculum for elementary has less subject taught in science even Grades 1 and 2 in our country has no science subject. For their high school education, they offer 3 years for Junior High School, and 3 years for Senior High School.

From the insights I gained about the educational system of Japan, I realized that their curriculum is focused on science and technology that is why their learners are much advance in terms of scientific theories and concepts. If we compare the curriculum of our country to that of Japan all I can say is we are very far behind their system.

Therefore, as a school administrator we have to encourage our teachers and pupils to engage in and adopt the new trend and the use of technology by conducting research on the net in order to cope up with the advance technology globally.


* Joel L. Jayme

K + 12 .. by Joel Jayme

Dear Professor,

Greetings of Peace!

Last Saturday when I heard and learned about the Enhanced K + 12 Basic Education Program, I realized that the goal of the Enhanced K+12 Basic Education Program is to create a functional basic education system that will produce productive and responsible citizens equipped with the essential competencies and skills for both life-long learning and employment. The program will enhance the basic education system to full functionality to fulfill the basic learning needs of students. This is in line with the agenda of the President Aquino of having quality education as a long-term solution to poverty. In order to achieve these goals, the program has the following twin-objectives:

a) To give every student an opportunity to receive quality education based on an enhanced and decongested curriculum that is internationally recognized and comparable

b) To change public perception that high school education is just a preparation for college; rather, it should allow one to take advantage of opportunities for gainful career or employment and/or self-employment in a rapidly changing and increasingly globalized environment.

Enhancing the quality of basic education in the Philippines is urgent and critical. Thus, we have to come up with a proposal to enhance our basic education program in a manner that is least disruptive to the current curriculum, most affordable to government and families, and aligned with international practice. 2 The poor quality of basic education is reflected in the low achievement scores of Filipino students. Many students who finish basic education do not possess sufficient mastery of basic competencies. One reason is that students do not get adequate instructional time or time on task. The National Achievement Test (NAT) for grade 6 in SY 2009-2010 passing rate is only 69.21%. Although this is already a 24% improvement over the SY 2005-2006 passing rate, further reforms are needed to achieve substantial improvement. The NAT for high school is 46.38% in SY 2009-2010, a slight decrease from 47.40% in SY 2008-2009. 3 International tests results like 2003 TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) rank the Philippines 34th out of 38 countries in HS II Math and 43rd out of 46 countries in HS II Science; for grade 4, the Philippines ranked 23rd out of 25 participating countries in both Math and Science In 2008, even with only the science high schools participating in the Advanced Mathematics category, the Philippines was ranked lowest.

Therefore as a School Administrator, I am in favor of the additional 2 years of elementary and high school in order to cope up the demand of time. We are the only country who implements 1o year elementary and secondary education. If we will compare the graduates from the different countries we are much behind compared to their graduates. It is a high time to apply the enhanced K+12 basic education in our country to address the problem on quality education.

UNITED KINGDOM EDUCATION SYSTEM (by Bernadette Calvo)

Dear Professor,

Good day doc!

When you let us pick the country that we are going to study for its educational system, immediately I look for the United Kingdom. I chose UK because I wanted to know the kind of education system that they have considering that there are 4 countries that comprise this big nation. How they were able to successfully implement plans considering the fame in education that they are enjoying right now, the astounding buildings and the vast universities that are too high.
Education in UK has the same patterned with the other countries. As I look at its structure, it’s almost the same with others, if there is, only minute thing. I view this as physical only but as to the implementation and the other factors to consider I have not included.

UK’s primary education is 6 years from the combined junior and infant schools 2 years in infant school and 4 years in junior school. This is the first stage of children’s schooling. Secondary education covers schooling from the age of eleven to the minimum school leaving age of sixteen. Students follow a common curriculum leading to the GCSE and VCSE. They may combine a number of GCSEs, VCSEs or a combination of both. At some schools, pupils may stay on at a school sixth form for a further two years when they sit for the General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCE A Levels) or the General Certificate of Education Advanced Subsidiary examinations (GCE AS examinations), or vocational courses leading usually to a Vocational Certificate of Education Advanced Level/Vocational Certificate of Education Advanced Subsidiary Level). Further education colleges also offer these courses.

Higher education is provided by three main types of institutions: universities, colleges and institutions of higher education and art and music colleges. All universities are autonomous institutions, particularly in matters relating to courses. They are empowered by a Royal Charter or an Act of Parliament. As a result of the Further and Higher Education Act of 1992, the binary line separating universities and polytechnics was abolished and polytechnics were given university status and took university titles. Unlike the Philippines, not all universities are autonomous. They still need to pass some accreditations in order to get the highest level which is the autonomous level. The UK universities also offer second stage of higher education the Master’s Degree and Master of Philosophy and its third stage is the study of Doctor of Philosophy and the Higher Doctorate. We can see that UK’s higher education is being strengthened. Philippines also offer postgraduate education but its only Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy. The students choose their own program or major.

UK also tightened their teacher qualification before teaching. A teacher applicant must undergo trainings and post graduate studies before one is hired.
I realized that there is no so much difference in the structure between UK and Philippine education but when you look at the outcome we are (Philippines) far beyond compare. We are 50 years beyond behind from them. Perhaps because they have money and we don’t have. Our budget for education is meager plus it is not well address, corruption is rampant, needs are not met. If only Philippines has disciplined leaders I doubt if we will not achieve first class education. Money is secondary. What is the most important are the personnel who can carry out the goal with iron hands not with vested interest. Our country needs realignment of each goal to one common goal towards quality education and it must start first from the right hiring of new teachers. It must start from the simplest thing to the complicated ones. Secretary Quisombing once said that “the education of the heart is the heart of education”. I hope that the new program “K+12” will give impact to our present education today and not just remains an unimplemented program.

So help us God!

FINLAND EDUCATION SYSTEM (by Bernadette Calvo)

Good day Doc!

I learned that pre-school education in Finland is intended for six-year-olds, who will start their compulsory education in the following year. This is not the same with the Philippine education because here pupils start to come to school as early as 2 years old, toddler, then nursery, kinder 1 and kinder 2 then start the elmentary- the basic education.

In Finland participation in pre-school education is voluntary, and it is provided in day care centres and in pre-school classes operating in connection with comprehensive schools. The same with the Philippine education system, children also come to day care centers provided by DSWD voluntarily. There are also public schools who cater universal kindergarten.

In Finland, pre-school education means the systematic education and instruction provided in a day care center (kindergarten) or a comprehensive school in the year preceding the beginning of school.
Subject fields are: language and interaction, mathematics, ethics and philosophy, environmental and natural studies, health, physical and motor development and art and culture.

Basic education is intended for children from seven to sixteen years of age, and its completion in comprehensive school takes nine years. All children permanently resident in Finland are subject to compulsory education for a period of ten years starting in the year of their seventh birthday. Basic education is general education provided free of charge for entire age groups. Basic education is governed by the Basic Education Act of 1998. Here in the Philippines, basic education is governed by R.A. 9155.The broad national objectives and the allocation of time to the instruction in different subjects and subject groups and to childrens counselling are decided by the Government. The National Board of Education decides on the objectives and core contents of instruction by confirming the core curriculum. Based on these, each provider of education prepares the local curriculum. The network of comprehensive schools covers the entire country. For school journeys exceeding five kilometres, transportation is provided free of charge. The Philippine does not provide free transportation to chilren no matter how far the school is.

The basic education syllabus includes at least the following subjects: mother tongue and literature (Finnish or Swedish), the other national language (Swedish or Finnish), foreign languages, environmental studies, civics, religion or ethics, history, social studies, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, geography, physical education, music, visual arts, craft and home economics. Thi is quite different from the Philippine education,the curriculum does not include foreign languages aside from English,mother tongue is not studied but there were proposals to use the moher tongue as medium of instruction. Like the Pihlippines, Finland offers free education also. Basic education is nine-year comprehensive school with no official qualification. This comprehensive school is compulsory.Final certificate is granted for acceptable completion of the syllabus. This is in preparation for the upper secondary which offers general education for students of about 16-19 years of age. Planned syllabus like in the comprehesive school is also followed for 3 years.Upper secondary school ends with the matriculation examination. Like the Philippines, Finland offers also vocational and polytecnic courses Initial vocational education builds on the basic education syllabus and provides 2-3-year instruction in almost all fields of working life. However, there is a decision to extend the duration of all initial vocational education to three years. Polytechnics provide instruction for expert functions in the sectors of natural resources, technology and communications, business and administration, tourism, catering and institutional management, health care and social services, culture, and the humanities and education.

Studies leading to a polytechnic degree take 3.5-4.5 years. University Education
There are twenty universities in Finland: ten multidisciplinary universities, three universities of technology, three schools of economics and business administration and four art academies. The network of universities covers the different parts of the country and provides a student place for almost one third of the age group. All universities are owned by the State. Academic degrees in the military field can be taken at the National Defence College falling under the administrative field of the Ministry of Defence.

The decision-making system of the universities is highly independent. Their operation is prescribed by the Universities Act and Decree. Moreover, their activities are regulated by field-specific decrees on degree systems, governing the field-specific educational duties as well as the definitions, structures, scope, objective and contents of degrees. Universities and their faculties decide on the degree regulations and curricula.

EDUCATION FOR ALL

Dear Professor,

Truly the success of one nation lies on the education of its people. Education gives access to all opportunities and successes in life. The poorer the education a country has the lower its economy.

When I heard about the EFA 2015 (Education For All), deep inside I said this is it. Honestly, I am happy and I praised the planner and implementer of this goal. I know how sad I am about the situation of our country. All of us are suffering from crises; economic, education, corruption, criminals are everywhere and every life is in danger. These things will be resolved if education for all will be truly implemented. With its promising goals success is not beyond reach.

The Philippine government is serious about implementing EFA program. With this the government sent delegates to Dakar, Senegal for the World Education Forum to bind themselves (ourselves) for the commitment of truly implementing the EFA 2015. The Dakar Framework is a collective commitment to action. This is to ensure that the governments commitment and responsibility towards EFA goals and target are sustained and implemented through cooperation and partnership within countries, through the support of regional, and international agencies and institutions.
I realized that education for all is impossible to achieve if only few people are committed. If the government is really serious with this matter this is not impossible to reach.


Bernadette Edago- Calvo

AUSTRALIA EDUCATION SYSTEM

Dear Professor Olga,

Good day!

Another Saturday is done and another learning to ponder on. It was a nice experience to travel Australia though it’s imaginary because it’s only in the slide show presentation. Thank you for that idea.

The travel was so fun. It’s nice to know their educational system that made Filipino scholars to follow such system since it is effective, and besides it is now the world’s standard. No wonder the K+12 Program is being encouraged because of the fact that Australia shows significant effect in their educational system. Going back to our previous discussion that only Philippines has the shortest years for students to stay in school plus the fact that our educational system is not that quality for the fact that a large number of students in one session per class with only one teacher

Primary schools and high schools are based on the age of the student, so that every class has the same age group, with a student hardly having to repeat a year. The students with problems in their studies may be put into special classes to help with academic deficits. The majority of the children start in the primary school with the age of 5 years (year 1) and the child studies in the primary school until they are around 12 years old ( year 7). Like in the Philippines, preschool pupils are taken care by Day Care Centers run by DSWD, preschool children in Finland also are taken care of the regulated centers like the “Child Care” or families in registered residences who take care of the kids in a system called "Family Day Care".

The student goes for secondary school with 12/13 years (year 8), and is he/she is only compulsorily required to stay to year 10, receiving a junior high school certificate but not a high school certificate. The year 11 (15/16 YO) and 12 (16/17 YO), are optional but are required to be successfully completed to attain a high school diploma. Some of the options for those students leaving the school in year 10 include training –apprenticeship, to enter the work force or to study in any vocational course.

The results of the last two years of high school are the most important ones, as they are the ones to be evaluated for entry levels in Universities. The results which you achieve for each subject (compared to the rest of the students) will then give you a rank. The board of secondary studies than calculates an “OP” score (overall position) using a formula of you high school results and a test called “QCS” (in Queensland) which is taken by every year 12 in the state, which is used to compare students (schools) of the same year level between schools. The last 2 years is where students begin to guide their education towards their chosen professions. The student will choose what to study depending on the career in which they intend to follow. For example, a student who wants to do Engineering in University should chose subjects such as physics, and high level mathematics instead of subjects such as history, or biology. For international students there are options with easier level subjects inside the curriculum. There is the easy level English, the easy mathematics etc, and they are the options for the students not going to apply for a academic career in an university course. In general the subjects are divided in letters such as Maths type A, B, C or names such as Board English (harder one) and English Communication (easier one).

The schedule of the lessons is Monday to Friday, 8:45 am to 3 pm, with breaks for lunch and snacks. Extra Curricular activities such as soccer practice, dance classes, etc is done after school hours or Saturday mornings.
The government schools offer subsidized public transport if necessary but most students who are enrolled in the schools, usually live around the geographic area limit of school and are able to go walking or by bicycle.

Private Schools in general are related to a religion and usually they offer more options in music and sports. In both all students have to use of uniforms but in the private schools the rules are more restricted about the use of a complete uniform. The educational courses and standards of all high schools are very similar and all prepare students for the same national, recognized qualifications in the country.

The Certificates and Diplomas of Vocational Courses allow the students to enter and leave different levels of academic studies. The unify system of education allows the student to register for Certificate course which then after completion may give credits to Diploma courses or Degrees, in case the student continues in a University. Professional experience may also be recognized. The technical courses are often considered a "bridge" to enter in an Australian University.
Australia has both government and private Universities that offer to programs called "Under Graduate", and after graduation courses called "Graduate Programs or Post Graduate". In general the time of duration of the Graduate Certificates =6 months, Master=1 year, Master Honor=1.5 year, Doctorate= 2 years. However these degrees are not measured by time but by subjects/ courses taken, therefore depending on how may subjects/courses you are doing per semester, it may impact the time it takes to complete them.

A Bachelor degree generally takes three years, and can also be done in only two years in some universities (such as Bond) with fewer days holiday. The majority of the structures offer the opportunity to combine two qualifications. In that you will be able to finish a University with a two qualifications or a "Double Degree" by studying one more year. For example: Bachelor Degree of IT & Business in 4 years. After finishing aN Under Graduate degree you can get then continue on to a Graduate degree either in Master or PhD. The Master and Doctorate are intensive studies and in general include research with supervision.


Bernadette Edago- Calvo

CHINA EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

Dear Professor,

It was rich discussion last meeting. I was excited to learn the educational system of the country called the “Sleeping Giant”- the China. I learned that most of their men in China go to school than their women. Unlike Philippines, women are more zealous to come to school even if they are already married. Even after finishing bachelor’s degree, more women still go to school to continue post graduate study.

China like Japan, they also have a compulsory education for 9 years. In fact, they made it as a law which took effect on July 1, 1986. I remember this was also the date when Cory Aquino took place as a president and during her regime, free education was also given to the Filipino people and until now the Filipino people are still enjoying free education from pre school to high school but unlike China it wasn’t compulsory, but they have EFA 2015 education for all in 2015 for all Filipino.

China’s basic education is somewhat like the Philippines, they have preschool – 3-6 age, elementary 6-12 years old, Junior high school 12-15 and senior high school 15- 18, Philippines has only 4 years in high school then students can proceed college or universities after finishing high school but the new president, Pnoy, K+12 will be implemented this school’s opening where in kinder plus 12 years in Basic education.’ 6 years in elementary and 6 years in high school which is before is only 4 years.
Like the Philippines, China also has special education created for special children. They also have vocational and technical schools like TESDA in Philippines. China also have scholarship grants and loan system in order to aid students who aspire to finish schooling. In the Philippines, scholarship is also given. My daughter Cindy, is one of the recipients of ESC grant of the government from first year to fourth year high school and now she is about to graduate and I hope she can also get a PESFA college scholarship grant to continue her higher education.

China is also aspiring to have the best and quality schools but financial constraints. They spent a lot for science and technology, study research and study abroad. Funding is not enough for other educational needs. The same also with the other countries, particularly Philippines plus corruption is over riding.

I believed that good education does not only confined in good facilities, advance technologies but teachers’ development and having quality teachers are one of the big factors to be considered because they are the carrier of the good education. It is good to know that China is giving emphasis to their teachers who will and mold children for the future. Teacher factor is really important. Teacher hiring should be screened and tightened rather than hiring whom and not what you know teacher applicants. This is really a big problem when we compromise quality the end result is not good. All suffer because of few vested interest.

With all these, I realized that no matter how beautiful the system is, if it is not well implemented is a waste of time, a waste of money and a waste of effort for the concerned persons who strive hard to carry through the goals because it will never succeed. Everyone must work together to achieve such success.

My due respect to you doc, thank you! God Bless!


Bernadette Edago- Calvo

JAPAN EDUCATION SYSTEM

Dear Professor,

It is nice to travel around the world. This time we went to Japan through slide showing. It was a great privilege to study different countries especially Japan whose name is popular because of its contribution in the advancement of technology. I was very excited to learn from their educational system. How it is different from the other countries like the Philippines that until now still remains on its foot on the flat ground. We are still underdeveloped country.

It was then that I learned that Japan is exercising a first 9 years in school as compulsory. They adopted a system of automatic progression. Free elementary education. They gave much importance on sciences even if children are still in elementary level. They already train children in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Geology at the very young age. In the Philippines, there is only one science subject and it is very basic in the elementary. Some schools are having a mismatch of subjects; teacher teaching not their field of specialization.

I also have noted that Japan’s education during high school, students have to take all the science subjects compulsory, then as years and level go up in senior high school, they introduce basic science and in the second year, a student has to select one or two science subjects for strengthening on the next level on the 3rd year in senior high school. They rest assured that students do not flunk during elementary and junior and school. They also exercise school lunch law and school health law. Unlike the Philippines, Japan is using a descriptive type of grading system.
Since Japan is giving more focus on sciences naturally, they also earned advancement of technology. They became the most industrialized country. Their economic has improved a lot. In fact, Japan now is the number 1 country. Japan has surpassed America’s greatness.

I realized that why not Philippines do the same thing, giving focus on science subjects? Perhaps like Japan our economy will also grow. Second realization is that, as an administrator, I have to modify our curriculum and give more strength on science subjects. I’m thinking of letting our pupils explore on simple experiments while they are still young to let them love science during foundation stage.

Bernadette Edago- Calvo

AFRICA EDUCATION SYSTEM

Dear Professor Olga Alonsabe,

Good day doc!

After visiting Japan, Korea, China, Finland and United Kingdom, here we go enjoying the place of Africa. Africa is the largest continent in the world. I was so excited to learn their educational system because of the vast area. Well, like any other country, Africa has the same educational system. They also have pre school that is split into 2; Pre grade R and Grade R. Pre school is provided by some provincial departments of education. Children are taught in language, mathematics, life skills, technology, arts, and cultural. It is the same with the Philippine pre school education.

Africa’s primary education is divided into 2; junior primary which students learn for 3 years how to read, write, calculate, and other basics of a second language. During the 3 years of senior primary phase students learn mathematics, history, geography, and science. They also acquire reading and oral proficiency in both their first and second language. Students are also required to attend at least 1 handy-craft skill class. This is a good training ground for the students preparing them for real life. Whether they use the skill for livelihood or not or they may proceed to professional work at least they learn 1 skill to be developed.

Secondary education in South Africa runs from grade 10-12 in the school system and after completing the 12th grade, the students take a qualifying exam equivalent to 6 subjects to be able get a senior certificate. Africa’s academic year is divided into 4 terms because of its different seasons. Higher education includes a broad range of educational institutions and programs leading to certificates, diplomas, and degrees. A student must meet certain amount of points to be admitted to college and universities and after completing such, he must wait for 1 year after getting his degree before he can apply for a Master, Honor, and Ph.D. program. Post graduate program must be completed for a certain period 2 years each program. Like the Philippine education, Africa’s primary and secondary are nearly all schools are government funded.

I realized that, I think it is good for Philippine education to have 1 compulsory skill to be mastered by a student like that of Africa. This is necessary so that children will be trained during younger years. We know that not everybody finishes school at least if as student drop he/she may have something to work on for livelihood. Second realization is that, here in the Philippines, we don’t have Honor Graduate. We only have Mater and Ph.D. Based on my observation a lot of Ph.D. graduates that are not of quality this present time. According to 1 observation is that before when a student finishes Ph.D. the name itself brings impact. I think the standard must be strengthened more.

Bernadette Calvo

KOREA EDUCATION SYSTEM

Dear Professor Olga Alonsabe,

Good day!

We fly again this time to Korea. It’s a great chance to travel different countries, studying their educational system like Korea through imagination only.
Education in Korea is viewed crucial for success and competition is too hot. Korea’s educational process is being oversight by centralized administration from kindergarten to final high school. Korea has only 5 core subjects taught in the school unlike the Philippines, it is congested because of its 8 core subjects taught in the school. Korea has not much given emphasis on Physical Education that is why their facilities in gymnasium are lacking and not that advance unlike the Philippines, it is included in the curriculum and made into a subject for more emphasis even if facilities are also lacking.

Korea was the first country in the world to provide high-speed internet access from every primary, junior, and high school because their technology is somewhat advance. Korea has different academic year from the Philippines because of the fact that they have different seasons, their climate is different which they only have 2 seasons; the wet and dry.

If the Philippines has Department of Education, they also have Ministry of Education, Science and Technology who is responsible for educational system.
Korea’s educational system is the same with the other countries but not so much with the Philippines when it comes to number of years students stay in the school. Korea’s elementary years is 6, secondary is divided in to 2; 3 years for middle and 3 years high school, its equivalent is junior and senior high school with some other countries. But with the Philippines plan of implementing the new educational system which is patterned from Australia which has a superior educational system, the K+12, like almost any other country’s system of education, we will somehow equal if not top.

Korea’s kindergarten pupils are catered in the private schools. Their kindergarten like public schools in the Philippines is also universal but not true to the private schools. Pupils who belong to upper class are taught in English language but for the lower class Korean is the only medium of instruction used in school because learning English language is too expensive. Korean students study very hard in school. It is not normal to them to come home early; usually they come late because of the extra curricular activities related to school and some tutorial classes. From Kindergarten to high school, matriculating through the grade levels is not determined on knowledge, grades or passing of any tests, but it is based purely upon the student’s age unlike the Philippines, grading system is done either by letter code or number with 75% is the passing rate.

I realized that Philippine educational system is relaxed. We are so privileged because our lifestyle is not that tight unlike Korean and Japan systems. But we abused this system and made us unproductive (most to speak) I think this is about time to discipline ourselves and this must start from within us. We lack models to really exercise these things. If Korean can do this, so Filipino can also. I think if discipline is present we can be more productive than Koreans because I believe that working at the right amount of time with the right attitude can bring impact result rather than to choke one to force working without the passion of what he is doing. Consider Japan, suicidal rate is high because life there is so stressful with no enough outlets.

Bernadette Edago- Calvo

MEXICO'S EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

Dear Professor,

It is a wonderful thing to know the different educational systems of the other countries, thanks for the privilege, Dr. Alonsabe, through your creativity we were given a chance.

Education in Mexico like Japan, China and other countries is compulsory by law. It is regulated by the Secretariat of Public Education except for autonomous universities chartered by the government. The accreditation of Private Schools is accomplished by a mandatory approval and registration with this institution. This practice is also the same with the Philippine educational system but only the Philippine has different volunteers organization that are conducting accreditation for private schools to strengthen and reach quality education.

While the Philippine government’s education accepts even foreigners to school at public school, the Mexican educational system is not. Foreigners must pay tuition if they are to enroll public school. Mexico also provides education with equality to other religion.

The Mexico basic education is like of China but they slightly differ in the Philippines when it comes to the number of years in high school. Their basic education is divided into 3 steps; primary school, secondary (junior high school 7-9 grades) and preparatory (senior high school grades 10-12). Like the Philippines, they also used bilingual instructions depending on the school. Mexico offered more specialized subjects like Physics, Chemistry and World History but for the Philippines, these subjects are part of the regular subjects of high school curriculum then a student receive diploma during the graduation while the Mexican educational system after junior high school, students need to proceed to senior high school in order to enter college and university.

During senior years, Mexican students are trained with basic training for a job. It is also the required step for college and university entrance. This kind of system will be implemented this 2011 school opening in line with K+ 12 new educational system of the Philippines.

Mexican higher education is patterned from the US Educational Model and the structure of education is closely conforms to the Bologna Process. Mexico and Philippines follow the same structure from tertiary to post graduate levels when it comes to number of years. Mexico; like Philippines, emphasizes the academic skills and stresses the values of individualism and assertiveness in their curriculum.
My realizations to all of these are that the Philippines must strengthen its educational system. Our system differ much in the number of years students spend in school though the curriculum is somewhat the same but there is a significant difference when it comes to result. Mexico produces quality graduates and is being considered as a superior educational system. It is about time to really give focus on the development our government is selling like the K+12 of Pnoy. I hope that what was planned should be implemented and will not become aged in the folder alone and eventually forgotten. There is still hope that this country, Philippines will achieve its goals and become progressive because of the strong educational system.
Thank you doc olga for the opportunity of having a comparison of educational systems with other countries wherein we can also meditate on how we can be of help with our country even if we are just private individuals.


FROM
Bernadette Edago- Calvo

EFA TARGETS POVERTY REDUCTION by Sally Aguilar

There is a saying that I always can remember because as I remembered it, I also remember my mother. Why? My mother was a high school teacher also teaching physics. She is with our creator now and may her soul rest in peace. As I recall, yearly she always replaced her classroom decorations and sayings but, this only saying is always changed only in color or style of lettering or the other side of the wall. It says, “An educated man is like a bamboo, the taller it grows, the lower it bends“. Then she lets us read the sayings and explained to us the meaning of it.

Today, that saying is true to the goal of education, EFA which means education for all. If only everybody, every parent will take this to heart that every child and individual needs to be educated, needs to know how to read and write, on how to comprehend and relate it to their present routines. Maybe this world would be a better place to live because everyone will think first what would be the effect of his/her action before doing it. According to the saying the more a person know, the more he/she would understand his/her surroundings, the events, the happenings, the more he/she would avoid feud and misunderstanding.

Mother Teresa said, “Few of us can do great things, but all of us can do small things with great love.” As a teacher we can do small things for our students that would lead them to greatness in their future life but we should do it with love and compassion.

Being educated especially finishing a course and landing a job really can reduce poverty. As I again reminisce my past, my family were not rich. I have two brothers and two sisters and my parents worked in the government. Their works were the source of our income and basic needs and what sustained us in our education. My parents always told us that we should finish our education so that we could have a good future and could support the family that we will be building in the future. Now, what they said are all true. We have each our work in the government now, and even if our economy is unstable but we could still buy the basic necessities. I truly believe that EFA could reduce, diminished and in the future eliminate poverty in our country.

In my own perception, I know that everyone has a talent, a skill that he/she could use for building his/her future. I learned that talent is what many people assume it is a special gift given only to a handful of people. Everyone has talent, the natural predispositions that make each of us particularly effective in the field we choose. When this recurrent pattern of thinking, feeling and behaviour is applied to the right role, superior performance is generated.The trick is to find that role in which talents can be put to their best use and especially if the individual is educated then the more that not only he could benefit from his talent but also the people that surrounds him. Education plus talent equals to superior performance and reduction of poverty.

Knowing the K + 12 Enhanced Basic Education Program (by Saly Aguilar)

Being enrolled in this subject made me feel ahead, inspired and excited every meeting with our professor. Why? Because I knew the latest and hottest news in education. Just like this K+12, some teachers do not comprehend what is this all about and in my own way I made them see some light about this. Wow! And it made me looked forward to know from our professor the current trend and issues in education, it made me feel more knowledgeable about new updates in education than my colleagues. It gave me additional knowledge that I before, was not aware about it being implemented.

Just last week, I heard one of my co teacher said that next year UBD or understanding by design will not be used anymore because it will be replaced by K+12. I asked him nicely, where did he got the idea? He said because it would be replaced by the K+12. I smiled at them then calmly and humbly explained to them what I know about K+12 and after awhile they nodded their heads, and asked how come I knew about it, and then I said because of Dr. Olga Alonsabe, that I am under her subject Comparative studies. I also said that UBD is another matter because UBD is an approach while K+12 is about the years in Basic Education to be followed by every school and the curriculum is SEC or the secondary Education Curriculum. I added further that as what I have heard the training for the second year teachers this coming summer will push through, and then the following school year the second year will be using the SEC curriculum and the UBD approach. I know, by looking at their faces that they were enlightened a little about the two.

It is not really easy to grasp immediately these changes, even I, at the beginning, when I heard these because there was no information dissemination about it in our school. Another maybe is because the change will take effect slowly and informing everybody should be done in the right time with the right time frame.

Truly upon learning all about these from our sharing and topics discussed under Dr. Alonsabe, I can say that I am now a “renewed teacher” because I have a full knowledge about K+12 that some teachers, parents, administrators are still lifting their brows and in doubt what is it. But whatever knowledge I have about this, I am also glad to share with my friends, colleagues, acquaintances and parents so that they will understand the relevance why this is happening in our educational system and why there is an additional 2 years as senior high school or in our basic education system..

K+12 No child left behind! (Ophel Lumogda)

K+12: No child left behind!

Fellow toastmasters and guests ,ladies and gentlemen

No child left behind is a legislation proposed by President Bush
in 2003 that holds certain expectations for school performance and the ability
to meet key objectives in the areas of accountability,average yearly progress
and the recruitment and selection of qualified classroom teachers. He believed
that quality academic performance produces quality graduates and it follows
quality citizen.This act No Child Left Behind is adopted by the Deped in the
Philippines.However. despite of it, statistics show that the International test
results consistently show Filipino students lagging way behind practically
everybody else in the world . In 2008 mathematics exam for example,embarrassing
to say we came in dead last.The education in the Philippines is critical and
needs urgent reformation.This key issue in Philippine education needs to be
looked closely and should be resolved .

The Philippines currently offers ten year public school system to
provide basic education ,namely six years of tuition free grade school and four
years of high school .Since most children begin entering school at six years old
however, those who do finish the entire program end up graduating from high
school around 16 years old. Many critics and educators point out that at this
age the high school graduate is not old enough .

On this date, Last October 10.2010 the Department of Education proposed
a K + 12 model and said in detail that the k+12 educational plan a way to
achieve quality education in the Philippines and global competitiveness .
Critics, however, counteract that the education crisis needs to be addressed
more fundamentally and adding more school years would only exacerbate the
situation.

What is k+12? K + 12 means kindergarten and the 12 years in basic education. Six
years in elementary ,4 years in junior high school and 2 years in senior high
school.

The K-12 model is an educational system for basic and secondary education
patterned after the United States, Canada, and some parts of Australia. The
current basic education system is also an archetype of American schooling but
with a 10-year cycle.

The DepEd reasons that it is high time to adopt a K-12 system, attributing the
low achievement scores and poor quality of basic education to the present school
setup

What are the features of k+12/

Kindergarten and 12 years of quality basic education is a right of every
Filipino, therefore they must be and will be provided by government.

Those who go through the 12 years cycle will get an elementary diploma(6
years),a junior high school diploma (4 years) and a senior high school diploma (
2 years).
A full 12 years of basic education will eventually be required for
entry into tertiary level education .

The program is proposed to start in school year 2012-2013 for Grade 1
and first year high school students with the target of full implementation by SY
2018-2019.Which means those grade 5 pupils this year will be the first graduate
of K+12

This is part of President Benigno "NoyNoy" Aquino III's Educational Reform
Program. The P-Noy Administration believes that adding more years to basic
education in the Philippines could help so much.

. K-12 has been met with criticism from youth and student groups, teachers,
parents and the academic community. The DepEd, for its part, appears determined
to enact the program with its proposed budget catering mostly to preparing the
grounds for its eventual implementation
Furthermore, The DepEd argues that the K-12 program will be the solution to
yearly basic education woes and the deteriorating quality of education .Research
shows that ….

“1.Enhancing the quality of basic education in the Philippinesis urgent and
critical.”

2“The poor quality of basic education is reflected in the low achievement
scores of Filipino students. One reason is that students do not get adequate
instructional time or time on task.”

3.International test results consistently show Filipino students lagging way
behind practically everybody else in the world.

4.The congested curriculum partly explains the present state of education.”
Twelve years of content are crammed into ten years.

5.“This quality of education is reflected in the inadequate preparation of high
school graduates for the world of work or entrepreneurship or higher education.”
If ten years were adequate, how come employers do not hire fresh high school
graduates? How come most high school graduates flunk the UPCAT?

6.The current system also reinforces the misperception that basic education
is just a preparatory step for higher education.”

7.“The short basic education program affects the human development of the
Filipino children.” If we believe that 17-year-old high school graduates are
emotionally, psychologically, and intellectually mature, why do we require them
to get parental consent before they get married?Those are the curret conditions
in our ducational system that K+12 model will be implemented in the Philippines
What will happen to additional two years?
* 2 years of in-depth specialization for students depending on the
occupation/career track they wish to pursue
* Skills and competencies relevant to the job market
* The 2 years of senior HS intend to provide time for students to
consolidate acquired academic skills and competencies.

*The curriculum will allow specializations in Science and Technology, Music
and Arts, Agriculture and Fisheries, Sports, Business and Entrepreneurship

Ladies and Gentlemen

K+12 Education Plan becomes Philippine education more competitive among other
countries around the world. Though there are still some problems that the
government needs to solve before they can successfully implement the plan. But
still I believe that the program is good.

Yesterday,after my talk on k+12, a parent of one of my students in grade V
followed me in my office and said sarcastically in a high pitch. Teacher Ophel,
base on the report card my son Jericho he is academically superior, do you think
it is possible that he will be promoted from grade V to First year next school
year so that he cannot be included in that K+12? I only smiled to her and in a
low pitch I said, Maam Can you see that Molave tree outside the window?Yes
maam,Between the two which do you think is stronger?The molave tree which had been
planted for many years ago or that tomato which the janitor had planted three
months ago?Naturally she said, the molave teacher.How about the roots?Which do
you think is deeply rooted in the soil?The molave tree or the tomato tree?the
molave tree.I topped her shoulder gently and said the same in education Mrs
Santos the more years in school, the more knowledge you can acquire, and the
more stronger your foundation in education.and when the foundation will be
deeply rooted not only in your head but as well as in your heart that will make
you who you are. She stepped backward and said nothing but leave a beautiful
smile in the doorsteps.I smiled then not because I was able to convince her,but
because of her pitch. I was told once that the higher the pitch is the lower is
the salary ,thus the househelper when it answers the phone,si ate wala dito, but
the lower the pitch is the higher the salary is, hence, the people in the
corporate world will answer the phone this way,Yes,Sir this is Ayala Busines
Firm in Makakati may I help you ?Ladies and gentlemen,what is your pitch?Lets
have the same pitch of our voice.The k+12.

“OneVoice, One Nation” ... by Ophelia S. Lumogda

“OneVoice, One Nation” is the spirit that binds the international community to basic education commitments during the International Consultative Forum on Education for All (EFA) in April 2,000 in Dakar ,Senegal. Different sectors, educators, organizations,different associations, world representatives, governments, and even the world bank pledge to support the goals and targets of EFA by 2015.The group unites a common belief that education is a fundamental human right. It is the key to sustainable development , peace and stability within and among countries and thus an indispensable means for effective participation in the societies and economies of the 21st century .After knowing that through the EFA assessments in 2000, that there has been 113 million children have no access to primary education and 880 million adults are illiterate this become a concern for it affects rapid globalization.

The Education for All (EFA) was first launched in Jomtien, Thailand in 1990 to
bring the benefits of education to “every citizen in every society.” National
governments, civil society groups, and development agencies like UNESCO and the
World Bank are part of the commitment.

Our country Philippines participates and commits also on Education for all (EFA)
and it dwells on the vision that by 2015, the Philippinesis an educated nation
where citizens are functionally literate. Functional literacy is considered as
the ability to communicate, to solve problem, to sustainably use resources, to
develop oneself, and to have a broad perspective about the world.

The following are the aim, Production task and Enabling task
Aim:
* Universal coverage of out-of-school youths and adults in the provision
of basic learning needs. All persons who failed to acquire the essential
competence to be functionally literate in their native tongue, in Filipino,
and in English.

* Universal school participation and elimination of drop-outs and
repetition in first three grades. All children aged six should enter school
ready to learn and prepared to achieve the required competencies for Grades
1 to 3.

* Universal completion of the full cycle of basic education schooling with
satisfactory achievement levels by all at every grade or year.

* Total community commitment to attainment of basic education competencies
for all: Every community should mobilize all its social, political,
cultural and economic resources and capabilities to support the universal
attainment of basic education competencies in Filipino and English.

* Production Tasks
* Make every school continuously perform better.
* Make expansion of Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) coverage
to yield more EFA benefits.

* Transform non-formal and informal interventions into an alternative
learning system (ALS) yielding more EFA benefits.

* Promote practice of high quality teaching.
* Adopt a 12-year program for formal basic education to the existing
10-year basic education schooling.

* Accelerate articulation, enrichment, development of the basic education
curriculum in the context of the pillars of new functional literacy.

* Enabling Tasks
-Provide adequate and stable public funding for country-wide attainment of EFA
goals.

-Create a network of community-based groups for local attainment of EFA goals.
-Monitor progress in efforts towards attainment of EFA goals. Of particular
importance is the development and implementation of indicators of “quality
education”.

These visions of EFA in the Philippines on aims, production task and enabling
task will not only make our country competitive globally but it will increase
the target performance of every school such as 100% promotion rate, o% retention
rate, as well as 0% drop-out rate and others and through the K+12 model which
the Deped is determined to enact makes EFA on SY1215 comes to reality

Mercy O. Caronia: Educational System in Japan

Dear Professor Alonsabe,

Greetings!

The sharing and the reporting on the different Educational System of the selected countries as one of the requirements and basis of our grade is really a good and useful assignment or task.

Why?

It is simply because; it helps me to become more familiar and aware of the educational system of other countries. This would aid me to know their similarities, differences and as well as their excellent and great contributions to the lives of their citizens and to the country as a whole. Sincerely, I’m not that familiar of the diverse educational systems of other countries. This task given to us made me more open-minded and encourages me lot to become an ADVOCATE of the K+12, not because I am a teacher by profession, a mother but truly because I care for others and to our beloved country.

The Educational system of JAPAN as reported and shared to us by soon to be PRINCIPAL of Gingoog City no other than, MS. MITCHEL M. VILLACERAN is so impressive and remarkable.

The reporter made mention of the following very extraordinary and important information’s about the Educational System of JAPAN:

United States of America’s School system is the MODEL of JAPAN.
France as well is the model for the centralized administration system and the school district system.
In 1900, the Elementary school fees were being abolished.

A system of automatic progression was adopted.
Japanese Education for nine years is compulsory and that’s elementary for 6 years and 3 years for Junior High School, and the students’ during these stages do not flunk.
After which they will proceed to Senior High School for 3 years as well before taking the Higher Education for 4 years.
In Elementary education there is this School Lunch Law (kyuushoku) wherein personally designed by them to teach the children the proper etiquette of eating and the things to do and not to do before, while and after eating.
There report card system is in descriptive form.


An example of Time table as shown below presented the no. of minutes each subject being taught;

Mon Tue Wed Thurs Fri
8:30 a. Teacher’s Meeting
b. Reading
c. Health Check
d. Morning Assembly a. Teacher’s Meeting
b. Reading
c. Health Check
d. Morning Assembly a. Teacher’s Meeting
b. Reading
c. Health Check
d. Morning Assembly a. Teacher’s Meeting
b. Reading
c. Health Check
d. Morning Assembly a. Teacher’s Meeting
b. Health Check
c. Morning Assembly
8:50 Period 1 Period 1 Period 1 Period 1 Period 1
8:50 Period 2 Period 2 Period 2 Period 2 Period 2
10:20 Recess Recess Recess Recess Recess
10:40 Period 3 Period 3 Period 3 Period 3 Period 3
10:40 Period 4 Period 4 Period 4 Period 4 Period 4
12:10 Lunch
Brushing of teeth Lunch
Brushing of teeth Lunch
Brushing of teeth Lunch
Brushing of teeth Lunch
Brushing of teeth
12:55 Recess Recess Recess Recess Recess
13:15 Cleaning Cleaning Period 5 Cleaning Cleaning
13:30 Self – study Self – study Period 5 Self – study Self – study
13:45 Period 5 Period 5 Period 5 Period 5 Period 5
14:30 Period 6 Period 6 14:00 Closing Assembly Closing Assembly Period 6
15:15 Closing Assembly Closing Assembly 14:15 Club, Committee Free time Closing Assembly
15:30 Free time Free time 15:00 Free time Free time Club
16:20 Going Home Going Home 15:00 Going Home Going Home Going Home

An example of School Calendar

Month Semester School Events Parents Participation
2nd week of Apr. Spring Vacation School Entrance Ceremony •
First Term Formal Start of Classes
Physical Health Check
May Visit to children’s Home •
May Excursion
May Sports Test
May All School Trip
June Parental observation of classes / discussion with Parents •
Jul. Whole school cleaning
Jul. Formal end of Classes
Aug Summer Vacation Seaside School
Forest School


Month Semester School Events Parents Participation
Sept Second Term Formal Start of Classes
Oct Sports Day •
Nov Presentation of children’s achievements (Arts and Culture Festival) •
Dec



Parental Observation of classes and discussion with Parents

Disaster Preparation Training

Whole School Cleaning
Formal end of Classes •
Before Christmas Winter Vacation
Jan Third Term Formal Start of Classes
Feb Marathon
Parental Observation of classes and discussion with Parents •
Mar Whole School Cleaning
Formal end of Classes
Graduation Ceremony •
Spring Vacation

The sharing of Ma’am Mitch was great and amazing, because she herself visited JAPAN and she even witnessed and observed some of the classroom settings and discussions of the country during her tour in JAPAN. She did even experience some of the school and classroom scenarios.

Is in it amazing?

But of course……..

Mercy Caronia: Education in Finland

Dear Professor Alonsabe,


Greetings!

I am so much grateful of having this subject. I am much amazed as well, with the different presentations and sharing on the Educational System of the different countries of my classmates. I really appreciated their efforts upon doing their responsibility and presentation in this subject, despite of their busy career.

Today, the educational system that will be presented to us is of FINLAND which will be delivered by the newly awarded MOST PERFORMING PRINCIPAL of Misamis Oriental, MR. JOEL JAIME.

Before he starts his discussion and sharing he presented to us two religious songs in a form of video as a prayer, which made me somehow ponder and reflected on my trespasses as a person considering that we are in an Audio Visual Room which is an air-conditioned area.

The following are the things being shared to us by Sir Jaime:

Educational System Chart of Finland

Pre-School Education

• Pre-school education is intended for six-year-olds, who will start their compulsory education in the following year.
• Participation in pre-school education is voluntary, and it is provided in day care centres and in pre-school classes operating in connection with comprehensive schools.
• In Finland, pre-school education means the systematic education and instruction provided in a day care centre (kindergarten) or a comprehensive school in the year preceding the beginning of school.
• Subject fields are: language and interaction, mathematics, ethics and philosophy, environmental and natural studies, health, physical and motor development and art and culture.

Basic Education

• Basic education is intended for children from seven to sixteen years of age, and its completion in comprehensive school takes nine years.
• All children permanently resident in Finland are subject to compulsory education for a period of ten years starting in the year of their seventh birthday.
• Basic education is general education provided free of charge for entire age groups.
• Basic education is governed by the Basic Education Act of 1998
• The broad national objectives and the allocation of time to the instruction in different subjects and subject groups and to childrens counselling are decided by the Government. The National Board of Education decides on the objectives and core contents of instruction by confirming the core curriculum. Based on these, each provider of education prepares the local curriculum.
• The network of comprehensive schools covers the entire country.
• For school journeys exceeding five kilometres, transportation is provided free of charge.
• Teaching groups in basic education are formed according to year classes.

• During the first six years, instruction is usually given by the class teacher, who teaches all or most subjects.
• Instruction in the three highest forms is usually in the form of subject teaching, where different subjects are taught by subject teachers.
• Basic education also includes pupil counselling and, if necessary, special education.
• The basic education syllabus includes at least the following subjects: mother tongue and literature (Finnish or Swedish), the other national language (Swedish or Finnish), foreign languages, environmental studies, civics, religion or ethics, history, social studies, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, geography, physical education, music, visual arts, craft and home economics.


Features of basic education

• no admission requirements
• no charges
• a nine-year comprehensive school
• may include voluntary one-year pre-school education and voluntary one-year additional education (10th form)
• instruction arranged in schools near the home
• no official qualification; final certificate granted for acceptable completion of the syllabus
• provides eligibility for all upper secondary education
• almost all Finnish children complete comprehensive school
• interruption and repeating a form is rare
• compulsory education is fulfilled by completing the basic education syllabus

General Upper Secondary education

• Upper secondary school offers general education for students of about 16-19 years of age.
• It continues the educational task of comprehensive school and gives students eligibility for all studies at the tertiary level.
• Upper secondary school ends with the matriculation examination.
• Since 1982, instruction in upper secondary schools has been divided into courses, each consisting of about 38 lessons.
• The broad national objectives and the allocation of time to the instruction in different subjects and subject groups and to student counselling are decided by the Government. The National Board of Education decides on the objectives and core contents of instruction by confirming the core curriculum. Based on these, each provider of education prepares the local curriculum. The curriculum must provide students with individual choices concerning studies, also utilising the instruction offered by other education providers, if necessary.
• The school year is usually divided into five or six periods. A separate timetable is drawn up for each period, concentrating on certain subjects.
• Students' progress and the composition of teaching groups thus depends on the students' choice of courses.
• Consequently, year classes have been abolished in all upper secondary schools, which now function without fixed forms Upper secondary school studies consist of compulsory, specialisation and applied courses.
• All students must complete the compulsory courses. Schools must provide specialisation courses for students to choose from.
• Each student is responsible for completing a sufficient number of courses. Applied courses may be either further studies in subjects already studied or other subjects.
• The provision of these courses can be decided independently by each school. They can also be offered in co-operation with other educational institutions, such as vocational or music institutions.


Features of upper secondary school

• the admission requirement for the upper secondary school is the completion of comprehensive school
• upper secondary schools select their students mainly on the basis of previous study record
• in practice application takes place through the national joint application procedure
• upper secondary school studies primarily aim at further studies at the tertiary level
• progress in studies is individual
• syllabus planned for three years
• possible to finish in two years, maximum four years
• students usually 16-19 years of age
• upper secondary school instruction also provided for adults, adjusted to their circumstances
• more than half of each age group complete upper secondary school


Vocational Education

• Initial vocational education builds on the basic education syllabus and provides 2-3-year instruction in almost all fields of working life. However, there is a decision to extend the duration of all initial vocational education to three years by the year 2001.
• Initial vocational education is also open to upper secondary school leavers. The duration of studies is 0.5-1 year shorter for them, due to the credits transferred from upper secondary school studies.
• There are 75 initial vocational study programmes.
• These yield extensive basic vocational skills for various assignments in their field and, in addition, more specialised expertise in one sector of the study programme.
• A three-year vocational qualification provides general eligibility for higher education.

• The Government decides on the general objectives of vocational education and training, the general structure of the study programmes and on the common studies.
• The Ministry of Education decides on the details and scope of the study programmes.
• The National Board of Education issues the national core curricula determining the objectives and core contents of the studies.
• Based on these, each provider of education prepares its curriculum.
• The Ministry of Education grants licences to organise vocational education, determining the education providers' fields of study and total number of students, etc.
• Within the framework of the licence and the confirmed structure of the study programmes, the education providers may focus their education as they see fit, allowing for the local and regional economic and working life needs.


Features of initial vocational education

• the admission requirement is the completion of the basic education syllabus
• education providers mainly select their students on the basis of previous study record, but they may also arrange entrance or aptitude tests and take the applicant's previous work experience into account
• application for studies takes place through the national joint application procedure
• the studies primarily aim at the acquisition of the vocational skills necessary in working life; in addition, the three-year programmes give general eligibility for further studies at universities and other institutions of higher education
• opportunities for individual progress in the studies have been increased
• initial vocational qualifications can be taken in institutional education, as apprenticeship training or through competence-based examinations
• development objectives: the proportion of training at workplaces will be increased in institutional education (on-the-job training periods to be attached to the programmes); apprenticeship training will be expanded; initial vocational programmes will include a practical demonstration to ensure that the objectives of vocational studies have been achieved

• instruction is also offered to adults, adjusted to their circumstances (competence-based examinations: initial vocational qualifications, further and specialist vocational qualifications)

Polytechnic Education

• The Finnish polytechnic system was built during the 1990's to create a non-university sector in higher education. It is founded on the institutions which previously provided post-secondary vocational education and which have been developed to form a nationwide network of regional institutions of higher education, i.e. polytechnics. In the autumn of 2001, there were a total of 29 polytechnics.
• Polytechnics provide instruction for expert functions in the sectors of natural resources, technology and communications, business and administration, tourism, catering and institutional management, health care and social services, culture, and the humanities and education.
• Studies leading to a polytechnic degree take 3.5-4.5 years.
• The Ministry of Education confirms the degree programmes, but the curricula are independently decided by the polytechnics.

Features of polytechnics

• the admission requirement is the completion of a vocational qualification or the matriculation examination
• polytechnics select their students independently; application takes place through the national joint application procedure
• polytechnic studies lead to higher education degrees
• the scope of education is 3.5-4.5 years; students have the right to exceed this by one year
• all degree programmes include an on-the-job training period of at least 20 credits (half the academic year)
• instruction is free of charge
• education providers are municipal or private; the State does not maintain polytechnics
• close research and development co-operation with the regional working life


University Education

• There are twenty universities in Finland: ten multidisciplinary universities, three universities of technology, three schools of economics and business administration and four art academies. The network of universities covers the different parts of the country and provides a student place for almost one third of the age group. All universities are owned by the State. Academic degrees in the military field can be taken at the National Defence College falling under the administrative field of the Ministry of Defence.
• The decision-making system of the universities is highly independent. Their operation is prescribed by the Universities Act and Decree. Moreover, their activities are regulated by field-specific decrees on degree systems, governing the field-specific educational duties as well as the definitions, structures, scope, objective and contents of degrees. Universities and their faculties decide on the degree regulations and curricula.
• Universities select their own students independently.
• Various types of entrance examinations form a central part of the selection process.
• The total intake of the universities guarantees a student place for about a third of the relevant age group.
• The number of university students has increased by some 40 % during the last ten years. In total, there are about 152,000 students.
• The number of postgraduate students is about 20,000.
• The annual number of degrees taken amounts to about 17,000, of which Master's degrees account for almost 12,000 and doctorates for more than 1,000.
• The average duration for completing a Master's degree is about 6.5 years.

Today is a very successful day for me, hence I’ve learned a lot of things that someday somehow made me to become a more better and responsible person in the field of Philippine Education that will be an aid and advocate to my children, friends and others to become a productive citizen of this Nation.

Mercy Caronia: Educational System of AUSTRALIA

Educational System of AUSTRALIA was being shared to us by one of the great, successful and productive PRINCIPALS’ of Camiguin Island, the ever smiling and humorous lady in the person of Ma’am LINDA D. SAAB.

Before she does her sharing, she showed to us the history of AUSTRALIA in a form of video presentation. And as she goes over to her sharing and reporting she did mention the following:

The Educational System in Australia Consists of a total of 12 years. Primary and High Schools are based on the age of the students, so that every room has the same age group, with a student hardly having to repeat a year. The students with problems in their studies may be put into special classes to help with academic deficits. The majority of the children start in the primary school with the age of 5 years (year 1) and the child studies in the primary school until they are around 12 years old (year 7).

Primary and Secondary Schools of Australia
There are many types of education for children up to 5 years, but the main ones are the “Child Care” regulated centers or families in registered residences who take care of the kids in a system called “Family Day Care”.

High School The students goes for secondary school with 12/13 years (year 8), and he/she is only compulsorily required to stay to year 10, receiving a junior high school certificate but not a high school certificate. The year 11 (15/16 YO) and 12 (16/17 YO), are optional but are required to be successfully completed to attain a high school diploma. Some of the options of the students leaving the school in year 10 include training – apprenticeship, to enter the work force or to study in any vocational course.

Year 11 and 12 • The results of the last two years of high school are the most important ones, as they are the ones to be evaluated for the entry levels in Universities. The results which the student achieve for each subject (compared to the rest of the students) will then give him/her a rank.

• The board of secondary studies then calculates an “OP” score (overall position) using a formula of the high schools results and a test which is taken by every year 12 in the state, which is used to compare students (schools) of the same year level between schools.
• The last 2 years is where students begin to guide their education towards their chosen professions. The students will choose what to study depending on the career in which they intent to follow.
• For international students, there are options with easier level subjects inside the curriculum. There is the easy level English, the easy mathematics etc, and they are the options of the students not going to apply for an academic career in a university course.
• In general the subjects are divided in letters such a Math’s type A, B, C or names such as Board English (harder one) and English Communication (easier one).
Timetable • The schedule of the lessons is Monday to Friday, from 8:45 am to 3:00pm, with of course breaks during snacks and lunch time. Extra Curricular activities such as soccer practice, dance classes, etc. is done after school hours or Saturday mornings.
Transport • The government schools offer subsidized public transport if necessary but most of the students who are enrolled in the school, usually live around the geographic area limit of n school and are able to go walking or by bicycle.

School year Calendar • Australia is in the South hemisphere; therefore the academic year coincides with the calendar year, starting in the end of January and finishing in December. The summer vacations are the biggest school holidays (period of 6/7 weeks), and during the school year there are also small breaks usually about 10 – 14 days between terms (2 terms per semester). Not all states go all holidays at the same time, for example the vacations of Queensland (one of the universities in Australia) generally begins a week before NSW which begins 1 week before the State of Victoria. This difference is most likely in place so to maximize holiday and tourists places, which would then extend for further. The timetable for school vacations are in general in April, July and September. The beginning of the holidays in public schools also differs by around 1 week from private schools.

The difference between Private and Public Schools in Australia • Private schools in general are related to a religion and usually they offer more options in music and sports. In both, all students have to use of uniforms but in the private schools the rules are more restricted about the use of a complete uniform. The educational courses and standards of all high schools are very similar and all prepare students for the same national, recognized qualifications in the country. Some schools also offer in the years 11 and 12 professional qualifications level for Certificate 2 and 3.

Technical Courses • The Certificates and Diplomas of Vocational Courses allow the students to enter and leave different levels of academic studies. The unify system of education allows the student to register for Certificate course which then after completion may give credits to Diploma courses or Degrees, in case the student continues in a University. Professional experience may also be recognized. The Technical courses are often considered a “bridge” to enter in an Australian University.

Universities • Australia has both government and private Universities that offer to programs called “ Under Graduate”, and after graduation courses called “Post Graduate or Graduate Programs”. In general the time of duration of the Graduate Certificates =6months. Master=1year, Master Honor 1.5 year, Doctorate= 2years. However these degrees are not measured by time but by subjects/courses taken, therefore depending on how may subjects/courses you are doing per semester, it may impact the time it takes to complete them. Most of these post graduate courses however, do have a time limit to complete.

Educative Credit in Universities (HECS) • For all Australian citizens, the government provides an interest loan called “HECS”, which only needs to be paid once that person is earning above a certain level ($28,000 per a). Once that person earns above that threshold then the government begins to deduct a tax or percentile from their income. Therefore Australians do not need to pay for their education until they are earning enough money. Post Graduate courses have a similar finance.

The report feeds us a lot of information specifically on the Educational System of AUSTRALIA.

The sharing was great and I’ve learned a lot from it.

That was great, informative and successful task of Ma’am Linda.