College curriculum should be re-engineered — CHED

The chairman of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said yesterday that the tertiary education curriculum in the country should be re-engineered to fit the needs of industry.

In a speech delivered before the CHED technical panel at the Legend Hotel in Mandaluyong City, CHED Chairman Dr. Carlito Puno said the Philippine educational system has to undergo radical transformation and renewal "if it is to effectively play an unprecedented role in society."

He called for major changes in policies, practices, and linkages with local and global institutions.

"To realize these new visions and directions, it is necessary to re-engineer the curricula using more focused and appropriate methods that go beyond cognitive mastery of disciplines as well as new pedagogical and didactical approaches," Puno said.

University and college presidents must rise above their past experiences, he added.

In his speech, Puno cited the "mismatch" in what the schools teach and what the industries need, which he said has been going on for decades.

This is the reason why a number of college graduates cannot find jobs and many take jobs not related to their college courses.

Puno had already mentioned the problem of the mismatch in the level of skills of graduates and the expectations of industries in the Cabinet meeting last June 20.

Based on a professional demand and supply analysis, the country will need, for example, only about 40,000 teachers in the next five years but the projected graduates of education courses will reach 350,000.

Puno said there is also a projected oversupply of graduates in other courses such as business management, communication arts and Customs administration.

In this case, there is a need to re-direct the course preferences of graduating high school students as well as first year and second year college students.

To address the quantitative mismatch, Puno suggested implementing a national career streaming and qualifying examination and a career guidance counseling for graduating high school students and even college students.

For oversubscribed courses, Puno said there should be rigid admission test and screening and a quota system, more liberal tuition increases and a moratorium or stringent requirements for schools offering these courses.

For undersubscribed courses, on the other hand, Puno suggested that the schools should attract more enrollees by providing scholarships and other incentives or government subsidy in the procurement of equipment for priority curricular offerings.

Meanwhile, to solve the qualitative mismatch, Puno stressed the need to improve quality of instruction by providing graduate study scholarships for college faculty as well as elementary and high school teachers in English, Science, and Mathematics.

Graduate school tie-ups can also be forged with leading foreign universities as well as linkages with local industries.