Poor students top DepEd test

Poor students, whose families’ annual incomes registered below the poverty threshold of P150,000, fared well in the National Career Assessment Examination (NCAE) administered by the Department of Education (DepEd) on Jan. 17.

The NCAE results revealed that, of 1.3 million high school students who took the NCAE this year, 22,267 students belonging to families living below the poverty line "are among the highest performers, with very high to excellent scores (98 to 99 + percentile ranks)." DepEd National Educational Testing and Research Center (NETRC) director Nelia Bonito said 33,444 poor students also received very high scores in the Technical-Vocational subtest, which was also administered so the government could measure the students’ potential for technical and vocational work.

Education Secretary Jesli Lapus called on the parents of students who took the NCAE to use the exam results to help their children choose a career.

"The NCAE is a guide for students, so that they will really find a proper fit for themselves when they enter the job or entrepreneurial markets," Lapus said.

"Beyond using the NCAE as a tool for students, we hope to use the results as a tool for reseach," Lapus said. "We expect it to affect both higher education and tech-voc education."

He also called on schools to look into the NCAE results so the appropriate interventions may be instituted. Lapus also noted the importance of the NCAE for scholars: "Donors and benefactors can use the NCAE as a tool for assessing the viability of their beneficiaries."

He also said "Donors must give priority to underprivileged students who have performed well in particular tests. This ensures that their investments are not wasted." – Rainier Allan Ronda