DepEd tests teachers' competence in handling key subject areas

Monday, February 13, 2012

THE Department of Education (DepEd) has started administering tests to teachers handling Grades 1 and 2 classes ahead of the implementation of the new curriculum under its K to 12 education program.

The Test of English Proficiency for Teachers (TEPT) and Process Skills Test (PST) in Science and Math are part of the department's assessment on the capability of public school teachers to teach the new curriculum, Education Secretary Armin Luistro said.

Have something to report? Tell us in text, photos or videos.

"We want our teachers fully equipped when we introduce the new curriculum this school year," Luistro said.

He said the result of the TEPT and PST will serve as basis for the kind of training and intervention the department will introduce this summer to fully prepare the teachers for the new curriculum.

The tests started February 5 for teachers in the National Capital Region (NCR), February 12 for teachers from Calabarzon and Mimaropa, February 19 in Ilocos Region and Cagayan Valley, February 26 for Bicol Region and Zamboanga Peninsula, March 11 for Soccsksargen, March 18 for Western Visayas and Caraga; March 25 for Northern Mindanao and Davao Region; April 1 for Regions 7 (Central Visayas) and 8 (Eastern Visayas); April 15 for Central Luzon and Cordillera Autonomous Region and April 22 for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The new curriculum would see Grade 1 pupils going to classes for half a day, while the curriculum for first year high school students will be more interactive and relevant in everyday life.

"From six hours contact time every day, we will reduce it to four hours to make education less stressful and more enjoyable for our young learners," Luistro said, adding that schooling should be enjoyable.

Teachers, on the other hand, were mandated to teach the new curriculum using the lingua franca or mother tongue.

The official explained that using mother tongue is pursuant to earlier studies that schoolchildren learn faster if they were taught using their mother tongue or the spoken dialect or language.

He added this is also in line with the department's intention to make learning more enjoyable and easily understood lessons using their language.

The new grade 1 and first year high school curriculum will debut when classes open in June 2012.

Under the K to 12 program, the public school system will have kinder six years in elementary, four years in junior high school, and two more years for senior high school where students will have more time to sharpen their employable skills.

DepEd's move is part of the education reform program under the Aquino administration which seeks to produce high school graduates who are equipped with skills for the world of work, have better needed competencies for college education and ready for global opportunities. (AH/Sunnex)