TODAY, parents around the nation will enroll their children in senior high school (SHS). The new system that implements grades 11 and 12 offers opportunities for students and their parents, specifically access to a government tuition subsidy offered through the SHS voucher program.
Uncertainties about the cost of educating one’s children top the concerns of many Filipinos. The roll-out of SHS today certainly heightens these concerns.
However, by reading about and familiarizing themselves with the features of the K to 12 program through primers uploaded on the official websites of the Department of Education (DepEd), the Commission on Higher Education (Ched), the Philippine Business for Education, and media special reports, parents can apply for financial assistance to secure their children’s future and provide their children with the educational opportunities that will equip them for a life of independence and self-attainment.
Scholarships for college
Contrary to common perceptions, there will be graduates of selected private high schools who may enroll in college during the first semester of school year (SY) 2016-2017. According to a two-part primer published by the Philippine Daily Inquirer on May 1-2, the DepEd website publishes a list of these private high schools, which are mostly located in Metro Manila.
The DepEd exempted these private high school graduates who, prior to today, already underwent an educational process that involved seven years of elementary, four years of high school, Kinder and pre-Kinder, and a transition program that allows them to proceed to college after graduating from high school at the end of SY 2015-2016. According to the PDI primer, these exempted schools had “either Grade 7 or an international K-12 program, such as an International Baccalaureate (IB) program.”
Entering college is also encouraged for the so-called “lifelong learners,” who graduated from high school prior to 2015-2016 but never entered college.
According to the Ched, about 500,000 HS graduates don’t proceed to college every year.
To learn more about scholarships that are available for lifelong learners, parents should visit www.ched.gov.ph and www.pbed.ph, which is the official website of the Philippine Business for Education (PBEd). It is a partnership involving the business community and the United States Agency for International Development (Usaid) to bring about sustained gains in education reform.
Subsidy for SHS
Based on the data of incoming Grade 11 students from private and public HSs who preregistered in October 2015, 75 percent of the 1.5 million students chose the public school system as their first choice.
DepEd officials assure the public that, with the establishment of 200 new public SHSs around the country, there are enough public SHSs to absorb the approximately 1,125,000 incoming Grade 11 students who prefer to enroll in the public system today.
Students preferring the private system are also assured there are enough SHSs attached to higher education institutes (HEIs), state universities and colleges (SUCs), local universities and colleges (LUCs), and technical vocation institutions (TVIs).
Parents must check www.deped.gov/k-to-12/shs to verify if the private SHS of their choice is included in the list of SHSs permitted by the DepEd to offer SHS education. According to the PDI primer, a school’s permit also indicates the specific SHS program the school is authorized to offer.
Parents of incoming Grade 11 enrollees who are concerned about the cost of private SHS can apply online for an SHS voucher at the Private Education Assistance Committee’s Online Voucher Application Portal (Ovap) at ovap.deped.gov.ph. Applications were extended until May 6 only.
The SHS voucher means that the government will subsidize the tuition, or part of it, at the private SHS. Not included are the student’s daily allowance and fare. Grades are not evaluated because the government grants the SHS voucher to those who need financial assistance to enroll in private SHS.
With these mechanisms, the government and private stakeholders partner with parents and students to ensure that senior high school education can open opportunities for learning and advancement that every youth is entitled to.