INNOTECH Backs DepEd Chief in Tech-Voc Program

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SEAMEO INNOTECH is backing up a renewed effort by the Philippine Department of Education to strengthen the implementation of technical-vocational education in public high schools in the country. This has become one of the top priorities of Education Secretary Jesli Lapus who expressed his full support during a recent conference on tech-voc education.

Secretary Lapus said the push for tech-voc education is not an abandonment of the Department’s primary mandate of providing basic education. It is rather a means of ensuring that the Filipino youth not only get “general scholastic abilities” but also develop the aptitude and skills needed to make them employable “whether or not they have college diplomas.”

Tech-voc education, Mr. Lapus said, is the answer to the skills-and-jobs mismatch in the labor market. The program would guarantee that the youth are provided with relevant education they need in order to live productive lives.

Mr. Lapus said he still believes in the “value of education for education’s sake…(but) we cannot turn our backs to the social and economic realities of our time. Our people need jobs and we must empower them well enough to get those jobs.” He believes this could be done through relevant education.

He claimed the tech-voc track is “the best career option” for many graduating high school students. “The tech-voc jobs are there, both here and abroad…and the skills are there, too” as seen in the results of the National Career Achievement Examination (NCAE). The NCAE, which was first given this year, revealed a high aptitude of many senior high school students for technical-vocational programs.

The Education Secretary assured stakeholders that he would personally oversee the proper implementation of the program. He stressed, however, the importance of the support of education officials from the regional down to the school level to strengthen the tech-voc initiative. He has asked the regional directors and division superintendents to tap the local industries for support in their efforts. He also called on the tech-voc coordinators and the school principals to coordinate with colleges in their localities and create opportunities for the tech-voc program.

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