EDCOM REPORT OF 1991

EDCOM REPORTOF1991WHAT IS EDCOM?EDCOM stands for Congressional Commission on Education to Review and Assess Philippine Education.It was created by a Joint Resolution of the Eight Philippine Congress on the 17th of June in 1990.

WHAT IS EDCOM REPORT?This is considered as a contemporary assessment that also studied the future directions of the educational set-up in the country, thus, marking the Fifth Republic as one of the milestones of the Philippine education. (Villenas, 2013)The report assessed the scenario of education in the Philippines.The aim was to elicit common concerns and issues about the current educational set-up, participants assessment of the schools performance, quality of educational programs & services, and their suggestions to revolutionize the system.

EDCOM FINDINGSToo Little Investment in EducationThe government is not spending enough for education as compared with ASEAN countries. Only 1.3% of the GDP is allotted to the education sector.Disparities in Access in EducationThe rich and high income families were favored by the educational institutions, whether formal and nonformal. There is a high percentage of incomplete primary and elementary schools in depressed regions.

Low AchievementPupils on average learn only 55% or even less of what must be learned. On the other hand, rich and high income families got higher achievement records.High Drop-out Rate in Less Developed CommunitiesDrop-out rates in elementary and secondary schools are highest in rural and less developed communities and among poor students.Special Needs NeglectedMuslim and cultural communities as well as special learners suffer from benign neglect. Limited ECE & NFE ServicesOnly rich families acquired early childhood education and development. Nonformal education services are inadequate and found only in developed communities.Schooling Length & Class Interruptions, Less QualityDisruptions in regular class schedules and length of school year correlate with less learning and less quality.Inadequate science and technologyScience and technology including modern innovations are inadequate, or if not, unsuited to classroom instruction.

Ineffective Values EducationValues education in schools is lacking and ineffective.Bilingual Education affects learningThe use of Filipino and English as mode of instruction distresses the quality of learning. Manpower MismatchedIncompatibility in the supply and demand for educated and trained manpower is seen.Irrelevance of EducationEducation is found to be insignificant to the individual and social needs.

Incompetent Training & InstructionInadequacy of trained and effective teachers was shown. Graduate studies are mediocre, limited and underdeveloped.Ineffective and Inefficient OrganizationOrganizational structure of the educational system is ineffective and inefficient. The report also showed that same problems were reported since the Monroe Survey in 1925 up to EDCOM Report of 1991.No significant improvement in Philippine education is seen for over 65 years. EDCOM RECOMMENDATIONSBased on the findings, EDCOM recommended the following reforms:The prioritization of basic education by to ensure the then Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS) undivided attention to this sector;The development of alternative learning modes especially for literacy acquisition;

The use of the mother tongue as language of learning from Grades 1 to 3, with Filipino gradually becoming the medium of instruction in basic education and English a subsidiary medium of instruction in later years;The expansion and enrichment of technical/vocational education;The strengthening of pre-service teacher education and provision of incentives to make the rewards of teaching commensurate to its importance as a career;

Professionalization of teachers and teaching with licensure exams and increase in the basic minimum wage salary;Support for both public and private education;The facilitation of planning, delivery, and education financing and training by industry, workers, teachers, parents and local governments;Greater access of poor children to all levels of education; More cost-effective public college and university education with curricular programs that are relevant to the communities they serve;The search for new sources of funds (including taxes) to finance basic education;Strengthening graduate education and research;

Creation of Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to be the main body responsible for colleges and universities, both private and public.The restructuring of the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS), now Department of Education (DepEd), to ensure clearer program focus, rational resource allocation and realistic planning;

With the proposed restructuring of the Philippine Education, this will ensure that program focus is clear and resources are allocated rationally and plans are realistic and attainable. For the final point, the EDCOM commended also that the government should put all our money in basic education because it is all the formal schooling the masses of our people get. However, the government must ensure more efficiency and productivity from our education establishment.

-REJULIOS M. VILLENASMA EDUCATIONAL MANAGEMENTPNU LOPEZ CAMPUSQUEZON