MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Magandang umaga ulit, Malacañang Press Corps, and welcome sa ating pangalawang press briefing ngayon, February 27.

In today’s sectoral meeting, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., ordered the strengthening of the current Senior High School curriculum and the improvement and embedding of Technical and Vocational Education and Training or TVET within the Senior High School system. This is to ensure that students and graduates of Senior High School are ready and employable for the workforce.

President Marcos stressed the need to reskill and upskill our workers in order to meet the demands of the current and future labor market here in the Philippines and of course, globally. The President expressed the importance of consulting industries and government agencies so that skills training and education are aligned with the goal of future employability. This is, of course, in keeping with the achieving the goals of Ang Bagong Pilipinas.

And here to tell us more about this are TESDA Secretary Suharto Mangudadatu and Deputy Director General for Policies and Planning Rossana Urdaneta. Good morning. Ma’am, I believe you will start the briefing.

TESDA DDG URDANETA: TESDA, DOLE and DepEd came up with a proposal to the President to strengthen Senior High School, kasi mayroon pong study ang PIDS na there’s a demand for workers, pero hindi po tayo nakakapagbigay talaga ng sapat na kaalaman at iyong mga Senior High School po, hindi na-i-employ kaagad-agad. So, what the President had instructed the TESDA Director General, Secretary Mangudadatu is for him to work closely with DepEd and harmonize iyong curriculum po ng TVET as well as that of the Senior High School. So, we proposed this embedment.

Ang ibig sabihin po noon, iyong curriculum po ng DepEd, pinag-aralan po ng  TESDA, umupo kami together with DepEd for us to be able  to contextualize. Iyong contextualize po, for example, iyong mga subjects ng DepEd, tiningnan po ng TESDA iyon, at mayroon po kaming mga ipinasok or mga in-integrate na mga skills development doon po sa curriculum.

Further, if I may ano an example, iyong accountancy, business management po na track, kinontextualize (contextualized) po namin iyong training regulation ng TESDA on bookkeeping. So, ibig sabihin po noon, pagka-graduate ng bata, hindi lang po siya may diploma, mayroon din po siyang national certificate na puwede niyang gamitin kung gusto po niyang mag-trabaho.

And later, if he wants to pursue further higher education, mayroon din po kaming ginagawa, ng CHED ngayon, na credit system at ito po naman make-credit po iyong national certificate nila doon po sa higher education. Ito na po iyong usapin, kasi gusto po ng ating Pangulo na ma-operationalize na po talaga  iyong Philippine Qualifications Framework para magkaroon po tayo ng harmonized at seamless education system. Maraming salamat po.                                                          

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: We have question from Eden Santos, Net 25.

SANTOS/NET 25: Good morning po Secretary and DDG Rossana. Mayroon po ba tayong datos kung ilan po iyong bilang ng mga senior high na hindi po na-employ or na-employ after po noong kanilang pagkuha ng K-to-12, pagkatapos po ng K-to-12 studies?

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Well, mataas naman din. But ang problema po natin is iyong tinatawag nating pag-graduate po sa DepEd is only diploma. Naka-lodge kasi sa TESDA because from this, we divided into trifocal. And that trifocal, iyong mga Tech-Voc Programs at TVET Program is na-lodge po sa TESDA at ang certification na hinahanap ngayon ng mga employment is NCII certified o National Competency Skills Certification. So, may na-employ pa din na mga graduate ng DepEd, pero ang purpose noon is just only to access for the tertiary purposes. So, iyon po ang nangyari sa institution po natin. So, iyong data po niyan, may mga data na nakikita rin but most of the employable are coming from the TESDA kasi nga certified sila as skilled worker. And even the college graduate, iyong nag-a-abroad right now ay nagpapa-qualify din sila, nagpapa-assess din sila for the TESDA because in abroad, recognized is the NCII certification.

SANTOS/NET 25: So dapat po pala ang mangyari, iyong TESDA na lang iyong maging parang DepEd para employed agad iyong estudyante natin?

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Hindi naman po ganoon, ma’am. Alam po ninyo, iyon nga, dati kasi buo ang Department of Education po natin, so may mandato – kailangan iyan kasi hindi lang kailangan employment.

Ang TESDA kasi is more on skills development. Ang DepEd is to prepare the Filipino people for the chosen career path, ibig sabihin maging doctor, lawyers, teachers and any four-year courses.

So, sa amin naman is a short course for the work, which is for the mostly working as a blue collar job and we are also working now for the higher technology. If you see the TESDA, we’re taking care of the skills development. Iyong skills development natin is for worldwide recognition, na magaling ang mga Pilipino because of the training po, during the time na nandiyan si TESDA. Ang kulang sa atin iyong technology, that is why we are now focusing also for the technology – the job for the future, like iyong a cyber-security program, mechatronics, semiconductors, iyon po ang pino-focus po natin right now.

So ang sagot sa tanong po ninyo ay employable din po ang graduate ng K-to-12 pero ang problema kasi is hindi sila certified, hindi sila industrial-based demand or nakatugma sa pangangailangan ng industry po natin.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: One does not replace the other. They are just integrating in order to make things better for those who choose to be employed after senior high. Let’s not forget that many of our senior high students go on to universities as well. Okay, let’s have Tuesday Niu.

NIU/DZBB: Hi, sir. Hi, ma’am. Upon coordination po or talking with DepEd and DOLE, how soon po na ma-implement na iyong integration nitong mga sinasabi po ninyo na courses or subjects doon sa curriculum ng DepEd?

TESDA DDG URDANETA: Ang instruction po ni Presidente ay as soon as possible. So magki-create po ng Technical Working Group ang DOLE, ang DepEd, CHEd—sinama po and CHEd, DOLE, DepEd, TESDA. Ito pong technical working group shall be in charge doon po sa mga nitty-gritty at detalye, particularly po sa curriculum development kasi kailangan po naming ma-integrate nga iyong TVET. So, iyong mga subject matter ‘experts’ po ang uupo. So ang sagot ko po niyan, maikling sagot is ang sabi ni Presidente: “As soon as possible”.

NIU/DZBB: So, ito kayang school year na ito, ma’am, puwede na siya?

TESDA DDG URDANETA: Magpa-pilot po muna kami ha, hindi po ganoon kadali ito. Kahit po kami na matagal na po sa serbisyo ng edukasyon, sinasabing hindi ito madali, pero posible, So, kailangan po talagang umpisahan na namin ngayon. Baka nga po dapat inumpisahan na natin noong kahapon pa eh.

So, ang ano natin is really to work on this because we really want to work together as an education system so that we would be able to really respond to industry-requirements both locally and internationally. Kasi alam naman po ninyo na sa global scene ay ang dami na pong aging population, so kailangan po na magtulung-tulong kami kasi hindi lang po ito puwedeng gawin ng TESDA alone, pero kailangan po na magtulung-tulong kami na mga education agencies.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Yes, in addition to that, what the President said, yes, let’s start as soon as possible, pero pag-aralan ng mabuti. So step-by-step, in coordination with industries and current government agencies para pati iyong mga government employees natin ay ma-reskill and upskill.

MANGALUZ/INQ. NET: This question can go to anyone.  Pero the DepEd recently decongested their curriculum, they overhauled everything. So, am I correct na you are going to add more to it now with all of these additional courses?

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Yes, you are right. Kasi we are now focusing on technologies, the job for the future. So,  kung ma-decongest po natin some other  programs or courses for the CHED and the local government, then the TESDA now will focus on the technology that we have. For example iyon pong mga robotic or mechatronics, semiconductors or electrical vehicles, subway, railway very expensive po iyan eh, ang mga laboratory niya, we have to focus kung paano namin i-strategize na ma-offer natin sa Philippines iyong mga jobs for the future.

JEAN MANGALUZ/INQUIRER.NET: Do we expect po of an overhaul of the Matatag system or babaguhin na nila ito.

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Well, hindi naman po.  But ang DepEd is now coming out with a Matatag Curricula. So, nasa program po nila at may usapin po na Philippine Qualification Framework tungkol—at saka EDCOM 2 is ongoing.

TESDA DDG. URDANETA: In addition to that, ang sinasabi po namin is that hindi namin idi-disturb iyong existing curriculum ng DepEd or iyong niri-review nilang curriculum. When we say we will not disturb, iyong oras at ano ay hindi ho namin iyan papakialaman.

Mas ang inisip namin talaga is to retrain our teachers for them to be able to do TVET programs po. So mas ang focus is iyong mga teachers kasi iko-contextualize sila, so when they do their lesson plans kailangan po na mayroon din silang skill na tinatawag.

Sa mga learners po, more advantageous for them pero ang talagang iniisip po namin na una is not to disadvantage the learners in terms…may mga anak po tayo at mga apo din and we know pretty well kung ano iyong naging problema noong unang bugso ng ating K-to-12 programs. So, ang sagot po namin diyan is that we will not disturb kung ano iyong ginagawa, we will just try to strengthen it.

JEAN MANGALUZ/INQUIRER.NET: Siguro one last follow-up. Pero iri-retrain po iyong teachers ng public schools, or private schools din?

TESDA DDG. URDANETA: We will do the public schools first. So, because of course we have to prioritize dahil po hindi naman ganoon kalaki iyong ating ano ngayon, but later we will do also—kasi if you trained already some teachers then they re-echo the program and do multipliers later.

OSEÑA-PAEZ: Sam Medenilla, Business Mirror.

SAM MEDENILLA, BUSINESS MIRROR: For Ma’am Urdaneta. Ma’am, itatanong ko lang po, kung saan po balak i-pilot at saka kung anong mga skills iyong mga sasama doon sa pilot na gaganapin para po doon sa embedding?

TESDA DDG. URDANETA: Iyong pilot po, sabi nga namin the technical working group will sit down, we will try to select the pilot regions. Una po, in terms of poverty incidence kasi siyempre the largeness, mediumness and smallness of a region, so may criteria po na gagamitin doon sa pag-select ng regions. We have initially selected some regions pero we want to vet it with our other counterparts.

Number two po; iyong isang tanong ninyo kung ano pa po iyong dapat na skills, we have 80 na training regulations po iyong puwede naming na na-identify namin ngayon. So, we have mga 300 plus, so 80 po sa KEGs, key employment generators po iyong ano natin – sa tourism, sa agriculture, sa manufacturing, may creative industries din po.

So lahat po noong key employment generators iyon po ang pinili namin, iyong 80 na iyon, iyon po iyong i-integrate natin para nga iyong ultimate objective is for them to became employable.

SAM MEDENILLA, BUSINESS MIRROR Ma’am, mayroon po ba tayo parang target number of students or training institution na mako-cover or papag-usapan pa ng TWG?

TESDA DDG. URDANETA: Papag-usapan pa po ng TWG nga iyong mga ganiyang detalye kasi conceptual po iyong ano namin ngayon na we wanted to ano talaga iyong study, kaya nga ang sabi ni Presidente pag-aralan mabuti ng technical working group at sabi niya kailangan bumalik ang technical working group sa akin para mag-update at monitor ng mga accomplishments nila.

SAM MEDENILLA, BUSINESS MIRROR: Last question na lang po. Sa ngayon po ano po, ma’am, iyong parang pinaka-skills training madalas na sinu-subscribes ng mga nag-a-avail ng TESDA training at saka ano po ba iyong parang in demand naman para doon sa mga private sector? Nagma-match po ba kung saan nag-e-enroll iyong mga estudyante, iyon po ba iyong kailangan ng industry?

TESDA DDG. URDANETA: We would like to address the mismatch, iyon po ang una naming gustong gawin kaya po ang strategy po ng aming secretary is iyong area based, demand driven, ibig sabihin po noon kung ano ang kailangan ng lugar dahil iyon po ang requirements ng industry ay iyon po ang gagawin namin. Kasi in the past, talagang kung anu-ano lang na kapag welding, welding lahat, kapag ganito; kapag halimbawa atsara-making, food processing ganoon lahat ang gagawin.

Now, we’re trying to tell ourselves that of course with the advent of the fourth and fifth industrial revolution, we have to concentrate already on robotics, iyong mga higher level technologies po. So popular kasi alam ninyo naman, hindi naman kami nawawala kasi may mga tinatawag po kaming generic areas. Iyong generics areas kahit na po anong kumpanya o factory kailangan noon – electro mechanical, electrical, construction, sa welding po at saka iyong when you say generic areas sa tourism. So, ibig sabihin itong mga in-implement naming programa are needed by the industry.

However, hindi ho tayo dapat magtapos noon dahil kailangan mas higher iyong level ng qualifications kasi ang dami pong requirements na ngayon ng mundo, ‘di ba. Iyong mundo, when we say mundo global ang perspective natin eh, we should think local but we have also to act on a certain level na global na rin iyong ano natin ng mga requirements.

So, AI (Artificial Intelligence), iyan po iyong gusto naming gawin, the Secretary is pushing for this, cyber security – sa dami po nangyayari na mga hacking ngayon, kailangan na ma-train natin in all fronts ang ating mga kababayan. Ang sabi din po ni Presidente, including the government workers, because we needed also skills. So, this is our way of really trying to reskill/upskill the Filipinos.

OSEÑA-PAEZ: Eden Santos, Net25.

EDEN SANTOS, NET25:  Secretary, curious lang po ako ‘no, papaano i-integrate sa curriculum po ng DepEd, especially sa elementary iyong mga skills po na binabanggit ninyo?

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Well. Ang focus natin right now is on the K-to-12, hindi sa elementary. So, for instance right now, we have four tracks – the academic track; TVL tracks, exclusive sa amin iyon; arts and sports. So, ang pino-propose namin, iyong TVL track i-merge na lang doon sa academic track which is under the academic track, there are several strands – ABM (Accountancy Business and Management), STEMs (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) and others ‘no.

For instance, iyong ABM (Accounting Business Management), ang puwede naming i-contextualize doon is iyong sa accounting, bookkeeping courses. Doon sa
business management naman ay puwede naming ipasok doon iyong sa front office services. Doon sa management, iyong mga tour guiding po natin of [unclear] services. So ibig sabihin, hindi natin babaguhin iyong curriculum ng DepEd at hindi rin natin puwedeng sirain iyong number of hours na 200 to 220 hours ang target; iko-contextualize doon sa lesson plan. Halimbawa, ang lesson ng ABM sa isang school, nag-o-offer ng ABM strands, so iyong sa lesson plan ng teacher – na-training na po ng TESDA iyong teacher as a trainer – bibigyan niya ng time na ma-allocate doon sa practicum side ng bookkeeping, so magkakaroon sila ng ledger. Kung matuto na sila sa bookkeeping courses at naging college na po sila at naging accounting course, alam na nila iyong bookkeeping at alam pa nila iyong sa accountant. So ibig sabihin, mai-enhance mo talaga iyong career path chosen ng mga bata.

EDEN SANTOS, NET25:  So hindi po magagalaw iyong sa elementary to high school po?

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Hindi pa. But ongoing EDCOM II, the EDCOM II is now studying the elementary, high school and the CHEd po natin; under the Senate po iyon and Congress.

CHONA YU/PEOPLE’S JOURNAL: Sir, good morning. How are you going to address the sentiments of the teachers na overloaded na nga sila sa work and then here comes na may bagong training silang pagdadaanan ngayon?

TESDA SEC. MANGUDADATU: Well, ma’am, hindi naman sila talaga overload kasi nandoon na eh, part na ng curriculum na nila iyan eh. Ang curriculum is walang babaguhin, walang babaguhin. Pero doon sa prioritization ng lesson plan, iyon lang ang bigyan nila ng kaunting emphasis. Hindi naman kasi lahat ng 80 to 84 programs ay papasok; pipiliin lang po nila doon kung ano iyong tugma.

For instance, if you are in far-flung areas in countryside, nasa bundok ka na senior high school, hindi mo naman puwedeng bigyan ng mechatronic programs doon dahil walang kuryente. Sa bookkeeping, puwede kasi mayroon siyang … only ballpen, calculator at saka ledger. So it depends. Hindi niya po magiging dagdag sa oras iyon dahil part na po ng curriculum ng DepEd, we only have to strengthen by having a practicum side. Kasi ang nangyayari sa K-12, ang essence po niyan ng mga congressmen before is at the age of 18, employability na sila, kaya tayo nag-plus two.

Pero noong pag-implement, sineparate nila into academic track at saka and TVL. So mayroon ding TVL, pero ang proposal doon, para bang bigyan natin ng opportunity ang mga Pilipino na, for example, like this, kayo academic track kayo because you’re being chosen for the career path. On my left side, sasabihin nila, TVL track daw sila, hanggang blue-collar job. Bata pa sila, sini-segregate mo na; hindi mo na binigyan ng opportunity. Dapat both of that, academic lahat, turuan mo sila then i-employ mo, I mean, dagdagan mo ng skill, both academic and the TVL track programs, magkaroon ng opportunity ang lahat ng Pilipino. Huwag naman at the age of bata, porke pobre, nasa bundok, i-TVL track mo na kaagad – huwag naman ganoon. Bigyan natin ng opportunity ang lahat ng Pilipino na matuto sila sa chosen career nila at magkaroon din sila ng opportunity, ng kaalaman na maging workforce ready. Kaysa naman diploma lang po ang matatanggap sa DepEd for the access for the tertiary; ngayon, binibigyan natin ng value.

CHONA YU/PEOPLE’S JOURNAL: Sir, one last. Sir, can you give us a profile of the K-to-12 graduates na employed ngayon? Ano iyong mga trabaho nila, ano iyong posisyon nila sa kumpaniya?

TESDA DDG URDANETA: Iyon iyong gusto namin na ma-improve because iyong sinasabi ng PIDS sa study nila, only 20% out of the total senior high school graduates have landed sa employment. Iyong employment pa noon, kung anu-ano lang; hindi talaga … siguro pinaglilinis lang sila or very clerical. Kapag may skills ka kasi at na-value iyong competency mo, iyon iyong sinasabi namin na they are ready sa world of work in terms of kapag halimbawa costumer’s relations officer ka or customer service representative, may competency ka doon, iyon talaga ang ibibigay sa iyo hindi iyong kung anu-ano lang na pinagtitimpla ka ng kape or you will run errands ‘di ba, something like that.

So iyon iyong gusto naming ma-improve ngayon na in terms of employability. Kasi isa sa usapin na sinasabi is that, hanggang kailan sila magiging minimum wage earner. Dapat namo-monetize iyong competencies nila such that, kapag pataas nang pataas ang competency ng tao, pataas din nang pataas dapat ang suweldo.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ:Okay. I’d just want to go back to your question, Chona, about the DepEd and the teachers. The president at the meeting today also stressed that the welfare of teachers is a priority and it must be addressed both their professional and personal needs. He said that many times already. And in today’s meeting, the DepEd was there, represented by our vice president and, of course, Undersecretary Michael Poa as well.

And for that technical working group, let me reiterate that it will be TESDA, DepEd, CHEd and DOLE so that all these changes will be integrated and properly studied.

Question? Please pass, Alvin. Alvin Baltazar.

ALVIN BALTAZAR/PBS: DDG Urdaneta, magandang umaga po. Doon sa pagkakabanggit ninyo regarding doon sa profile ng mga graduates ng K-to-12 na 20% lang iyong nagla-land sa employment pagkatapos parang hindi pa aligned, masasabi ba natin na iyong K-to-12 under Philippine setting, hindi ba aplikable sa atin?

TESDA DDG URDANETA: Hindi? Ano?

ALVIN BALTAZAR/PBS: Iyong K-to-12 sa atin, palagay ninyo, under Philippine setting, applicable ba? Since parang ang preference ng mga employers ay talagang gusto nila ay college graduate eh.

TESDA DDG URDANETA: When you say applicable, applicable naman siya except nga, sabi namin, we have to strengthen kasi may mga weak points eh. Remember when we did it, talagang binuhos natin lahat iyong time natin doon, but we are not yet that prepared. Siguro it has to evolve. And at this point in time, ito na nga iyong realization na education sector that we have to harmonize, we have to help each other and we have to really work on the ano—kasi ang objective lang is to become employable.

So I’m not saying it’s a failure. Lahat po naman ng bansa has to really have this K-to-12. Kung hindi naman po tayo magiging at par with them, then wala na rin pong kukuha sa atin even locally because may mga tinatawag po tayo na mutual recognition of skills, mutual recognition din sa professionals, arrangement sa professional field. So if we will not be able to comply with this, magkakaroon din po tayo ng malaking problema.

So ang usapin po ngayon is that, napunta po na nag-mature na rin iyong K-to-12, that nakita na rin natin iyong mga weaknesses and it has to evolve.

IVAN MAYRINA/GMA7: One final clarification: Ano ho ang ibig sabihin nito para sa mga incoming Grade 11, 12 students and for their parents? Nabanggit ninyo kanina, this is not an overhaul of the curriculum; we are merely strengthening it. No additional hours, no additional expenses in terms of, you know, requirements sa school. Ano ho ang ibig sabihin nito para sa mga mag-aaral at mga magulang?

TESDA DDG URDANETA: Sa mga mag-aaral po, mayroon na silang diploma, may national certificate pa sila. Na kung kakailanganin nila because nagkaroon ng problema ang pamilya at kakailanganin nilang magtrabaho, hindi sila makapag-college kaagad, so mayroon po silang national certificate; they can go to a company or an industry, and they will be able to tell na may competencies po kami dito sa area na ito.

So in terms of parents, wala naman po kaming nakikita na magiging burden sa parents because hindi kami nagdi-disturb ng time. We will stick on the time. Mas ang burden po talaga is that, iyong skill ng mga trainers has to be improved such that they will have to really look into the—ano eh, may learning process po kami sa teaching na learn how to unlearn. So this is the thing that mas magkakaroon po ng impact talaga.

Iyon, sir, ang ano lang namin talaga is employability so that we would be able to really make sure na iyong requirements po ng industriya, iyon po iyong very emphatic kanina si Presidente, na sinasabi niya, we need to consult from A to Z, the industry, so that we would be able to really match their requirements. So ganoon po, we will try to review again the training regulations na isi-share namin sa mga DepEd teachers so that lahat po ay naka-angkla sa key employment generators.

HARLEY VALBUENA/DZME: Hi! Good morning po. Clarify ko lang din po: Will this be mandatory for the students once implemented? I mean, kailangan bang pumili ang isang estudyante ng particular national certificate program kapag po mayroon na or puwede na rin niyang ituloy na lang din iyong current system natin, ng K-to-12?

TESDA DDG URDANETA: Pilot test pa lang po kasi ang gusto namin, sana mandatory nga ang mangyari. But we would try to finalize everything after the pilot testing because we need to pilot test po in terms of sa school, iyong absorptive capacity nila; iyong teachers, kaya ba nila talagang gawin ito? So iyong estudyante, madi-disturb ba iyong estudyante? Even iyong family na, iyong sinasabi ni Mr. Ivan kanina na magkakaroon ba ng expenses? So all of these, we’ll be able to ano pagkatapos po ng pilot.

Ang ano namin is that we will refine it as soon as we get all the information that we can get from the pilot implementation of this program. Kaya nga sabi namin, we don’t want to commit the same mistake in the past. We would try to vet sa lahat po ng stakeholders, itong konsepto na ito. Hindi po puwede na just because gusto namin, i-implement namin, so hindi pa naman ito—talaga ang sabi nga, the president also was very emphatic that you have to sit down, study this; sabi niya, “Mahirap ito pero possible”. So we have to do something about it.

MS. OSEÑA-PAEZ: Okay. On that note, again, sabi nga ni Presidente, simula pa lang ito pero let’s do it right. Okay, so good luck, TESDA, CHEd, DepEd and DOLE.

So thank you so much again, Secretary Mangudadatu and Deputy Director General Urdaneta. And thank you, Malacañang Press Corps. Good afternoon.

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