HEIs participation in senior high school program to address demand for add’l classrooms

Allowing the participation of higher education institutions (HEIs) in senior high school (SHS) program in the short term can be a "win-win” solution to address the projected additional demand for classrooms in SHS as part of the enactment of the K to 12 program. Government think-tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) released a policy note that undertook an initial assessment of the K to 12 program’s effects on the supply of classrooms and teachers vis-à-vis the projected demand. The paper stressed that enabling the HEIs to offer the SHS program in the meantime will allow the Department of Education (DepEd) to delay or reduce the number of classrooms that the public sector needs to construct to meet the requirements of the SHS program, thereby reducing the pressure on government resources and capability. "HEI participation in the SHS program, in the short term, would buy DepED time to determine the real demand for SHS places before it actually builds the needed classrooms, thereby enabling it to avoid the possibility of overbuilding of classrooms,” it noted. Likewise, the PIDS paper said this will avoid private HEIs from retrenching their faculty members who would be left with no students to teach because of the missing cohorts over the 2016-2019 period. It pointed out the current HEI faculty provides a ready source of teaching expertise for the higher level subjects required in the new SHS curriculum. "It will ensure that the resources of state universities and colleges are put to optimum use instead of being underutilized,” it said. However, for HEIs to actively participate in the SHS program, the paper underscored the need for the country to create an enabling policy environment. These policies include the provision of mechanisms or programs such as education service contracting, vouchers and concession arrangements, to encourage private HEIs to make available for the use of incoming SHS students over the 2016-2019 period the places that will be left vacant by the missing cohorts in the collegiate level. "Other policies (like credit window for classroom construction) will support private HEIs that will be interested to offer the SHS program on a long-term basis,” it added.//