According to the human capital theory, the economic development of a
nation is a function of the quality of its education. In other words: the more
and better educated a people, the greater the chances of economic development.
The modern world in which we live is often termed a "knowledge
society"; education and information have become production factors
potentially more valuable than labor and capital.
Thus, in a globalized setting, investment in human capital has become a
condition for international competitiveness.
The 1987 Constitution likewise guarantees the right to education of
every Filipino. It provided that, “The State shall protect and promote the
right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take
appropriate steps to make education accessible to all.”
However, despite the legal mechanisms, budget prioritization and
increased access, Philippine education has been dogged with issues.
Among the issues that needs to be resolved but have improved lately
include the high dropout rates, high number of repeaters, low passing grades,
lack of particular language skills, failure to adequately respond and address
the needs of people with special needs, overcrowded classrooms and poor teacher
performances.
These problems in turn resulted to a considerable number of illiterate
Filipinos and out of school youths and graduates who are not prepared for work.
In this situation, logically, there exist only two strategic
alternatives: either, one increases the resources, which is easier said than
done considering the dramatic state of public finances, or one reduces the
number of students which is also a problem considering moral implications of
such.
This second alternative presupposes a systematic population policy,
aimed at reducing the number of births considerably.
But this, too, is easier said than done, considering the politics in
this country -- or to quote a Philippine Congressman: "Given the very aggressive and active intervention of the Church
addressing the population problem is very hard to tackle."
About the author: Gideon Hope Cachero is an active university student
leader. With other national and local government representatives, he once
headed about 25,000 college students in their quest for a continuous quality
college education in the Philippines.