TACLOBAN CITY- While the senior high school is to formally start beginning school year 2016 to 2017, schools in Eastern Visayas are now readying the needed facilities and even teachers.
The region needs at least 318 new school buildings for the first year of the implementation of the senior high school which is under the K to 12 program.
The construction of these school buildings are expected to start within the second quarter of the year.
Emma Mabutin, regional coordinator of the K to 12 program of the Department of Education(DepEd), said that the department will also hire 2,997 new teachers that will handle those who will enroll the Grade 11.
“While we are not yet to implement the program this school year, we are now ready for its implementation beginning school year 2016 to 2017,” Mabutin said.
The regional DepEd projects more than 145,900 students who will enroll in Grade 11 beginning 2016.
In Tacloban, at least eight high schools have already been identified to implement the senior high school by 2016-2017 school years.
These are the Leyte National High School; Tacloban National Agriculture School; San Jose National High School; Northern Tacloban National High School; Scandinavian National High School, Antonio Balmes National High School, Cirilo Roy Montejo Night School and V and G National High School.
At least 3,000 students are expected to enroll the Grade 11 in Tacloban, said Melani Escobarte, coordinator of the Tacloban City Schools Division, adding that more than 40 teachers will be needed to handle the senior high school.
School buildings are to be constructed in all of these schools that will offer the senior high schools beginning second quarter of this year, Escobarte said.
She, however, could not say as to how much will be needed to construct these classrooms in time for the implementation of the senior high school.
“To us, DepEd, this program is a good program as this will help address (labor) mismatch. Our students will now know what course they will take up in college or if they will not pursue their college, they can still find work as they will acquire enough skills,” Escobarte said.
Aside from offering “track subjects,” like accountancy and business management and humanities and social sciences, it also offers technical vocational subjects like cookery, hotel and restaurant and entrepreneurship.
