What the exam showed

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor CHERYL CRUZ Desk Editor PATRICK PANGILINAN Busines Editor NIDA A. BUENAFE Sports Editor RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

Print media yesterday played up the results of the latest examination for teachers held by the Professional Regulatory Commission. The reports said that 23,153 passed the examination, and of this number, 11,120 were elementary school teachers and 12,033 high school teachers.

It should be encouraging to see so many potential additions to the teaching force of our country that has just launched some changes in the curriculum as well as in the time to be dedicated to education, to enable our graduates to be competitive against those of other countries.

The sour note is that, of the total number of education graduates who took the examinations last month, there were 19,205 who did not make it, and flunked the tests. The number is almost half of the total examinees, which also means that many will either have to take the examinations again, or settle for some unrelated jobs, just so they can start earning. Sadly enough, we have many graduates of teaching courses, who had to make do with menial jobs abroad after failing the examinations.

Somehow, the results of the latest teachers examination could also be an indictment on the quality of instruction that those would-be teachers had gone through. After no less than four years of college studies, why did so many of them not manage to hurdle the tests that were based on the education subjects they took and their major subjects as well?

Something must be lacking in the preparation they went through for the big number of casualties in the recent tests. And this has to be addressed if we are to attain what the improved and altered curriculum being proposed are aimed at.

This is something that the Education Department itself should look into and focus on, if it is serious about turning out students whose capabilities can equal, if not exceed, those of products of institutions in all other parts of the world.*