STS-2018 Module 5: Science Education in the Philippines (PDF)

UNIT II​ SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND NATION BUILDING Module V ​ Science Education in the Philippines Objectives: At the end of the topic, the readers are expected to. 1.​ Expound the importance of science education in schools. 2.​ Identify the purpose of s...

UNIT II​ SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND NATION BUILDING Module V ​ Science Education in the Philippines Objectives: At the end of the topic, the readers are expected to. 1.​ Expound the importance of science education in schools. 2.​ Identify the purpose of science education in schools. 3.​ Cite some problems that can be encountered in science education. The Philippine Science Education System The Department of Education (DepEd) oversees the implementation of the school curricula and school programs in both elementary and high school levels. On the other hand, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) was created as separate entity from the former under R.A. 7722 in 1994, to oversee the system of higher education in the country and to formulate policies, plans and programs for the development of public and prichc cvate higher education. The importance of science can be best explained by the fact that other than it is our way of life, it is basically intertwined with technology and industry which are the major areas of development being prioritized by our government. It enhances the learner's questioning skills, values and attitudes, and critical thinking skills. With these abilities, students will be ready to accept life challenges which will also be significant to the society where they are a part of. Scientific learning will also be important and helpful to the development of one's country and the preservation of its cultural identity. The basic education program caters to the needs of the students, such that the curriculum is designed to prepare the students for a higher level of learning. Students are taught to learn more independently, aspire for academic excellence and to hone their capacity to accept the new knowledge and technology. Science is one of the subjects taught in elementary and secondary schools under the K+12 program of the Department of Education. It aims to develop learners to make judgments and apply what they have learned which may eventually have great health,environment or even social impacts. The curriculum presents the importance of science and technology to everyday living The K+12 science curriculum provides learners with a repertoire of competencies important in the world of work and in a knowledge-based society. The science curriculum has three domains: 1.​ Understanding and applying scientific knowledge in local setting as well as global context whenever possible 2.​ Performing scientific processes and skills 3. Developing and demonstrating scientific attitudes and values There is a clear core learning standard set for science area for the entire K+12 basic education. Apart from this, key stage standards for science learning areas for Kinder to grade 3, grades 4 to 6, grades 7 to 10 and grades 11 to 12 have been prepared. For grade level, the different topics of the subject are divided and taught per quarter. This is called the sequence of domain or strands per quarter (i.e, matter; force, energy and motion; living things and the environment; earth and space).  Although, K+12 program is now being 1mplemented, we cannot do away with the fact that the Philippines is fortunate to have what we call science high schools. Some of these schools offer both the regular and the science curricula, while others have the science curriculum only. Science curriculum is designed to have more advanced science and mathematics subjects. The curriculum for the Philippine Science High School system prepared by the DOST while that of the S and T oriented schools was initiated by the Department of Education. The Philippine Science High School System is a specialized public high school system in the Philippines which operates as an attached agency of the DOST. It is regarded as the top high school in the Philippines and perceived among the best in ASEAN region in 2016. It has 16 campuses located in the following areas nationwide: ​ Main Campus, Agham Road Quezon City ​ Ilocos Region Campus (Ilocos Sur) ​ Cagayan Valley Campus (Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya) ​ Cordillera Administrative Region Campus (Irisan, Baguio City) ​ Central Luzon Campus (Angeles City, Pampanga) ​ CALABARZON Campus (Bgy. Sampaga, Batangas City) ​ MIMAROPA Campus (Odiongan, Romblon) ​ Bicol Region Campus (Goa, Camarines Sur) ​ Western Visayas Campus (Jaro, Iloilo City) ​ Central Visayas Campus (Argao, Cebu) ​ Eastern Visayas Campus (Palo, Leyte) ​ Central Mindanao Campus (Baloi, Lanao del Norte) ​ Southern Mindanao Campus (Mintal, Davao City) ​ SOCCSKSARGEN Region Campus (Koronadal City, South Cotabato) ​ Caraga Region Campus (Ampayon, Butuan City) ​ Zamboanga Peninsula Campus (Bgy. Olingan, Dipolog City) On the other hand, for tertiary level, science is usually taught to students who are taking up courses that require science subjects. This subject, nonetheless is not required for those taking up law, architecture, and social sciences. The Problem in Science Education Teaching science is very challenging. The challenge begins with the ratio of students to the teacher and the ratio of students to the classroom. The situation of laboratory rooms can be worse than this. In some regions, there is only one laboratory room out of 10 public elementary schools. Other public elementary schools do not have science laboratories at all (The Manila Times, 2014). Lack of science education facilities has a negative effect on the performance of the students specially in their achievement tests. Teacher qualification and preparedness are factors in the teaching and learning of science. Only a small fraction of teachers are qualified to teach different science subjects, hence, the need for continuous capability enhancement programs (The Manila Times, 2014). Building of laboratory rooms and purchase of teaching materials are needed to at least remedy the present situation. Limited scholarships and few projects are some of the government's plan to improve science education. But this has to be expanded to the extent that we can have a pool of science experts to reverse the current backward situation of science and technology in the country.  Module V Science Education in the Philippines TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE Name: _____________________________________________​ Date: ____________________________________ Year and Section: ____________________________________ ​ Score: ____________________________________ 1.​ Discuss the importance of science education. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2.​ As a student, what problems have you encountered as regards science education? What solutions can you suggest to address these problems? _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3.​ Are you satisfied with the science education that you have? Why or why not? _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4.​ If you were given a chance to talk with the President of your university, what aspects of science education would you suggest to change and why? _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5.​ In at least 5 sentences, describe the science education that you experience during your elementary grades. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6.​ Identify the science subjects that you obtained from your secondary education a.​ Junior high school - b.​ Senior high school - 7.​ What do you think is the difference between the science courses in high school under K+12 program and the science courses Before its implementation? _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________