COTABATO 3rd District Rep. Ma. Alana Samantha Taliño-Santos urged the Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education to address the unavailability of Senior High School tracks and major strands in public and private schools.

The lawmaker said the limited academic tracks and major strands offered in public and private schools defeats the purpose of the K to 12 program to improve the quality of education in the country.

In her House Resolution 95, Taliño-Santos said the failure of the government to timely address the issue will diminish the true legislative intent and spirit of the Enhanced Basic Education or the K to 12 system.

Under the K to 12 program, senior high school students can choose from tracks of specialization such as academic, technical-vocational and livelihood, sports and arts and design.

The academic track is divided into four strands namely accountancy, business and management; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; humanities and social sciences; and general academic.

“The availability of these academic strand provided for SHS students as a preparatory course for higher education is not, however, guaranteed in all public and private schools in the country,” the lawmaker said in her resolution.

She cited the study conducted by the Asian Development Bank and the Department of Education in 2017 stating the reasons why the academic strands are not always available in public and private schools.

These include limited student enrollment, lack of facilities, lack of teachers and difficulty in the application requirements to offer different SHS tracks.