SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian urged the Department of Education, Commission on Higher Education and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority to work more closely in reviewing the senior high school program to ensure the smooth transition of K to 12 graduates.

Gatchalian is eyeing the inclusion of a review mechanism involving the three agencies in his Batang Magaling Act or Senate Bill 2022.

The measure seeks to strengthen collaboration among the DepEd, local government units, academic communities and industry partners to address the mismatch between the K to 12 graduates and the demands of the labor market.

“We can embed into the bill a mechanism for the three agencies to review the senior high school curriculum. We can make the review more cohesive and make meetings more frequent, so there is some output that will guide and educate us policymakers,” Gatchalian said.

He pointed to the difficulties encountered by senior high school graduates who pursue higher education but whose transition to college are not seamless.

To address these difficulties, some higher education institutions implement bridging programs, which entail more cost for the students and their families.

Gatchalian warned that the implementation of bridging programs is uneven because not all universities and colleges offer them.

For the lawmaker, these findings reveal that while around 80% of senior high school students pursue higher education, they are still not college ready.

Gatchalian said that this outcome is the opposite of what the K to 12 promised — to make its graduates employable and college ready.

He added that not all courses offered by the DepEd have accreditation from TESDA.

Gatchalian reiterated that this is a dead end for learners who took the Technical-Vocational-Livelihood track but do not have certification, which could have boosted their chances of being employed.