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 Mayor Ricardo V. Revita receiving a Cetificate of Appreciation signed by DGEN AVELINO I. RAZON as presented by P/DIR LEOPOLDO N. BATAIOL for a noble project to educate the out of school youth using the Police as teachers.

CONCEPT PAPER ON THE CONTINUING
EDUCATION PROGRAM FOR THE OUT OF SCHOOL YOUTH OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF ROSALES

    The Municipality of Rosales, Pangasinan is in the north of Manila and it is the first town in the Ilocandia region coming from the National Capital Region. It is a second class Municipality where among its 37 Barangays, agriculture is the primary livelihood of the townspeople. It has a population record of 52,029 in the year 2000 survey of the NSO and a household numbering about 11,000.

    Though Rosales is blessed with resources and beauty, it also has however a hideous face of depressed and marginalized families. These families form part of the increased rate of the poverty data in the country of 32.9% in 2006 as presented by the Financial Times. Basically these are the people who have no land to till, no permanent employment, no businesses to run neither an education degree to cling on for employability. On a sadder note however their number continues to grow right in front of our eyes and yet we still have so far to determine a solution for this. Analogous to this situation is also the escalating percentage of the dwindling literacy rate of Filipinos. In fact in this Municipality alone, we had identified 4,300 individuals aging between 15-25 who have not finished their primary and secondary education branded as the Out of School Youth (OSY). Frequently from them arise juvenile delinquents and youth offenders. With these pictures they somehow depict that education, poverty and crime rate are closely intertwined and complementarily affecting each other negatively or positively.

    Mindful of this miserable reality, the good Mayor of Rosales, Mayor Ricardo V. Revita had thought of a program that will address this predicament and provide for a lasting solution. The program is entitled, “Continuing Education for the Out of School Youth of Rosales”.  It had been launched last March 17, 2008 and been on full swing implementation since April 14, 2008 municipalwide. At the moment 380 out of the identified 4,300 OSYs availed of this project. Among them there are two learners whose enthusiasm to finish at least their secondary education is inspiring. One is a nursing mother who goes to school with her baby and another a 54 year old father who wanted to finish his high school education after working hard to send his children to college.  Presumably the majority are held back to join this project by their sense of inferiority, skepticism and doubts on the soundness of the program. At any rate once the program succeeds, a bandwagon effect shall win all the rest over.



Framework of the Program

    The prime aim of this program is to persuade the OSY’s of Rosales to grab the opportunity to go back to school and eventually earn their diplomas in High School and Elementary that would later mold them into a productive individual. It is actually giving them the chance to confront again their unfinished business of schooling through the Alternative Learning System. An educational scheme different from the Formal Education and under circumstances that are distinctly adaptable and comfortable for them. 

     In elaboration to the foregoing the salient characteristics of the program are as follows:

    a.)    The scheme and the modules of instruction would be adapted from the Non Formal Education (NFE). To this effect, the books to be utilized are designed specifically for the project, quite diverse from the ordinary. The topics are picked in order of significance and practical applicability. Worth noting also that the learners here are not mingled with the regular students rather they are grouped as one. This is to prevent them from feeling a sense of inferiority or making them an object of joke. Whereas the hours of instruction would be shorter and not on a daily basis, it would depend on the availability and preference of the learner either on MWF or TThS scheduling. The program would be commenced by a pre-test that would determine their level to be enrolled at either in the elementary or high school. Then the period of instruction starts which roughly lasts for 6-7 months and will be culminated by an examination. The examination is called as the A & E Test  (Accreditation and Equivalency Test) whose purpose is to gauge whether the learner is now ready for promotion to college or high school. One of the most celebrated beneficiaries of this program is our “Pambansang Kamao” Manny Pacquaio. Pacquiao is a high school drop out who made a name in boxing and later thought of earning his high school diploma through this scheme. 

    b). The program is a coordinate project of several stakeholders coming from the private and public institutions. To wit and to briefly discuss their respective roles are as follows:

    1.    LGU Rosales- This is the lead agency in the program through the office of the Municipal Mayor who generally supervises the implementation and the management of the program. Further, the LGU would finance the reproduction of the modules and test questions to be used. Other funds would later be augmented by the MDF of the SK Federation President.
 
    2.    DepEd – This would primarily provide the modules for instruction to include also the test questions. Relative to this, this agency is the one responsible for the training of the instructors to become effective and competent in educating the learners.

 
    3.    SK Federation- This organization has spearheaded the mapping of the number of the OSY’s in every barangay for ages 15-25. Further they will also encourage them to enroll to this program aside from sharing the MDF of the SK Federation President for the success of the program.

    4.    Philippine National Police- This agency will provide the Instructional Managers in this program. The uniformed policemen who have graduated from the course Bachelor of Science in Education and preferably LET passers are those chosen for this project. Besides their degree, their duty as law enforcers is also made use of to instill discipline, respect and obedience in the minds of their learners. To top it all, this would rectify the wrong sense of view that police officers are someone to be afraid of. On the contrary they are some one who can be trusted and relied on. Aside from these the Police Regional Office and the Police Provincial Office have promised financial monthly support of P5,000 respectively to be used for the travel expenses and allowance of the Instructional Managers.
 
    5.    Rosales Water District- This is one of the private institutions who have given its commitment for the materialization of the project by donating a copier for the purpose of reproducing the materials needed for the program.

 

    6.    Kapihan sa Rosales (NGO) - This civic organization had given its support by providing papers for reproduction and toners for the copier and the mimeographing machine.

    7.    Association of Barangay Captains- This group of Barangay leaders are in charge of assisting the SK Chairmen in their mapping survey. Consequently they also gave their share in persuading the OSY’s in their barangays to make use of this opportunity. Moreover they did give the notebooks and pens for the learners taken from the IRA of the respective Barangays.

    8.    Learners- The learners of this project are mainly from ages between 15-25 though older individuals are still welcome. Their prime share is to make good in their studies, be serious and determined to finish it this time.

    c). Thirdly the centers for Learning have been closely chosen to consider the proximity of the learners in a catchment area to the latter.  For the 37 barangays of Rosales, four Learning Centers have been identified strategically located at the middle of the respective catchment areas.  In this way, the Learners would not feel any inconvenience in going to their schools.

    d). As a form of inspiration to the learners besides from receiving school materials, they are being assured of a TESDA training after completing their high school education.  This would instill them skills that will qualify them to better paying jobs locally or abroad.  In this sense they are given a glimpse of a good future should they make good and persist to finish their education.


Conclusion:

    As economic growth and development found its way to Rosales marked by the coming of SM City in the locality, business employment opportunities will surely prosper in the area.  Upon the other hand it is assumed that the marginalized class will scarcely share with the economic opportunities and benefits due to lack of financial capital and often times education.  Hence, it is not remote to surmise that soon they will be left behind in the financial growth of the Municipality as well as the other members of the community.
Ergo as the implementation of the” Continuing Education of the OSY”, moves forward, the abovementioned supposition will be likely avoided and the problems of illiteracy and poverty be addressed. Likewise problems on juvenile delinquency would be lessened for the youth offenders then regularly chased by police officers would soon be educated, disciplined and befriended by the latter. In fact most of the learners now adore their instructional managers. They gradually started to idolize them and expressed desire to be policemen also in the future. Apparently through this project it is foreseen to empower the youth, the hope of our nation which had gone once astray and lost.

    In general the challenge to alleviate poverty and its repercussions remains to be great and insurmountable. But if we succeed in arming these OSY’s with education, probability and chances are high that they will be delivered from the pangs of poverty including later their families. This is only if we give our share and also the learners’ commitment to help themselves.