Promote IT to boost tech-voc skills, government asked

An educator called on the national government to emphasize information technology (IT) education to boost their campaign to promote technical-vocational (tech-voc) skills learning as a good alternative to going to college for Filipino youths.

Leo Riingen, president of the Informatics group of IT schools, said that an emphasis on IT education will side-step criticism over the current thrust of government to steer Filipino youths to take up tech-voc learning and training instead of getting a four- or five-year college education that has lately proved inadequate to prepare graduates for the job market.

"Government can emphasize IT education so they can avoid criticism of tech-voc education as a sure path to blue collar jobs. With IT education, one can get call center and IT-related jobs that are high-paying and preferred by many young people," Riingen told reporters.

"Right now, there seems to be an aversion from tech-voc education by young people, especially their parents, because of the perceived blue collar jobs that are offered for graduates of these courses," Riingen added.

With the gradual acceptance of tech-voc education via IT education, Riingen said government can then promote other technical and vocational skills training that are available for the youth and which could lead them to decent-paying jobs that are being offered in the thousands on the local job market.

Riingen made these statements as he expressed full support to the current effort of the government, led by the Department of Education and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to promote tech-voc education to the Filipino youth.

It will be recalled that Education Secretary Jesli Lapus announced last month a move by the DepEd to strengthen tech-voc education in public high schools.

The announcement came after the release of the results of the DepEd-administered National Career Assessment Examinations to some 1.3 million graduating high school students from both private and public schools last March.