School calendar and grade inflation

Except for those in disaster-affected areas, classes in all levels nationwide opened yesterday, July 29, amid the push for an early opening of classes as the educational system gradually transitions back to the old June-March calendar.

I join those who support the transition back to the old June-March calendar as we have seen the ill-effects of global warming on our students during the summer months, when they find themselves in campuses ill-equipped for extreme heat.

Others argue that returning to the June-March calendar won’t make a difference, as classes will still be disrupted by the southwest monsoon, which due to climate change now brings frequent and intense rainfall, often resulting in severe flooding.

Well, I still think it was a mistake to shift the academic year from June-March to August-May. This change does not align with our seasonal weather patterns. Summer should be a time for children to frolic in nature and water bodies under the bright sun, not to be spent in crowded classrooms suffering through extreme heat and humidity.

One of the reasons cited for moving the school calendar to August-May, a change first implemented by the University of the Philippines even before the pandemic, was to align with the university's internationalization thrust. Schools in Western countries typically start their academic year during these months. The intention was to facilitate a smoother transition for our students who wish to participate in exchange programs or pursue post-graduate degrees abroad.

It’s time we conducted a study to determine if this goal has been achieved, and if so, whether the results have truly made a positive impact on the lives of our students and the quality of our education. Yet the negative impact has been significant, particularly as students suffer through sweltering conditions on campuses during the hot summer months. This only goes to show that there is inherent wisdom in the June to March school calendar, which is tailored to our seasonal climate.

Another significant problem besetting our education system is the quality of our instruction and research. It would take several column spaces to discuss this topic fully, so allow me to just mention one aspect of it, which is grade inflation. I was triggered by this when I came across a post on social media by a school administrator who expressed her concerns regarding parents who complained about their child not being admitted to the schools they applied for.

The post from last week was accompanied by a meme titled “The Grade Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story: A Reflection on Philippine Education.” It displayed the report card of an anonymous student-applicant, showing grades in the 90s and a note “with honors.” Below this, there was a handwritten scribble of an answer to an essay question that fell far short of doing justice to the student-applicant’s grades.

The school posted on Facebook: “The student has stellar grades on the report card, but struggles to string together a simple sentence in English, reads at a snail's pace, and misinterprets even the simplest instructions. After getting an email of non-acceptance, the mother called the registrar to complain why her “intelligent” child was not accepted…”

“Students and parents should realize that grades are not everything, real education is so much more. This isn't just an isolated case. Many of them are like this. It's a symptom of a larger issue in our educational system. This post is not about blaming teachers or students. It's about hoping to wake everyone to the crisis in our educational system. I think this issue is more important than the price of rice.”