DOST sets up free PSHS online reviewer

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has set up a free online reviewer site that can help graduating elementary school students boost their chances in qualifying for Philippine Science High School (PSHS) scholarships.

The DOST’s Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD) said that the PSHS Reviewer may now be accessed, in time for the entrance examination that will be held on Sept. 18, nationwide.

Dr. Rowena Cristina Guevara, DOST-PCIEERD executive director, said the online reviewer may be accessed via these sites: pshsreviewer.org and pshsreviewer.dost.gov.ph.

Being internet-based, the online reviewer is accessible to any interested party, most especially to those who wish to simulate the examination, or those who cannot afford to enroll in private review centers or have no access at all to such reviewers.

The reviewer is also the official practice test provided by the PSHS. 

The Philippine Science High School system for the high school level is one approach used by the DOST to encourage students to pursue science and technology (S&T) courses.

By provide scholarship benefits to successful examinees allowing them to pursue their studies, it pushed them to pursue the S&T track.

 There is also a high demand for these scholarships among Filipino students and their parents, whether rich or poor, and this has resulted to the proliferation of review centers for PSHS entrance exams, particularly for the PSHS National Competitive Examination (NCE).

Some schools also offer their students their own review classes to increase their passing rate in the examination.

DOST-PCIEERD said these review classes may provide advantages to the examinees in terms of familiarization with the examination itself (type of questions, format of examination, time restrictions, topics covered, etc.).

“Assuming all other things being equal, the examinee who has undergone practice tests, either via formal or informal review classes, stands a greater chance of doing better in the examinations versus the examinee who has not undergone any practice test,” Lynn Talingdan of the PCIEERD said.

 Currently, the PSHS NCE examination is paper-based; that is administered throughout the country.

Reviews for the examinations are often provided by private entities, either via dedicated review schools or special review classes in mostly private schools.

There are also reviewers that could be purchased from local bookstores which candidates can use in anticipation of the real examination.

 The chances of passing the PSHS NCE examination could be improved with better test-taking strategies and practice drills that familiarize examinees with what to expect in the given examination.

The official DOST online reviewer provides a uniform and accessible practice test environment, from which examinees could simulate the actual PSHS examination.