Senate approves Iskolar ng Bayan Act

 MANILA, Philippines - The Senate has approved on third and final reading the bill that would provide scholarships to the top graduates of public schools across the country.

 Dubbed as the “Iskolar ng Bayan Act of 2014,” Senate Bill 2275 calls for the grant of scholarships to the state universities and colleges (SUC) of choice of the top 10 public high school students of their graduating class. 

Under the bill, the scholar would be entitled to automatic admission in the SUCs of his choice within his province.

Because the different SUCs have varying sizes, some of the scholars might not be accommodated in the course and school of their choice within their respective provinces.

The responsibility then falls on the Commission on Higher Education to look for other SUCs outside of the provinces that can accommodate the scholar.

The bill also takes into consideration the existing demands of employers and so the different government agencies would be required to identify priority disciplines, programs and courses, taking into account labor market realities.

“The SUCs have the option to offer scholarship for these preferred courses, provided that the iskolar ng bayan shall be given preference in the slots available,” the bill stated. 

Excluded from the coverage of the bill was the University of the Philippines (UP) because of its institutional autonomy as the national university based on its charter.

However, the bill states that UP should come up with its own scholarship programs for the top 10 students from public high schools.

Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano, who authored the bill alongside his sister Senator Pia Cayetano, said that it is the responsibility of the government to provide opportunities to the millions of Filipino youth who end up dropping out of school because they could not afford the high cost of education. 

“By providing more affordable higher education, the government will provide Filipino families and the youth with better opportunities for gainful employment that will lift them out of poverty,” Cayetano said.

The Senate also approved the bills institutionalizing the ladderized education program and the expansion of the open learning and distance education.

Ladderized education is a system of education that allows students to progress between technical-vocational (tech-voc) education and training (TVET) and college, and vice-versa, while at the same time opening opportunities for career and educational advancement for working and non-working students. 

Senator Pia Cayetano, the chairperson of the Senate committee on education, arts and culture and the principal author of Senate Bill 2272 or the proposed Ladderized Education Act, explained that a student who has completed two years of tech-voc training will receive a certificate, allowing him or her to gain employment as soon as possible.

In the case of Senate Bill 2274 or the Open Learning and Distance Education Act of 2014, students would be able to get their education in non-traditional settings or outside of the classroom.

“Even though students and teachers are separated through time and space, the measure allows for instruction to be delivered through specially designed materials and methods, such as the use of more advanced technologies like the Internet,” Cayetano said.