Gatchalian pushes anew bill to boost SHS graduates’ employability

Sherwin Gatchalian
—Senate PRIB

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Sherwin Gatchalian pushed anew his bill that seeks to boost the employability of senior high school (SHS) graduates and further prepare them for college.

Gatchalian’s Senate Resolution No. 2367 also known as Batang Magaling Act was filed in July 2023, but in a statement issued Monday, he emphasized the need to push for the measure ahead of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) target pilot run for the SHS revised curriculum in School Year 2025 to 2026 as it is essential to “[address] challenges hounding the [SHS] program.”

“While the program promised to produce work-ready graduates, a 2020 discussion paper from state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) previously revealed that only a little over 20% of senior high school graduates enter the labor force,” he said.

It is also revealed in the PIDS study that there is no clear “statistically significant advantage or disadvantage” in basic pay per day between SHS graduates and Grade 10 and second-year college completers.

Gatchalian said that this is why the Batang Magaling Act will seek to produce SHS graduates who can adapt to the demands of the labor market “regardless of their chosen exits,” such as higher education and employment.

“Isinusulong natin ang Batang Magaling Act upang matiyak natin ang kahandaan sa trabaho ng ating mga graduates sa [SHS]. Titiyakin nating may maigting na ugnayan sa pagitan ng pribadong sektor at mga paaralan para sa magandang kinabukasan ng ating mga mag-aaral,” he explained.

(We are pushing for the Batang Magaling Act to ensure the work readiness of our [SHS] graduates. We will make sure that there is a clear link between the private sector and schools for the bright future of our students.)

Under the bill, the National Batang Magaling Council, composed of DepEd, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, the Department of Labor and Employment, three national industry partners, a national labor group, and the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines will be established to “align schools’ curricular offerings and SHS’ work immersion component with market needs.”

The industry partners and government agencies will help identify labor market demands as they are also mandated to “increase awareness and commitment” to accepting students for work immersion programs, among others.

The Batang Magaling Act is pending in its second reading as of August last year. — Barbara Gutierrez, INQUIRER.net intern