School-to-work transition: It’s about earning experience, practical skills
I recently gave a talk at my alma mater, Ilocos Norte National High School, during their career guidance week. During the open forum, a student asked what was the hardest part when I transitioned from the medical field to where I am now. That question gave me pause. I am a licensed medical professional, but I am currently employed in a government agency and writing books and articles during my free time. The student’s question made me ask whether or not I am even the right person to be speaking in front of these hundreds of students, to “guide” them when my school-to-work transition might not be considered the norm or the “ideal” one.
School-to-work transition is defined as the shift of a young student from the end of his schooling to the first fixed term or satisfactory employment. When I graduated in 2013, it was a difficult transition for us fresh graduates to find employment due to our lack of experience. Employers tend to hire more experienced, older workers, thus young graduates were at the end of a very long queue for jobs. While those who wanted to start their own businesses often have fewer opportunities for self-employment due to their lack of knowledge and skills in business.
At present, career guidance institutionalized by the Department of Education (DepEd) aims to provide students with informed career choices that will aid them in finding satisfactory employment later on. Unfortunately, despite the integration of career guidance into the curriculum, the Commission on Human Rights recently reported that fresh graduates or “pandemic learners” faced difficulties in landing jobs for their perceived lack of soft and practical skills, brought about by the limitations of the virtual and modular set-up.
In June 2022, the DepEd launched the Basic Education Development Plan (BEDP) 2030, the first long-term plan as the country’s strategic road map for improving the quality of basic education covering five to 18 years old and nonformal education (Alternative Learning System). Said plan will be implemented in two phases: Phase I will focus on post-pandemic recovery and transition to the new normal, while Phase II will concentrate on sustaining gains, the institutionalization of education futures initiatives, and the development of innovation and technologies.
While the BEDP 2030 is a major springboard seeking to address the problems in quality education, close gaps to enhance relevant programs and introduce innovations, may I suggest the following propositions that focus primarily on school-to-work transition:
During Phase I, DepEd should craft a three-to-five-year national recovery and continuity plan in partnership with other agencies, state universities and colleges, local government units (LGUs), civil society organizations, and other concerned bodies. The plan will serve as a road map for mitigating the learning gaps caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Said plan must be widely communicated in order for LGUs to align their respective local development plans.
The K-12 program should be revisited to identify and bridge learning gaps in the existing curriculum. The following are suggested when revisiting the program: (1) mainstream “career” trends and concepts in the core subjects and not merely during career guidance week by realigning learning materials with the latest trends in the labor market, thus encouraging learners to be future thinkers; (2) embrace the fourth industrial revolution by developing learners’ industrial technological skills; (3) encourage facilitative learning (students with different learning styles should be encouraged to facilitate their own learning); (4) extend immersion and encourage industries to provide certificate of employment to on-the-job students and not merely completion of the program.
Another suggestion is to institutionalize an effective convergence platform in which the national government partners with LGUs, the private sector, and industries in order to build a bridge between school and work that shall serve as a mechanism to link fresh graduates to work opportunities. LGUs can also be encouraged to institute a workforce development plan that will provide employees with globally competitive skills and access to quality and sustainable job or work opportunities.
As I look back on the open forum, I remember answering that the hardest part of transitioning is people’s reactions toward one’s decisions. At first, people will ask, “WHY did you do it?” But later on, they will ask, “HOW did you do it?” If I can go back to that venue, I will add that school-to-work transition will pose a challenge to the young graduates, but in this society filled with older and more experienced workers, may they always have that “career mindset” by filling up their resume with experiences that will improve their soft and practical skills, all while waiting for the career or work meant for them.
JESLEN B. TESOSRO
