I. Public schools provide unrefined quality of Education.
Public schools provide unrefined quality of education compared to the kind of education that private schools offer. This is because the Department of Education seems to lack funds. In an article written in 2007, Education Secretary Jesli Lapus told the Senate that the Department of Education’s (DepEd’s) P142.59-billion budget for 2008 is not enough to address the overall shortage of classrooms and chairs for schools nationwide. The backlog in classrooms is pegged at 12,418 classrooms at a cost of some P6.83 billion. (UNICEF Philippines-Media centre- 2016) The budget as of 2015 is P136.72 billion, according to the financial report posted on Department of Education (2016). If there was a larger budget back in 2007 and it was considered insufficient for the nation’s need, it can be told that education in public schools is compromised today, considering the costs of the implementation of K-12 and nearly everything is becoming more expensive than what they used to be. This may be caused by improper financial management of the country, because according to the IBON research foundation, in 2011 the Philippine public school system was short 152,569 classrooms, 150,000 water and sanitation facilities, and 13.23 million school chairs. It also lacked 95 million books. IBON reported a shortage of approximately 100,000 teachers. However, in the 2014 national government budget of 2.3 trillion pesos, debt servicing—and not education—is the largest allocation. More than 793 billion pesos, or 35 percent of the budget, is being channeled directly into the coffers of international finance capital. The portion of the budget allotted for public education amounts to less than 15 percent. Unlike in other countries like the United States of America and Australia, where 20 percent is allocated for education, resulting to high quality education. (Pastrana, D. 2016).
A. Most public schools teachers are unmotivated to teach.
Some of the teachers in public schools are more unmotivated to teach than private school teachers. In the survey that we conducted, 65 percent of private school respondents say that their teachers finish their lessons while only 50 percent of the public school respondents can say the same. Aside from this, when asked whether or not their teachers thoroughly explained their lessons, 61 percent of the private school students said they do while only 33 percent of the public school students say the same. Teachers in public schools are just as qualified to teach (if not more) than private school teachers, so that means that they are just unmotivated. This may be because of the environment they teach in. A research revealed that there is a correlation between the teaching environment and the teachers and students. These researchers revealed that the mean rating given by the subjects in the beautiful room was in the range defined as "energy" and "well-being" while the mean of the ratings given by subjects in both the average and ugly rooms was in the range defined as "fatigued" and "displeased". Furthermore, the students placed in the beautiful room expressed feelings of "comfort, pleasure, enjoyment, importance, energy and a desire to continue their activity". (Affects of the school Environment….2016).
Work context factors also affect a teacher’s motivation. They include working conditions such as class size, discipline conditions, and availability of teaching materials; the quality of the principal’s supervision; and basic psychological needs such as money, status, and security. (Motivating teachers to improve instructions.2016) The basic monthly salary for a public school teacher is 18,549php before taxes. This amount is barely twice the abysmal official poverty line for a family of five (Pastrana, D. 2016), so the public school teachers are understandably unmotivated because of the financial situation they face because of their low salary.
The public school teachers’ state of being unmotivated has had apparent results reflected in our survey. When asked if they pay attention to the needs of students, 81 percent of the respondents said yes, while 92 percent of the students coming from the private school said yes. When asked if they attend school activities, 78 percent of the public school students said yes while 90 percent of the respondents from the private school said yes. When asked if the teachers support and advocate them, 70 percent of the public school respondents said yes while 96 percent of the private school respondents said yes. When asked if they clarify and discuss the school rules, 70 percent of the public school respondents said yes whereas 94 percent of the private school respondents said yes. There is a constant gap between public school teachers’ performance based on their students’ observation compared to private school teachers’ performance, so the government should take action on this.
B. The public school teachers have to provide their own materials from their own pockets, so there is a possibility that students won’t be provided with visual aids at all whereas in private schools, teachers are provided with the needed materials.
The public school teachers have to provide their own materials from their own pockets, so there is a possibility that students won’t be provided with visual aids at all whereas in private schools, teachers are provided with the needed materials. Our interviewee, Mme. Vickie Concepcion, testified to this. She was a teacher in a public school called Dumaguete Science High School for thirty two years. She said that despite having bigger salaries than those teachers working in private schools, public school teachers have to provide for their own visual aids and chalk. In private schools, the teachers are provided with their visual aids and other materials they could use to further contribute to a child’s learning, plus they also have access to more facilities that public schools are likely to not be provided with.
C. Public school students are not provided with enough facilities or materials. This limits a student’s knowledge on a subject.
Public school students are not provided with enough facilities or materials. This limits a student’s knowledge on a subject. Our survey alone is enough to show that there is a gap between what private schools and public schools are provided with. 59 percent of the respondents from private schools say that they are provided with enough chairs and tables while only 41 percent of public school students are provided with these. When asked if they were provided with basic laboratory equipment, 56 percent of the private school respondents said they were and only 44 percent said the same. Moreover, the Department of Education reports a serious lack of science laboratories in both elementary and high schools all over the country. According to DepEd data, in regions III, IV-A, X, XI, and XII, only one school has a science laboratory out of every 10 public elementary schools. In the National Capital region, this ratio is 3 laboratories for every 10 elementary schools. The public elementary schools in the other regions don’t have any science laboratory to facilitate science learning. (Science education realities.2014) 59 percent of the private school students are provided with books yet only 41 percent of the public school students could say the same. Lastly, 53 percent of the private school respondents are provided with sports facilities, while only 47 percent of the public school respondents agree. It is clear that in every aspect, private school students are provided with more facilities by the school than public school students.
II. Public schools neglect their students
A. There are some cases of violations of school rules that the faculty has overlooked.
When asked if the quality of their education compromised by factors that could have been taken under control by the faculty and staff of the school, 83 percent of the private school respondents said yes. However, there is a higher variable in the results from the public school respondents, with 88 percent saying that there are instances that could have been controlled by the teachers or anybody from the staff. This implies that maybe there is a lack of coordination or management among the faculty in public schools. It is more difficult to handle situations in public schools because it is usually dense in population, but that only means that the faculty should pay more attention to its management and get constant feedback from its students, because they are also the people who get affected with how their school functions.
B. Proper disciplinary action isn’t thoroughly observed in public schools compared to private schools so students are not really discouraged from acting against the school regulations.
While all schools try to look out for their students in their own way, public schools neglect their students more than private schools do. Our survey showed that 39 percent of our respondents coming from the public schools can say that there is a strict reinforcement of rules and corresponding disciplinary action to ensure compliance to the school rules, yet it’s a far cry from the 61 percent who answered “yes, all the time” coming from the private school respondents. These cases being referred to is mostly about bullying. Toleration or ignoring these cases can explain why bullying is more rampant in some schools, because bullies have no one to tell them that what they’re doing is wrong and proper disciplinary action is not being undertaken.
C. The prevalence of students violating school rules implies that the school faculty does not emphasize the importance of values, or that public schools do not provide thorough guidance counselling.
Aside from this, educating students about values are better in the private schools. Mme. Linda Alcoran, a teacher who has worked in several different schools for 16 years but is currently working in Saint Louis School-Don Bosco, said something regarding this matter: “About values, private school teachers are really focus on teaching values because we have Religion in our subject and I think that integration of values is given more importance in the private catholic school or a private Christian schools compared to those in the public schools. I think there is a law banning the teaching of religion in public schools. That's the difference between public and private schools when it comes to values.” Like what she said, public schools may not teach religion, although teaching about religion in a secular context is permitted. The Bible may be taught in a school, but only for its historical, cultural or literary value and never in a devotional, celebratory or doctrinal manner, or in such a way that encourages acceptance of the Bible as a religious document. (Religion in the public schools….2016) However, parents tend to choose to let their children study in private schools over public schools because of religion is being taught. The presence of the subject of religion includes the teaching of Christian values, so the students are really taught to do what is right based on the doctrine of the Lord and how it is associated with their beliefs, not just because whatever is wrong is considered against the school rules and regulations. Private Christian schools tend to be conservative while they embrace the norms and standards that they set and implements. Most Christian Schools here in the country produces well-behaved students. (Why private schools.2016)
III. The environment of the public schools does not inspire learning.
Another issue is the need for health care in public schools. Private schools are provided with proper healthcare, with about 87% of the private schools in the Philippines having clinics as part of their facilities. However, in public schools, most students do not have the access to healthcare, especially when it comes to dental care. There are only 300 dentists nationwide that has been hired to be of service to 12.5 million public school students and teachers. That is one dentist for every 70,000 students and teachers, according to Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto, who called on a much bigger allocation for oral health services in the budget. There should be action taken for this problem, considering that 10 Filipinos, 9 suffer tooth decay but only 1 can afford to see a dentist once a year.
A. There is a lack of security in public schools compared to private schools.
There are fewer security measures being undertaken by public schools compared to private schools. An official from the Department of Education (DepEd) said public schools still dearth the manpower to supply enough security for the students. During a transportation committee hearing in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, DepEd National Capital Region assistant regional director, Ponciano Menguito, forenamed that public schools still rely on guards from the local governments. Unlike in private schools that employ private security guards, he added. ( Cayabyab, M. 2016) So, in the absence of guards from the local governments, public schools will be left with no security, putting the students’ life at risk.
Aside from this, on the survey we conducted in Dumaguete City, 96 percent of private school students said they feel safe when they are in school, whereas only 86 percent of public school students feel safe in their environments. A school is considered a second home of a child, so it is natural that they feel safe in their schools, but the 10 percent gap between the public school and private school students’ feeling of safety in their schools show that there are still some measures that public schools have not taken or measures that they should improve in order for these students to feel safe.
B. Proper sanitation is not being followed or emphasised.
Proper sanitation is also not being followed or emphasised in the public schools. Sanitation facilities are scarce, with the toilet-pupil ratio being 1:55 in the elementary level and 1:93 in high school, based on statistics from the Department of Education’s Basic Education Information System. The numbers are lower than the global standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) of 1:50 for males (if urinals are present) and 1:25 for females, and even lower than the norm set by the Philippine Sanitation Code, which is also 1:50 for boys and 1:30 for girls. The figures are so much worse in some areas of Mindanao—1:300. (UNICEF Philippines – Media Centre. 2016) These facts are also being reflected by the results of our own survey, 98 percent of respondents from private schools said that they are provided with proper sanitation while only 83 percent of the public school students agree that they have been provided with these essentials. There are also only 44 percent of public school students who say they are being provided with the basic sanitation facilities such as toilets and sinks, whereas there is a higher rate of availability in private schools according to their students, which is at 56 percent. However, DepEd has been making efforts to reduce the toilet shortage of 135,847 in 2009-2010 to 117,480 in 2011 by adding 60,109 seats in the elementary level and 57,371 in high school, the problem remains acute.
Merlie Asprer, operations manager of the DepEd’s Adopt-a-School program, explained, the government agency did not have allocations for the positions of janitors and other maintenance people in its annual budget. Without janitors and maintenance workers to keep the toilets clean and in good working order, there is no telling how many of those physical facilities are actually suitable for use. However, in a private school setting (Saint Louis School-Don Bosco), they cannot disclose the exact amount they allocated for maintenance and sanitation workers annually, but she mentioned that it is at about 150,000php-200,000php. This is for the salaries of the three to seven maintenance workers and janitors they hire.
The effect of the lack of water, sanitation and hygiene facilities in school affects girls a lot, who have more need for water and sanitation facilities than boys. Aside from availability, security and privacy of toilet facilities are a must for girls. Girls also need water and washing materials within the toilet facilities, especially for menstrual management.” It added that “poor water, sanitation and hygiene facilities (isolated location of toilets, lack of door locks/window covers/grills, lack of water, soap and trash cans inside/close to toilets) increase security risk and vulnerability of girls.” (UNICEF Philippines – Media Centre. 2016)
Health is also a heavy risk for students who are under bad sanitation conditions. Unicef country representative Tomoo Hozumi said problems like intestinal worms, stomachache and diarrhea were indications of poor sanitation. These problems lead to anemia, stunting and increased absenteeism. They reduced a child’s ability to concentrate and learn, Hozumi added. Diarrhea is also the top reason for absences in school, so there is a lot of room for improvement that DepEd can try to fix in terms of sanitation. (UNICEF Philippines – Media Centre. 2016)
With that, it is clear that the government has a lot to improve with the education it is providing this country with, and it can be executed with a proper amount of funds. But before conditions improve, private schools provide better quality education and an environment more conducive to learning compared to public schools.
C. The lack of funds in public schools results to the buildings being in poor condition.
Aside from this, the school population is a big contributor to the quality of education a student absorbs. Private schools try to limit the number of students in one classroom, whereas public schools are obliged by law to accept every enrolee unless it is beyond their possible accommodation, even if it means overcrowding of students in one classroom. In a study based on Metro Manila, 82 percent of the 764 public schools in the metropolis were congested, and were conducting classes in two shifts. The first shift starts as early as 6 a.m. and the second ends as late as six in the evening. There were reported to be as many as 80 students in each classroom. School authorities resorted to cutting classes in half and cramming the excess students into “science labs, libraries, corridors and even the principal’s office.” These conditions have taken a toll on the students’ education, as only 68 percent of sixth grade students nationwide achieved a passing score in Mathematics and Science, according to the government National Education Research and Testing Center. The results for secondary students were even more dismal. Barely 50 percent passed satisfactorily in the same subjects. (Pastrana, D. 2016)