POSITION ON EDUCATIONAL SERVICE CONTRACTING By Bai Sandra Sema

THE EDUCATIONAL SERVICE Contracting participating schools are greatly disturbed by the plan to phase out the ESC which is a program that provides access to education in the private Schools. Accordingly, this will be replaced by another program called Education Voucher Program.

I am also greatly disturbed about the plan to abolish ESC. For fifteen years, ESC already evolved and developed a mechanism that is almost perfect such as screening of qualified students and private schools, students quota, and payment scheme. It serves already the purpose of protecting and promoting the rights of all citizens to quality education as well as establishing a system of scholarship grants which shall be available to deserving students in both public and private schools especially the underprivileged.

The plan to pursue the Educational Voucher Program (EVP) can go ahead side by side with the ESC. Since President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has announced to establish a Strong Republic through education, it will be much better if several programs are developed and implemented to make it a reality and to serve a broader clients.

To abolish ESC and replace it with EVP will run contrary to the President’s policy pronouncement. DepEd National Officials who are thinking or planning to abolish ESC and replaced it with EVP must rethink of their position.

In Region XII alone, if the plan will push through, almost seven thousand incoming freshmen student will find no slots for private schools enjoyed under the ESC. In Cotabato City, the ESC program have allotted a 1,246 incoming freshmen quota, while in EVP, Cotabato City is allotted a meager 282. Where will these almost 1000 students go since they could no longer be accommodated by our public schools?

We have to remember that our school population is growing. The increase is tremendous and the public school system cannot absorb all those who are willing and intelligently capable yet poor, of going to high school - the ESC program responds to this need.

To abolish the same will lead our young population nowhere. To augment it with another program using another source of funding and mechanism will definitely be better. Let us not forget what our National Hero, Dr. Jose Rizal said, “the Youth is the Hope of this Motherland especially when they are educated and free from the bondage of ignorance”. (The author is UNESCO Commissioner, Committee on Education)