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EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Dr. Dominador P. Peralta, Jr.
Director IV
Commission on Higher Education, Region V,
Legazpi City, PHILIPPINES
(Paper presented at the UNU-APEC Education Network Invitational Programme
on Education for Sustainable Development, in Japan on August 24-30, 2004)
INTRODUCTION
Since the Earth Summit in1992, sustainable development has been focused on political agenda and the education was not well reflected in the strategies towards SD and education was not defined as one of the stakeholder groups. However, during the World Summit on SD in 2002, the education and educators were recognized as essential elements of the progress towards SD. During the UN General Assembly in December 2002, the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development it was decided to start in January 2005 with UNESCO as the lead agency for the DESD.
The Philippine Agenda 21 (PA 21) is the country’s response to fulfill its commitments in the historic Earth Summit in 1992. Government and key sectors of society agreed to implement an action agenda for sustainable development. The key actors are the government, business and civil society with the three realms of modern society, namely: economy (where the key actor is business), polity (where the key actor is government) and culture (where the key actor is civil society).
Sustainable development means “meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs”, as defined by the World Commission on Environment and Development, but its application must be rooted in the context of national realities and aspirations.
Section 1: Overview of ESD
a. Brief description of the National Educational System
The Philippine Educational System has a 6-4-4 structure, that is, six years of elementary or primary education (some private schools require seven years), four years of higher school or secondary education, and another four years of higher or tertiary education for a degree program (except for some courses like engineering and Medical Sciences which require five or more years of schooling).
Higher education is divided into collegiate, masters and doctorate levels in various programs or disciplines. Foreign students are allowed to pursue higher education in some 150 colleges and universities in the Philippines.
The responsibility of administering, supervising and regulating basic (elementary and secondary education) is vested in the Department of Education (DepEd) while the higher education is with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). The post-secondary technical-vocational is under the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), which is also in charge of skills orientation, training, and development of out-of-school youth and unemployed community adults.
b. Government policy on ESD
The right to education is enshrined in the Constitution. Article XIV, Section 1 of the Constitution guarantees this right, which states:: “The state shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.”
It is a vowed policy of the State in pursuit of its key objectives of global competitiveness and poverty alleviation, to bring about sustainable development, for the benefit of present and future generations of Filipinos. The government is committed to the operationalization of the Global Program of Action for Sustainable Development (Agenda 21) which was adopted by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992, and which the Philippines is a signatory.
Philippine Agenda (PA) 21 envisions a better quality of life for all through the development of a just, moral, creative, spiritual, economically vibrant, caring, diverse yet cohesive society characterized by appropriate productivity, participatory and democratic processes and living in harmony within the limits of the carrying capacity of nature and the integrity of creation.
The PA 21 adheres to the following principles of sustainable development: primarily of developing human potential; holistic science and appropriate technology; cultural, moral and spiritual sensitivity; self-determination; national sovereignty; gender sensitivity; peace, order and national unity; social justice and inter-, Intra-generational and spatial equity; participatory democracy; institutional viability; viable, sound and broad based economic development; sustainable population; ecological soundness; biogeographical equity and community based resource management; and global cooperation.
c. Commission on Higher Education (CHED)
Vision
The Higher Education system of the Philippines serves as a key player in the education and integral formation of professionally competent, service-oriented, principled and productive citizens. Through its tri-fold function of teaching, research and extension services, it becomes a prime mover of the nation’s socio-economic growth and sustainable development.
Mission
Guided by this vision and under the leadership of CHED, a dynamic and facilitative organization staffed by qualified and service-oriented personnel, higher education institutions that comprise the system shall:
a. offer programs and services that meet the demands of an industrializing economy within the context of sustainable development and a culture of peace, as well as the challenges of a diverse and globalized society;
b. nurture an academic environment that fosters integrated learning, creative and critical thinking, appreciation of cultural diversity and national identity, and inculcates moral values;
c. conduct research to support instruction, create new knowledge, and enhance the quality of life in society; and
d. undertake extension programs and services that facilitate the transfer of technology, foster leadership and promote self-reliance among the less privileged in Philippine Society.
Goals
The following thrusts of the CHED with the specific goals are as follows:
1. Efficiency and Effectiveness
a. Establish a policy and legal framework required for rationalization of the higher education system particularly the State Universities and Colleges (SUCs)
b. Strengthen complementation and productive partnerships between and among public and private HEIs, and between education and other sectors.
c. Ensure optimal returns from the utilization of higher education resources
2. Quality and Excellence
a. Offer quality undergraduate and graduate education programs with standards comparable with those offered by leading international Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).
b. Become a regional knowledge center in the Asia-Pacific region in selected disciplines particularly in areas where Philippine HEIs have a distinctive competitive edge
3. Relevance and Responsiveness
a. Generate, adapt and disseminate knowledge that equips graduates with competencies, values and skills vital in a dynamically-changing domestic and international environment
b. Utilize state-of-the-art and appropriate information and communication technology and other innovations in education
4. Access and Equity
Provide deserving and qualified Filipinos opportunities for affordable quality tertiary programs and services.
Strategic Directions
For the 1st five years, the higher education system focused on systemic reform and strengthening in order to enhance its capability to respond to national demands and international challenges.
During the 2nd half of the planning decade, the thrust shall be on the emplacement and operationalization of structures, policies and programs to ensure the system’s performance as knowledge center in selected disciplines.
d. Present status of ESD-related activities in both formal, non-formal and informal education
1. Education for Sustainable Development – formal education
All higher education programs like Agricultural and Fisheries Education, Engineering, Architecture, Law, Criminology Business, Accountancy and Entrepreneurship, Maritime Education, Information and Technology Education, Health Education and Teacher Education are contributory to the attainment of sustainable development. The implementation of these programs entails building a culture among people; it is as much a matter of inculcating values and shaping attitudes as it is imparting knowledge and developing skills. Emphasis be placed on its affective and ethical goals, which inculcates at the very least, developing love, respect and a sense of personal responsibility for nature and humanity.
Activities include:
· Outreach program to address not only environment concerns, but social equity as well. Students, faculty and administrators provide poor families with housing, livelihood opportunities, education and other social services. The Center for Service and Sharing provides poor residents of communities around the school with opportunities to augment their family income.
· PACEM Eco-Park is a project of Assumption Antipolo, which promotes concern for the environment. It features an ecology center, mini-forest, butterfly garden and butterfly museum, aviary and wildlife sanctuary, herbal garden and organic farm. The school integrates environmental education in the curriculum and environment-friendly practices are adopted on campus especially as these relate to sustainable solid waste management and energy efficiency. Ecology camps are held for students. Seminars on ecology creation spirituality are given to administrators and faculty. The students of the school also participate in undertakings aimed at building in them a sense of personal responsibility for the survival of the planet, such as the “Adopt A Piece of the Planet’ Project, where each class takes care of a particular spot in campus.
· P.E.A.C.E.- “Public Education and Awareness Campaign for the Environment” project of the Miriam College where the school works to promote environmental concern in the school, community and in communities around the school. Miriam College is home to the Environmental Education Center, which gives seminars and workshops on environmental themes and issues. The school integrates environmental education in the curriculum and offers baccalaureate degree programs in environmental science and environmental chemistry; master’s program in environmental studies, environmental management, and environmental education; and a doctorate program in environmental studies.
· Children and Peace Philippines is an organization at the Philippine Women’s University, which addresses peace. It has been working to spread a culture of peace in their schools and their communities. They have been involved in peace education and advocacy for more than 10 years now, conducting workshops with children and other young people, in an effort to replace the prevailing culture of violence with a culture of peace and hope.
· There are many other school programs and activities that help the environment, with their most common activities being tree-planting, recycling drives, and beautification.
2. ESD in Non-formal education
The National Policies on Literacy / Non-formal Education have their legal bases, as follows:
a. The 1987 Philippine Constitution Article 14, section 2 provides that the State shall encourage non-formal, informal and indigenous learning system, as well as self-learning independent, and out-of-school study programmes particularly those that respond to community needs.
b The Education for All Philippine Plan of Action (EFA-PPA) – Emphasizes the need to develop non-formal literacy and continuing education programmes especially to meet the educational needs of the poor and underserved communities.
c. Republic Act 7165 states that it is the policy of the State to give highest priority to the adoption of measures for the total eradication of illiteracy.
d. Administrative Order No. 116, signed by former President of the Republic of the Philippines, mandated all government agencies and local government units to support the Non-formal Education Accreditation and Equivalency (NFE A&E) System.
The Commission on Higher Education has to participate in several activities in nonformal education, such as:
· KALAHI or Kapit Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan is the administration’s overarching program for a focused, accelerated, convergent, expanded, and strategic effort to reduce poverty. All government poverty reduction programs are anchored on t KALAHI.
· Extension programs of the Higher Education Institutions that addressed community needs of the elderly, mothers, disabled and handicapped, children and other residents of the community.
3. ESD in Informal Education
The Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) is an alternative modality in higher Education, where an individual’s knowledge, skills, attitudes and values obtained from relevant work experiences are assessed thus giving one an appropriate academic degree.
e. Challenges, constraints and opportunities
At the beginning of the new century, higher education faces a set of pervasive challenges and opportunities brought about by the changing global economic and social conditions. The closing years of the 20th century were characterized by knowledge explosion, scientific breakthrough, and technological advancement, particularly in information and communication, and rapid technology diffusion.
ICT (Information and Communcation Technology). The phenomenal advance in information and communication technologies has created new business opportunities and brought about major changes in the way people live, learn, think, work and do business, and in their relations with each other. ICTs have linked communities across the globe, broken down economic and cultural barriers between peoples, and made possible the freer and faster mobility of goods, information, people and capital across nations. These are paving the way towards regional and global integration and the emergence of a “borderless world or global village.”
The advantages offered by ICTs are: the capability to remove barriers of space and time in learning; to open up the different languages and cultures of the world; and to create a more equitable learning environment. ICTs provide a means for overcoming historically intractable problems of isolation and lack of access to information and knowledge, crucial impediments to educational and socioeconomic development. ICTs have reshaped the educational landscape by transforming the content and modes of delivery/acquisition of learning as well as how the educational institutions operate.
For students, ICT offer many choices in the acquisition of knowledge, competencies and skills, access to real world and up-to-date information and opportunities to experience learning throughout their lives. Libraries from other parts of the world can now be accessed, courses are offered online, and distance education has taken on greater importance.
The new technologies and strategies for “borderless” education could be implemented only if there is management and leadership support from the university administration and the government. Other factors required to ensure the success of borderless education programs in the Asia-Pacific Region is the wider use of English as a medium of instruction because English is the language of ICT, and the possession of computer literacy and information technology skills as the quality of content or knowledge base. Professionals from various disciplines and education will thus have to re-think the way in which instruction can be delivered, including selection of the right kind of technology, prescription of the contents of education, and definition of the right outcomes.
The adoption of said technologies and the concomitant educational reforms, moreover, leads to the necessity of maintaining certain balances: a balance between technological modernity and cultural preservation - the local tradition and culture that gives each nation its unique identity must be preserved; and a balance between individual development and social cohesion - a reformed educational system that tries to develop self-esteem, creativity, and articulate communication must not neglect to foster a sense of community and social harmony among its students.