UP, Ateneo reset school year schedules

Two of the country’s top schools are re-working their school calendar this year and next year.

Ateneo’s Loyola Schools and Professional Schools will start adapting the August-May school calendar next year.

The University of the Philippines will follow the recent implementation this year. According to UP Masscom’s official twitter account, “The Board of Regents (BOR) approved today the academic calendar shift from June to August for the UP system except for UPD. (UP Diliman)”

The rescheduling of the academic calendar is intended to adjust to the academic standards set by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

Only the Philippines has an academic calendar in which a regular school year starts in June.

Currently, a regular school year’s first semester will begin on June and end by October while the second term starts in November and ends by March, making April and May the summer period for students.

In the new academic calendar, a regular first term will begin on August and end in December, while the second term starts in January and ends in May, making June and July the new summer period.

But the new time frame for schools is effective only for undergraduate and graduate degrees. Grade School and High School will remain the same.

While the rescheduling of the school calendar is in line with integrating the country’s educational system with the rest of Asia and the world, some sectors said there are still issues to be worked out.

According to an infographic endorsed by @tiningpleridel in twitter, “the academic calendar is highly impractical for a tropical and agricultural country such as the Philippines because classes will be held during the hottest months of the year. Likewise, moving the start of the school year will also mean students from farming communities might not be able to afford to go to school. (NUSP, 2014).”

Another problem is the conflicting holidays as the change of the school calendar may disrupt class attendance in view of local festivities such as Holy Week and Flores De Mayo.

That problem isn’t evident during the April-May summer break where all these holidays are observed.

The League of College Council, an alliance of all local councils in UP Diliman, said yet another issue is “short-run disruptions.” They said high school graduates will have to wait for August and September before they can start college. “Moreover, licensure examinees, once they graduate will have no period for review,” they said.

According to the National Student of the Students (UNSP) 2014, “A deeper look on the bigger picture will also indicate that the switch to globalize Philippines’ tertiary education will only augment the ASEAN and western countries such as in the US in terms of their economy.”

“Filipinos are honed to leave the country to serve foreigners as ‘global slaves’ instead of staying in the country to serve fellow citizens.

But in their Facebook page, the League of College Council also shares five other reaons why the shift in school year schedules would be good.

1.Asean Compatability — Adjusting the academic calendar will allow better exchanges with counterparts in the region by both students and professionals and easier access to research programs, exchange programs and the like, paving the way for mutual recognition.

2. Smooth Integration — the synchronization of Philippine education with the rest of Southeast Asia will facilitate the “free movement of trades and services across the region” and the world over.

3. Optimal breaks — the shift will allow for continuous classes to be conducted with minimal stoppages and a longer semestral break that will coincide with the Christmas break.

4. Student Opportunities — The shift will provide opportunities for students to engage in the region as youth programs usually happen in the summer in the Philippines and/or in July-August, summer in other ASEAN countries whilst the Philippine schools are in swing.

5. Strategic — Shift in the academic calendar is in support for the UP’s strategic plan for academic excellence and internalization.

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