THE Private Education Assistance Committee (PEAC) backs the continued implementation and improvement of the K to 12 Program amid renewed public debates over its effectiveness and calls for its abolishment.
In a statement, PEAC acknowledged the frustrations hounding the implementation of the program, but cautioned against abandoning it entirely.
Instead, the committee urged stakeholders to commit to meaningful reforms and work together to address implementation gaps.
“We hear the discontent—they are real and valid,” said PEAC executive director Doris Ferrer.
“But the answer is not to dismantle a policy designed to provide equal opportunities to Filipino learners. The solution is to implement it effectively and efficiently,” she added.
PEAC emphasized that the primary intent of K to 12 was to level the playing field between private and public school students. Before the reform, only students from private schools had access to more comprehensive programs that better prepared them for different pathways such as college, employment, and entrepreneurship.
“K to 12 is fundamentally a pro-poor policy. To undo it now would be to reverse a critical step toward equity in our education system,” Ferrer noted.
“We must align our learners with global standards if we want them to thrive locally and internationally, amid a fast-changing, competitive world,” she added.
PEAC urged the government, the private sector, and civil society to act urgently on three aspects, including stabilizing the curriculum and deploying clear, credible assessment tools to measure progress; enforcing rigorous quality standards for all senior high school (SHS) providers; and addressing resource gaps, particularly through an expanded voucher system and strengthened public-private partnerships.
The organization also warned that repealing K to 12 would displace thousands of trained SHS teachers and put to waste years of investments in infrastructure and human capital.
“This is not the time to regress. It is the time to prove our resolve to reform, improve, and fulfill the promise of K to 12,” Ferrer said. “Let us build a future-proof education system that every Filipino student and teacher can depend on.”
