Local Studies “During the DepEd-CEAP Mindanao Summit organized by CEAP’s National Basic Education Commission (NBEC) and co-hosted by Ateneo de Davao University on 17-18 February, the intention was to appreciate progress attained in the implementation of the K-12 educational reform and to understand the requirements of the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013 (RA 10627) for the Mindanao schools. The presentation on the content of the Anti-Bullying Act was straightforward. Atty. Joseph Estrada combined competence with humor – overcoming an irksome cough! – to describe the content of the law and clarify its requirements for the schools. But the presentations on the K-12 were more problematic. Brother Armin Luistro, FSC, DepED Secretary, who’d come to the Mindanao Summit despite an injury sustained in a basketball match among Cabinet members, spearheaded the presentations with an update on where K-12 is. He reminded all of a prior commitment: basic education was not merely to be reformed, but transformed. It was to be genuinely “learner centered”. He pointed to a nearly-completed K-12 curriculum that would allow for creativity, innovation, and in Mindanao, a “Mindanao perspective.” Therefore, such features as the mother-tongue based education, and an assessment system based on the conviction, “No child is a failure!” were to be appreciated. He encouraged Catholic schools in Mindanao to return to their original religious charisms to understand how each might contribute uniquely to the success of the educational reform. In Mindanao, special challenges that Catholic schools might address would be the educational needs of the Indigenous Peoples, of the out of school youth, and even of the street children. Over-Congested Curriculum No problem with that. When Mr. Elvin Ivan Y. Uy, DepEd’s K-12 Program Coordinator, presented the status of the Senior High School curriculum, problems began to emerge. He echoed Bro. Armin’s summary of the reform as “Learner-centered” education. But from the Power Point Presentation entitled: “The K-12 Curriculum: CEAP-NBEC Summit” he spoke of “31 total Subjects” required for Senior High School, 15 of which were “Core Subjects” and 16 of which were “Track Subjects,” the latter broken down into 7 “Contextualized” subjects and 9 “Specialization” subjects. From the same slide came the “non-negotiable” announcement: “Each subject will have 80 hours per semester.” The latter came as a shocker to curriculum planners from within the assembly like Dr. Gina Montalan, Dean of the College of Education Ateneo de Davao University, who was quick to point out that this would mean 6.5 hours of contact hours daily in the senior high school for the DepEd’s required courses. If this were to be reckoned in today’s college units, this would be the equivalent to a whopping 32.5 units – where college students – who need time to read and study outside of class – should be taking no more than about 20 units. The heavy daily 6.5 hours of required DepEd courses allowed little room for “mission-driven” schools – as all CEAP schools are! – to add courses required by their educational mission. These include subjects such as religious education or theology, philosophy, and special formational courses such as in leadership training.