Torch held high for UC senior high

THE year 2016 has been a revolutionary time for the education system in the Philippines. From the primordial six grade-school years and four high-school years, the K-12 has finally been implemented wherein kindergarten is institutionalized alongside grades eleven and twelve to further strengthen and prepare students to be geared up for college and employment that may suit them.

In the University of the Cordilleras Senior High School Department, they kick-started this new system with a staggering 2,965 SH greenhorns! These grade eleven rookies composed the sixty five sections in two tracks and nine strands. Eighty eight teachers were entrusted with the responsibility to take part in successfully running the program and form the hearts, minds and future of these students.

For the coming SY 2017-2018, the four strands under the Academic Track are ABM or Accountancy, Business and Management; STEM or Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics; HUMSS or Humanities and Social Sciences and GAS or General Academic Strand. These strands are foundations to upskill the students for their future preference of a program they deem most suitable for them. The second track is the Technical-Vocational and Livelihood Track. Here, there are four strands that the students can choose from. Under Home Economics, Tour Guiding and Housekeeping are the offered preferences. The strands Animation and Contact Center Services are in line with Information and Communications Technology.

In an interview with UC Senior High School Academic Director, Dr. Cleofas Basaen, she enthusiastically shared the feats of the school’s first year of having a senior high program. Since these students are in a campus designed for university level, they are exposed to college life and get to have a sneak preview of what to expect when they are formally admitted to a baccalaureate program. To those who are enrolled in tracks that require being hands-on with facilities needed for them to better understand and apply concepts and theories, they are not only taught in classrooms but are as well exposed in laboratories fit for college students that can best deliver the quality of education they deserve to have. When learning essentials must come from beyond the borders of the four-walled classrooms provided by the school, they are supervised by their respective teachers to inculcate practical life and real environment to form part of their holistic development.

UC Senior High’s first year was a success. The students took part in various activities that were conducted in the university. In symposia and fora that were sponsored by the different colleges, they were invited to be a part of it and consider the exposure a training in line with their strands. In the LITMUS or Literary and Musical Competition, they fared well in showcasing their talents and were not far behind the college students in their performance level and even emerged as the university champion. The intramurals raised the senior high banner in a pedestal. They went against clustered colleges and triumphed as overall first runner-up. The senior high is also given a post in the SSG or Supreme Student Government where they are represented and their plights are heard and their rights are exercised as well.

UC’s Senior High School department takes pride in having a curriculum that is superior in its content, skills-training and competencies. It is well-designed to develop and encourage students to exhibit their talents, skills and knowledge. Here, they are supported in their endeavors within the university premises as well as their takes in unfolding their crafts to higher heights outside their comfort zones. The department is committed in educating the students a notch farfetched than the traditional approach by allowing them to apply the knowledge and wisdom they acquire from their classrooms by means of requiring outputs that channel their inner Einstein and let them out of their shells.

Moreover, the University has open doors for senior high students to join the chorale, percussion and dance group. In parallel to extra and co-curricular activities, exhibits are also held to serve as a ground for them to display their works in their respective strands. Activities like these are done in pursuit of encouraging the students to deliver their very best and for the university to show that their efforts are both appreciated and recognized.

This August marks another school year and the senior high school department will be welcoming a new breed of approximately an astounding 3,600 Grade eleven in addition to the 2,163 Grade twelve who are all ready to take on the hallways and classrooms that await them. In preparation for this number of students, the university has stretched its effort to rendering higher quality of learning. New and qualified teachers will be joining the roster of competent and dedicated teaching team that is focused on a student-centered approach. Also, one hundred new computer units with high specifications have been installed in the computer laboratories for the benefit of the department’s grades eleven and twelve students.

The University of the Cordilleras adheres to holding high its torch as it continues to innovate and uphold education at its finest. Here, students can confidently be themselves and embark on their academic journey successfully because in UC, yes, UCan!

By Julie Xanadu Quiano Calvez