The Cebu K of C Charter Convention

Title

Language

English

Year

1971

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

vocational education, or at least will be sympathetic to it—as most gen eral education officials are not—, prospects for a strengthened or re juvenated vocational education pro gram may yet remain a mere pipe dream. The proposal to establish socalled comprehensive schools to re place existing public high schools and secondary vocational schools, to take care of middle level educa tion, is an importation from abroad. Some educators say that compre hensive schools have been failures in the United States, yet there is alacrity to transplant them to Philip pine soil. Here, it would seern, the planners may yet be short-chang ing the government by failing to put up an indigenous program of education. Example of Japan It does not seem possible that the entire Philippines will be metamor phosed into a highly industrialized country in this decade, even giving allowance for a speedier electrifi cation of rural areas. With, say, the last three years of the decade as period of adjustment to a partly in dustrial economy transforming the rural areas, it will still be necessary to train young people for occupa tions that will enable them to be self-employed if they will not be absorbed by industry. Meantime only a comfortable percentage should be given technician training —those only that industries, exist ing or to be established, will need. Let us take the example of Ja pan, where cottage industries thrived prosperously before nation wide and sophisticated industriali zation techniques altered the econo mic and geographical landscape of that country. Several vocational education supervisors from the Philippines once visited Japan to observe educational practices. These supervisors stared incredulously at what were the proofs of delicate skills of Japanese children, not yet thirteen years old, such as water color brushes, fountain pens, cig arette lighters, toys, folding fans, etc., made in the home. Moreover, all the children’s creations were in disputably saleable economic goods! There is no reason why Filipino tykes, whose nimbleness with their hands is traditional, cannot also be trained like the Japanese children. This, then, should be an illuminat ing objective of Philippine educa tion. • Page 6 The Cebu Koi May-June, 1971 C Charter Convention ENDORSE CHARTER DRAFT TO CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION The K of C National Conference on Constitutional Re forms held in Cebu City from April 30 to May 2. 1971 succeeded in formulating a draft of the Philippine Constitution—the by product of hot only the three-day KC meet but months of study and research, as well. Months prior to the conference, the 327 K of C councils all over the country were apprised of the theme of the conference; given original copies of the Philippine Constitution; and asked to put down notations and recommendations which they would want to be considered as basis for admendments to the Philippine Constitution. Salient features of the draft include a unicameral legis lature, adoption of jus soli concept for foreigners born in the Philippines, and creation of an economic development com mission. The KC Conference on Constitutional Reforms was tended by representatives of each of the K of C councils v also represent various segments of the citizenry. Some delegates-elect to the forthcoming contitutional convent attended the affair as observers. Some 120 voting delegates approved the draft; 30Q di gates and alternates as well as observers having attended affair. The draft of the "new” Philippine Constitution as fj mulated by the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines x be presented to the delegates of the Constitutional Convent when they convene to open the charter meet in June, this y« Complete coverage of the Cebu K of C Charter Conference will appear in the next .i^uebflhe:'^) CROSS with some pictorial highlights. ' May-June, 1971 Page 7

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