In a move that has sparked a national debate, the Philippines’ Department of Education (DepEd) has announced changes to the way students with academic excellence awards are recognized. No longer will the terms ‘valedictorian’ and ‘salutatorian’ be used, nor the concept of ‘Top 1′. Instead, the recognition of students’ academic achievements will be made in alphabetical order, not by ranking within categories.
The change was revealed in a memorandum posted on DepEd’s official website, which elaborated on a previous 2016 order that sought to promote equality over competition in academic excellence. The 2016 order emphasized that all students possess unique strengths that need to be publicly recognized and nurtured. The goal was to celebrate a wide range of student achievements beyond just academic performance.
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Fast forward to 2021, the recent memorandum focuses on the manner of announcing academic excellence awards. Regardless of their final average, students will be recognized alphabetically within each category: ‘with highest honors’, ‘with high honors’, and ‘with honors’.
DepEd gave an example for clarity: if Margarita Aragon had a final average of 92, Juana Dela Cruz 91, and Jesus Zaragosa 94, Margarita Aragon would be announced first, followed by Juana Dela Cruz and then Jesus Zaragosa.
This change has stirred strong reactions from the public. A post about the memorandum on DepEd Community’s page garnered 5,000 comments, 52,000 shares, and 64,000 reactions. It also generated significant discussion on Reddit’s Philippine subreddit.
Many netizens expressed support for the change, lauding the move as promoting fairness and reducing unhealthy competition and self-esteem issues among students. One user noted the unnecessary rivalry they had with a classmate over rankings, a rivalry that dissipated over time, leading to a valuable friendship.
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Another user, a parent of a high honor student, emphasized that the achievement itself was reason enough for celebration, adding, “What’s important is they did their best to excel in their studies.”
However, some have criticized the policy as unfair and invalidating to the hard work of high-achieving students. Critics have pointed out that having exceptional grades can provide numerous advantages, such as securing scholarships at prestigious universities. One such critique received 2,800 heart emojis in agreement.
As this new policy comes into effect, it’s clear that it sparks a broader conversation about the purpose and impact of academic awards. The debate on how best to recognize and celebrate students’ accomplishments continues, with no clear consensus in sight.
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