Feasibility Study on Offering Bachelor of Special Needs Education (Generalist) in Monkayo College of Arts, Sciences and Technology

Feasibility Study on Offering Bachelor of Special Needs Education (Generalist) in Monkayo College of Arts, Sciences and Technology

Kennneth Aga B. Sagarino^*, Michelle A. Caina, Dave E. Aparecio

Faculty Members, Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Monkayo College of Arts, Sciences and Technology

*Corresponding Author

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2024.8100123

Received: 07 October 2024; Accepted: 10 October 2024; Published: 08 November 2024

ABSTRACT

The feasibility study focuses on the potential offering of a Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNEd) program at Monkayo College of Arts, Sciences, and Technology (MonCAST). The study aims to address the educational requirements of students with learning disabilities, emphasizing the importance of providing equal opportunities for all children, regardless of their challenges. It highlights the increasing global demand for special education and the shift towards inclusive education, where students with exceptionalities spend more time in general education classes. The study also discusses the potential career paths for BSNEd graduates, including roles as special education teachers, therapists, and support staff in inclusive educational settings. The curriculum design for the BSNEd program is outlined, emphasizing the minimum requirements and the expected outcomes for graduates. The study also delves into the financial feasibility of the program, including enrollment forecasts, tuition fees, and operational expenses. It emphasizes the importance of human, technical, and financial resources for effective program implementation. Furthermore, the study covers various aspects such as industry analysis, marketing strategy, technical feasibility, and operations and management aspects. It also identifies the key success factors, including the accessibility of the location, school performance, campaign strategy, facilities, and equipment. The study recommends additional promotional strategies, such as radio announcements and targeted advertising, to attract more students to the program. In conclusion, the study provides evidence for the feasibility of implementing the BSNEd program at MonCAST, demonstrating the institution’s ability to raise enrollment, generate income, and achieve a net surplus over a five-year period. It emphasizes the importance of creating an immersive and stimulating learning environment and recommends pursuing additional funding for classroom and lab improvements. The study aims to guide top management in making informed decisions about offering the BSNEd program and highlights the significance of catering to the educational needs of students with learning disabilities.

INTRODUCTION

Every student can learn just not on the same day or in the same way. Every child is entitled to the same opportunities as other children, regardless of the challenges they face. Catering to the distinctive educational requirements of children with learning disabilities holds significant value, ensuring they receive a high-quality education tailored to their individual needs. (Allison Academy, 2023). Special education strives to unlock the utmost potential of children with special needs, fostering self-reliance and directing efforts towards offering them opportunities for a fulfilling and joyful life (Rocal, 2020).

According to UNICEF, approximately 93 million children worldwide have been diagnosed with some form of disability. Over half of that number does not attend school at all, depriving them of the right to a better life. Recognizing the importance of special education, countries around the world have developed various systems aimed at improving child care, education, and the quality of life in general. To achieve that goal, various laws have been passed to adequately address and solve the problems of children with special needs. In the Philippines, the DepEd said the “ideal student—teacher ratio” for SPED is 15:1, however, Gatchalian stressed that there are only 4,000 SPED teachers.

In connection to that, now is an ideal opportunity to provide this curriculum, as the career prospects for its graduates are promising, and the  demand for their services is expected to grow over the  next five years, as noted by Anything Research  Journal. In accordance with this, MonCAST’s  professed objective is to develop graduates who are  globally competent and who can meet the needs of the  industry. As a result, Local College intends to offer an  additional Bachelor of Special Needs Education under the College of Education as part of its ongoing efforts  to meet the needs of the industry.

MonCAST has four programs under the  College of Education, thus, upon the realization of this  program the Local College can now have additional  programs to offer which will definitely result in an  increase in the number of enrollees. In addition, The  Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNED) is an  undergraduate degree program which specializes in  special needs education that prepares teachers who  will instruct and manage students with additional  needs in inclusive and segregated educational settings.  Its graduates will be equipped to teach the basic  education curriculum and alternate curricula  depending on the needs of the students. Those who  will teach in the elementary level will be trained across  different subject areas. Those who will teach in the  secondary level will provide educational support to  students with additional needs in inclusive classrooms  or provide educational services to students who may  be enrolled in special education centers, into 126 units wherein General Education Courses has  36 units, Professional Education Courses has 42 units  and Special Needs Education Major Courses has 48  units, thus having a total of 126 units.

In order to establish the viability of offering  a Bachelor of Special Needs Education at MonCAST,  there is a need to conduct a feasibility study. The  feasibility study can determine if this program will  succeed on a long-term basis or withstand financial  risk that may come. It can also help in identifying the  cash flow in order to foresee the expenses related to  the program offering. Further, by conducting this  study, top management and department heads will  have an idea whether to offer or not the Bachelor of  Special Needs Education or BSNed.

Questionnaire, interview and documentary  analysis will be the tools to be used in gathering the  needed information of the study. The respondents of  the study will be the Grade 12 students of public and  private schools in the municipality of Monkayo,  Davao De Oro. The researchers will prepare a one  page questionnaire which will be validated by the  research head of the institution. A letter will also be  submitted to the DepEd District Supervisor of  Monkayo, Davao De Oro and to the Principals of the  private schools in order for the researcher to conduct a  survey and interview.

In addition, the feasibility study will cover  six (6) aspects which are the following; the project,  industry analysis, marketing strategy, technical  feasibility, financial feasibility, and operations and  management aspects. These aspects are relevant in  determining the viability of this project and provide  guidelines that help the proponent in completing this  study. Further, the respondents of the study will be the  grade 12 students of Municipality of Monkayo only  and do not include the other nearby municipalities.

Vision Mission Statement

Vision

An inclusive and transformative learning institution  producing globally competitive graduates.

Mission

To deliver quality and dynamic instruction,  relevant researches, and sustainable inclusive programs gearing towards socio-economic  development.

Goals and Objectives

• To produced competent graduates
• To foster strong linkages and networks
• To synergize human capital

Core Values:

Every MonCAST students, alumnus, alumna, faculty  and staff is a professional with:

M- Moral Uprightness

O- Optimism

N- Nationalism

C- Compassion

A- Adaptability

S- Service

T- Teamwork

Objectives

The following are the objectives in  conducting the study:

• To determine the students and occupational demand of the program.
• To establish the program description and structure. •To check the financial feasibility of the program. •To identify the resource requirements of the program.

Keys to Success

Key success factors include human, technical  and financial resources which are needed for effective  and efficient implementation of offering Bachelor of  Special Needs Education (Generalist) at MonCAST.  Human resources include key persons in an  educational institution as reflected in the  organizational chart. The strong advantage of MonCAST against its competitors in the province of Davao de Oro is the free education or otherwise known as the Republic Act 10931 “Universal Access to Free  Tertiary Education Act”. Aside from free education, the college should also give importance to the other  crucial factors that will interest the students to enroll  in Bachelor of Special Needs Education, like: (a)  Special Education room, (b) facilities and equipment,  (c) location, (d) campaign strategies/advertisement.  Further, the program should get the Certificate of  Program Compliance (COPC) from CHED and should  be accredited at least Level 1 status by the ALCUCOA in not more than 5 years of operation in order to  continue its operation.

Industry Analysis

Industry analysis helps the business to predict  changes and further allows the business to react  strategically. This also provides the business an in depth understanding of the industry and it helps the  planners to position their companies in the market.

Industry Outlook and Growth Potential 

The Educational Services Industry is  composed of establishments that provide instruction  and training on a wide variety of subjects. These  institutions, including schools, colleges and  universities and training centers, are either privately or  publicly owned. Private institutions may be further  classified as “for-profit” or “not-for-profit”. Since  education is an important part of life, the amount and  type of education that individuals receive are a major influence on both the types of jobs they are able to hold  and their earnings. Lifelong learning is important in  acquiring new knowledge and upgrading one’s skills,  particularly in this age of rapid technological and  economic changes. The educational services industry  includes a variety of institutions that offer academic  education, vocational or career and technical  instruction, and other education and training to  millions of students each year.

Moreover, the graduates of the BS Special Needs Education program from the Education sector have wide career opportunities. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on basic education, said as of last March 15, there were 126,598 learners with disabilities enrolled in DepEd schools for SY 2021-2022. However, there are only 4,000 SPED Teachers. Thus, the said program has a fast and large growing market not only here in the Philippines but even in other countries.

Industry Outlook of the Special Education

Recent decades have seen a substantial increase in special education students spending time learning among their nondisabled peers rather than separate from them. In fact, of those aged 6-21, 63.4% spend 80% or more of their time in general education classes, according to 2017 data. And an international survey of more than 121,000 teachers in 30 countries, including the U.S., showed that actual instruction time decreased as the number of students with exceptionalities in a classroom increased. That lost time went to managing the classroom, potentially negatively impacting both disabled and nondisabled students. Education pundits believe that if general education teachers were better prepared — receiving more training focused on inclusion and special education — all students could benefit.

Moreover, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, overall employment of special education teachers is projected to grow 4 percent from 2021 to  2031, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Marketing Strategy

Marketing Strategy is the marketing logic by which the business unit expects to achieve its marketing objectives.” According to Dibb and Simkin, “Marketing Strategy indicates the specific markets towards which activities are to be targeted and the types of competitive advantage to be exploited.”

This area discusses the target market of the Bachelor of Special Needs Education (Generalist) of MonCAST and identifies the list of the feeder schools of the college. Further, it also determines the promotional tools that will be used by the college in order to attract its target market. Lastly it enumerates and discusses the possible jobs that can be availed by the graduates of this program.

Markets and Customers

Table 1.0 Respondents of the Study

The respondents of this study consisted of 3  Secondary Schools in Monkayo, Davao de Oro. These  schools are considered feeder schools of the College.  The total grade 12 population is eight hundred fifty one (851) from the said schools.

Data Gathering Tools

The tool employed in gathering the needed information in this research, namely, questionnaire.

Preparation of the questionnaire.

The researcher considered some reading materials, such as books, magazines, journals, thesis and the internet.

Validation of the questionnaire.

The questionnaire was validated by the proponent’s adviser and some of the proponent’s colleagues, the purpose of which is to determine the clarity and understanding of the questionnaire, and find out which item or items needs to be modified, deleted or changed. Items which were vague or needed improvement were revised. The questionnaire was then reproduced for the final distribution.

The following statistical tools were used in this study. The Slovin Formula was used to determine the sample size of the population.

Stratified Sampling Technique.

The statistical technique was used to determine the sample units of the population per participating school.

Enrolment Forecast

Table 2.0 Enrollment Forecast

The attrition rate was computed by multiplying 10% with the supply for MonCAST. With the availability of the above data; the enrolment forecast can now be calculated by simply subtracting the attrition number from the Supply of Local College.  In connection to that, MonCAST supply for year 1 is 274 less the attrition rate of 10% which resulted to 27; thus, the enrolment forecast is 274. In year 2, with the Local College supply of 555 and the attrition number of 55; the enrolment forecast is now 500. In year 3 to year 5, the Local College supply is 860, 1,120 and 1,145 respectively while the attrition number is 86, 112 and 114 stated in chronological order.  Furthermore, it resulted to 774 enrolments forecast for year 3, 1,008 for year 4 and 1,031 for year 5.

Marketing Strategy

MonCAST will conduct career guidance to all secondary schools in Monkayo, Davao de Oro in  order to attract students to enroll in the college.

Table 3.0 Marketing Strategies

Aside from attracting students through career guidance, table 4.0 shows other factors why the grade 12 graduates, transferees and returnees would choose  to study in the Local College. Majority of them want  to enroll due to free education, followed by  accessibility of the location, school performance,  campaign strategy of MonCAST, facilities and  equipment of the school, and parental influence. In  order to attract more students, MonCAST should  invest more on other campaign strategies like radio  announcements, and have tarpaulins posted in every  barangay in Monkayo and nearby towns. Further, the  MonCAST administration should also look for an  additional budget in order to provide 21st classroom  facilities and laboratories.

Service Strategy

To attract enrollees in Bachelor of Special Needs Education (Generalist), it is recommended that  the guidance office will promote its potential to the  feeder schools of the College. Posters, flyers, radio  announcements and other forms of promotion should  be given utmost importance in order to attract the  senior high school graduates to enroll in BSNed. This  study will also explore factors that would influence the  senior high school graduates to choose the BSNed program and pursue it in MonCAST. Based on the  survey conducted by the proponent, the factors are the  following: (a) free education, (b) facilities and  equipment, (c) location, (d) campaign  strategies/advertisement, (e) parental influence.  Furthermore, it is very important that MonCAST  should take into consideration and take ways to  improve all the factors mentioned above in order to  attract lots of enrollees for the BSNed program.

Demand for Graduate/ Employment Opportunities Based on Commission on Higher Education  Memorandum Order number 77 series of 2017,  highlighted on section 5.4, the following are the  specific professions, careers or occupations of the  BSNed graduates, to wit:

1. After completion of all academic requirements of the program, graduates of Bachelor of Special Needs Education  (BSNED) should be able to practice the  teaching profession in the field of Special  Needs Education.
2. Graduates of the generalist BSNEd may be employed in special education centers/clinics as special education teachers, therapists, or  clinicians. They can also work in regular  schools that practice inclusion as learning  support staff and as special education  teachers.
3. Graduates of BSNEd with specialization in Early Childhood Education (ECE) can teach in regular schools as ECE teachers, special  education teachers and learning support staff.  They can also work in special education  centers as special education teachers.
4. Graduates of BSNEd with specialization in Teaching Learners with Visual Impairment or Hearing Impairment can teach in special  education centers and regular inclusive  schools as special education teachers and as  learning support staff.
5. Those with degrees in BSNEd with specialization in Elementary School Teaching can work as regular  classroom/subject teachers in regular  inclusive schools. They may also opt to teach  in special education centers.
6. Graduates of these degrees may also practice in center-/home-/community-based educational settings as intervention  specialists, job/behavior coaches and tutors.

Allied Fields 

The Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNED) is an allied discipline of Teacher Education.  Other fields that work closely with special needs education include psychology, counselor education.  anthropology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech pathology, developmental pediatrics and social work.

Technical Feasibility

Location

The accessibility of the school location is one of the major factors that the senior high school graduates will take into consideration in choosing a school. Based on the survey conducted by the proponent, most of the SHS graduates in Monkayo want to enroll in MonCAST because of its accessibility. Further, the Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNEd)) will be offered only in MonCAST located at P-6 L.S. Sarmiento St., Poblacion, Monkayo, Davao de Oro.

Product

As stated in the Commission on Higher Education Memorandum Order number 77, series of 2017 section 5.3, The Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNEd) program prepares teachers who will instruct and manage students with additional needs in inclusive and segregated educational settings. Its graduates will be equipped to teach the basic education curriculum and alternate curricula depending on the needs of the students. Those who will teach in the elementary level will be trained across different subject areas. Those who will teach in the secondary level will provide educational support to students with additional needs in inclusive classrooms or provide educational services to students who may be enrolled in special education centers. A graduate of this degree program should be able to teach in regular and special education schools as a teacher provided that he/she passes the Licensure Examination for Teachers in his/her subject area of specialization.

Proposed Curriculum Design

Higher education institutions offering Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNEd) programs may exercise flexibility in their curricular offering.  However, the following courses are prescribed as minimum requirements to be implemented.

Table 4.0

Graduates of Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNEd) should be able to practice the teaching profession in the field of Special Needs Education. Graduates of the generalist BSNEd may be employed in special education centers/clinics as special education teachers, therapists, or clinicians. They can also work in regular schools that practice inclusion as learning support staff and as special education teachers.

Financial Feasibility

Table 5.0 Statement of Financial Performance

During the initial year of operation, MonCAST enrolled 274 students, generating a total of 8,780.00 for tuition and miscellaneous fees for the entire year.  With a lean but dedicated team, the college had 6 instructors on board. Assumptions encompassed maintenance, operating expenses, property, plant, equipment costs, and office supply purchases.

In the subsequent year, MonCAST experienced a remarkable surge in revenue, reaching 2,208,950.00, owing to an increase in student enrollment from 274 to 500. Naturally, with a higher number of students, personnel services, maintenance, and other operating expenses also witnessed a proportional rise, striving to maintain the institution’s exceptional standards.

The venture further flourished in year 3, with a notable net surplus increase of 2,902,150.00, followed by 1,857,200.00 in year 4. However, in the fifth year, revenue slightly declined to 199,350, aligning with the year’s student enrollment of 317.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The results, in conjunction with the respondents’ high level of program awareness, as shown in the study’s financial performance analysis, provide convincing evidence for the feasibility of MonCAST’s implementation of the Bachelor of Special Needs Education (BSNEd) program. Over a five-year period, the institution was able to raise enrollment, generate income, and achieve a net surplus, demonstrating its ability to not only maintain but also grow in its goal of offering top-notch instruction and preparing students for success in their professional endeavors.

Moreover, in order to establish a genuinely immersive and stimulating learning environment, it is advised that the MonCAST administration actively pursue additional funding. The distribution of these funds ought to be directed toward substantial improvements in classroom and lab spaces, guaranteeing that they are in compliance with the cutting edge of 21st-century education. In order to make sure that the teaching staff is knowledgeable about the most recent teaching approaches and subject matter, it is imperative that the faculty development program be updated and improved concurrently.

This deliberate and comprehensive distribution of resources would not only emphasize MonCAST’s dedication to providing high-quality education but also solidify its standing as an institution focused on fostering academic excellence. These investments will make a substantial contribution towards providing students with the requisite skills and knowledge needed for successful and gratifying professions in the future.

REFERENCES

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