Dr. Paraluman R. Giron, DepEd Mimaropa director, said a statistical report submitted by Dr. Elias Castromero, regional secondary education division chief, should the graduating secondary school students are broken down to 15,555 males and 18,888 farmers or a grand total of 34,388 representing some 10 percent more than last school year’s high school finishers in the three year old DepEd region.

Giron said the schools division of Mindoro Oriental submitted the biggest number of graduating high school youngsters with 7,750 followed closely by Palawan with 7,676.

The other schools divisions and their respective number of graduating secondary schoolchildren are: Occidental Mindoro, 4,982; Romblon, 4,781; Marinduque, 3,677; Puerto Princesa City, 3,147, and; Calapan City, 2,375.

The Mimaropa DepEd chief said that the statistical report also revealed that 59,160 students in the region will finish first year at the end of the current school year, 3,192, second year, and 39,108, third year.

The statistical report, Giron said, showed that no student in Mimaropa volunteered to participate in the education department’s "Bridge Program".

Giron explained that the program is described as an optional 10-month remedial course for the last school year’s Grade 6 graduates who were found, through the "high school readiness test," to be conducted in the major subjects of English, Science and Mathematics.

The "Bridge" students, Giron said, are supposed to proceed to the first year high school when year 2006-2007 opens in June.