| Photo by Irene Jiang on Unsplash
There are thousands of bright and high-achieving Filipino students, and special schools have been established to develop their knowledge and talents, equip them with the skills that would help land them a good job and contribute to the nation’s development. Filipino students are naturally good and intelligent, and the Philippines could attain greater moral and educational standards and offer better employment if these students could have opportunities to access high-quality education, which is their right but is available to only too few people.
The quality of teaching in Philippine education is at a new low because of the huge number of students crammed into tiny, badly ventilated, and poorly lighted classrooms. On average, there are 50 students per classroom, and they suffer from the lack of quality school buildings and educational facilities. The failure to attain high academic standards is due to ineffective teaching by unmotivated and underpaid teachers. There is a severe lack of highly skilled teachers who are knowledgeable about the content of their subjects and capable of motivating students to reach higher standards and achieve more. Many teachers are frequently absent and suffer no consequences for it. Others are focused on illegal fundraising from students and parents. The Department of Education is also severely underfunded, which is seen in some studies’ dire results.
According to a 2019 World Bank report, as many as 90 percent of Filipino students are unable to reach a minimum proficiency level at the end of their elementary education, as shown by data from Grade 5 students in the report. In another report, the Program for International Student Assessment (PISO) indicated that Filipino students have consistently performed poorly, with low rankings in reading comprehension, mathematics, and science. They seriously lacked “skills like reading, writing, numeracy, and problem-solving,” it said. The research shows that about 91 percent of Filipino children cannot understand simple texts by the time they reach 10 years old.
Just how low does the Philippine educational system rank? Of the 139 countries ranked by the Global Competitiveness Report for education, the Philippines is No. 69, and its placement is sinking lower yearly. It is now rated the lowest among the six Southeast Asian nations in the report. The Philippines also has one of the lowest educational budgets in Asia. Morally corrupt bureaucrats allocate educational funds to enrich themselves.
There are various forms of poverty in the Philippines: food, intellectual poverty, social poverty, and moral poverty. Multiple reports say Filipino children suffer from all of them, but perhaps the most widespread are hunger and learning poverty. Food poverty is particularly damaging to them. Feeding programs are inadequate in many schools, especially remote ones, due to the corrupt practices of some officials and even teachers. There is no apparent supervision or oversight in implementing these programs or upholding high educational standards. Every child is “moved up,” regardless of their ability to read, write, or comprehend what they read. Many children drop out of school due to poverty, hunger, and also boredom because of inadequate teaching.
“There are various forms of poverty in the Philippines: food, intellectual poverty, social poverty, and moral poverty. Multiple reports say Filipino children suffer from all of them, but perhaps the most widespread are hunger and learning poverty. Food poverty is particularly damaging to them.”
Across the Philippines, poverty causes hundreds of thousands of children to go hungry. Many drop out of school and live on the streets with severe literacy problems. It is estimated that 13.1 percent — 2.9 million — of Filipino children are estimated to be hungry every day, and 18 percent — 2 million — are considered severely “food poor,” said Albert Muyot, chief executive officer of Save the Children Philippines.
The Food and Agriculture Organization reported in 2023 that almost 45 percent of the Philippine population faced moderate or severe food insecurity. It also said 29 percent of children suffered from stunted growth, which was caused by being deprived of nutritious food. It affected their brain development and learning abilities.
Besides the hunger that keeps Filipino children out of school, a very low standard of education among them is seen in government-mandated daycare centers for children five and younger. From there, they move up to elementary school. Republic Act 8980, or the Early Childhood Care and Development Act, says local governments are responsible for operating these daycare centers.
There are approximately 30 daycare centers in each large municipality, and research shows that moving-up ceremonies for toddlers are the source of moneymaking events. In one example, in Zambales, the parents of about 60 children five and younger have a “moving up” day, a kind of graduation or recognition ceremony. Each child’s family, poor or not, has to pay P580 for the child’s participation.
Instead of getting a certificate, the children are made to wear a special rented “toga” and have a photo package worth P230 and a moving-up fee of P350. Parents must pay or be shamed when their child is excluded from the event. If there are 60 children, more or less, in a daycare center holding two sessions, the teacher, and presumably the village, will collect approximately P34,800 from one daycare center alone. If there are 31 daycare centers, as in one municipality in Zambales, the authorities will collect from the parents a whopping P1,078,800, more or less, for an event lasting only a few hours.
Where that money goes is anyone’s guess. These moneymaking ceremonies are similar in elementary and high schools. Besides, teachers ask parents to contribute to buying electric fans, flower pots, curtains, chalk, and other things. Some parents go into debt or reduce the family’s food intake. All these are in the empty hope that their child will get a good education. Sadly, too many can’t afford it, and the child drops out of school to wander in the streets and join gangs and likely become a child in conflict with the law.
Are we surprised that the Philippines ranks among Asia’s lowest educational standards?
——————————————————-
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Shay Cullen is a Missionary priest from Ireland. He is a member of the Missionary Society of St. Columban and has been the Founder and President of the Preda Foundation since 1975.
