Serial failures in global tests flag PHL ‘crisis in education’

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco, 14 Dec 2020

THE serial “flunking” of Filipino learners in several international academic examinations shows the “sudden death” of education in the country, according to the Federation of Associations of Private School Administrators (Fapsa).

“And all of us are guilty,” admitted Fapsa President Eleazardo Kasilag in a statement at the weekend.

Kasilag added, “It is maxima culpa from poor supervision of education committees in both houses in Congress to the dismal management of the DepEd. This is even extended to the lackadaisical as well as to unmotivated classroom processing of both public and Fapsa private schools teachers and administrators.”

The Philippines lagged behind counterparts from 57 countries with the lowest score of 297 in Mathematics and 249 in Science in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) in 2019 for Grade 4 Filipino learners.

Also, the country attained just minimum proficiency in reading, writing, and mathematics in the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) 2019 for Grade 5 learners.

Filipino students also fared poorly in the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), a computer-based test that measures the performance of 15-year-old students in math, science and reading, conducted by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. The Philippines scored 353 in Mathematics, 357 in Science, and 340 in Reading—all below the average of participating countries.

Teachers

Kasilag, meanwhile, also cited the dismal passing rate in the Licensure Examination for Teachers: out of 386,840 examinees in 2019, only 147,353 passed while 239,487 examinees failed; and the average passing rate was only 30 percent over an 11-year period. There were 445 schools with a zero passing rate in September 2019 LET.

While the country is set to join another round of Pisa in 2022, Fapsa describes this as “baloney.” “It’s like a boxer, having lost all rounds—beaten black and blue—and still, his trainer schedules him again in the next fight, hoping to deliver a lucky punch,” Kasilag said.

“Here, Fapsa humbly asks, what happens to ‘Sulong Edukalidad?’ I know there are several issues we need to address, but Fapsa moves that congestion inside the classroom has to be prioritized aside from teachers’ upskilling and reskilling,”he said.

DepEd’s, Win’s take

Earlier, DepEd welcomed the insights of the TIMSS 2019 results, and Pisa SEA-PLM 2019.

“Our participation or re-participation in these international assessments indicates a step forward towards addressing curriculum and learning gaps in the country’s basic education,” the DepEd said.

For Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, the serial failures indicate a major crisis in the country’s basic education system that will not be resolved by “business as usual.”

“This is a major crisis. The country has been participating in global assessments as an additional tool to measure the effectiveness of the basic education curriculum. The dismal result for the third time is so depressing and should serve as a wake-up call,” Gatchalian said in a statement.