We could hardly believe we concretely act on our educative mission for K-12 students. Mahirap mambola. So here is one of the most important quotable quotes before the year ends: “Pisa has provided us with valuable insights into the strengths and weaknesses of our education system.
The PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) results may bear an uncomfortable truth. It has shown that a significant majority of our boys and girls fall below the proficiency level required for full participation in society and contributing to nation-building.”
Salamat po sa pagtanggap sa katotohanang “unfomcortable,” DepEd Secretary (na siya ring mahal nating Pangalawang Pangulo).
“The Pisa results are not merely a reflection of our education system. It is a mirror reflecting our collective efforts, investments, and most importantly, our commitment to education and the future we envision for our children.” Salamat muli sa pagtanggap sa katotohanan, Sec. Sara. What should we do now? Siya mismo, merong masasabi rito: “We still need your support. We need every stakeholder to join us in this journey moving forward. We may approach the solution differently, but we all agree on the destination. Everyone’s efforts are counted and everyone is accountable for our children’s future.”
Absolutely. But would you listen, would you be sport enough to admit constructive criticisms like PBBM did when he ultimately got out of the agriculture portfolio?
The DepEd chief has yet to focus on education because if she has, why did the department have to ask for a confidential fund? To buy intelligence for schoolchildren? To fund tree planting in 11 days? Clearly, there is no concrete plan. The staff would say that there is, but their papers are empty and they do not use effective means to communicate to the public what exactly is DepEd’s plan on where to spend the enormous amount of funds. Secondly, why secret? (The mandates of the department are obvious, just look at the Constitution and special laws.) People did not want it to happen but it happened anyway: The Office of VP Sara spent the controversial P125-million confidential funds in 2022 in just 11 days, according to COA. The petitioners who filed their respective cases before the Supreme Court have already asked, among others, that the OVP return the millions of confidential funds that you and I, dear readers — now and then — have/had no knowledge where they were spent. There is an explanation for that, but only OVP knows. So wrong.
Kaya’t kung pangungulelat sa edukasyon ang tututukan, tutugunan, popondohan, pwede pa rin ba tayong makipag-usap sa lagpas isang taon nang nakaupong DepEd secretary sa ganoong isyu pa rin? Sobra na rin, tama na rin. Palitan na rin. Urgent ang posisyon. Si VP/Sec. Sara, maraming nagsasabi, ay busy na sa maraming bagay at kasama na raw diyan sa pagharap sa kaliwa’t kanang kontrobersya ng mga Duterte. Ibig sabihin, makatutulong pa nga sa kanya at sa OVP ang bitawan niya ang DepEd. Panatag ang loob mo, loob ko, marahil mga nasa loob ng silid-aralan din, na merong isang daang porsyentong pagtutok sa tungkulin ang magiging bagong kalihim ng edukasyon.
A colleague who has been an educator and organization leader for decades asked: Heart for confidential funds or heart for education? He said that we should not be flattered by the spoken word of politicians, but that we should listen to the truly dedicated education officials. Thus, we need their transparent plans and their political will to invest in the proper education of children. Mahalagang ipakita, iparinig, ipaalam, at ipadama ang mga ito sa mga magulang na nagbabayad ng buwis at iba pang education stakeholders. What if no such communication? Para na ring nagtitiwala ang tao sa agila na kaya nitong isakay sa kanyang mga pakpak at mamasyal sa ibabaw ng Luneta (kapag nangyari iyon, mangako na rin sana siya sa tapat ng bantayog ni Rizal na tutulong siya sa mga kabataan upang maging pag-asa sila ng bayan).
Maganda na ngang nagpasailalim ang bansa sa PISA. Ano ito? Programme for International Student Assessment. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ang gumagawa ng ganitong pag-aaral sa buong mundo. Sinusukat ng PISA ang mga kakayahan ng mga batang edad 15 sa reading, mathematics, at science. Nangulelat tayo noong 2018, at walang masyadong galawan ng datos sa 2022.
Tatlo sa apat na estudyanteng nasa edad 15 ang hindi nakaaabot sa minimum proficiency sa tatlong nabanggit na subjects. Atrasado ng 5-6 taon ang kanilang kakayahan. Dadgag pa sa ulat ang long-term absenteeism na nagpalala ng students’ academic performance. Sabi ng OECD, “While schools can do little to prevent illness, they can address a lack of motivation among students, and much can be done to make schools safer.”
The organization notes: “PISA results show that boys and students in lower secondary school are more likely to suffer from a lack of motivation: the two groups cited boredom as a reason for long-term absenteeism more often than girls and students in upper secondary school, on average across OECD countries and in most countries/economies.”
Meanwhile, on a government website, DepEd boasts that it is on the right path to becoming the “most trusted, top-performing” government agency. Come again? Yung mga survey firm na ganyan, tuma-timing. Why not wholeheartedly accept the fact that our children got dismal PISA scores in 2018 and 2022? Acceptance is the first step; otherwise, people will not expect any concrete action from the concerned agency. We say no to concrete cover-up (read: PR). That is what is happening. That is no secret. That is OECD’s PISA. Bawi tayo.
DC Alviar
Professor DC Alviar serves as a member of the steering committee of the Philippine International Studies Organization (PHISO). He was part of National University’s community extension project that imparted the five disciplines of a learning organization (Senge, 1990) to communities in a local government unit. He writes and edits local reports for Mega Scene. He graduated with a master’s degree in development communication from the University of the Philippines Open University in Los Baños. He recently defended a dissertation proposal for his doctorate degree in communication at the same graduate school under a Philippine government scholarship grant. He was editor-in-chief of his high school paper Ang Ugat and the Adamson News.
