Sara: Low scores of Pinoy students in int’l assessments need action

VICE President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte yesterday said collective action is needed to address the low scores of Filipino students in international assessment programs.

Duterte made the call a day after the latest Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) showed the average scores of Filipino students in reading, mathematics and science have not improved significantly compared to other countries.

The Pisa report covered more than 600,000 students from 81 countries.

The report said mean scores showed that Filipino students aged 15 garnered only 356 points in science, 347 in reading, and 355 in mathematics.

The mean score for math among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries was 472 points for mathematics, 476 in reading and, 485 in science.

Duterte termed the results as “uncomfortable truths” that should prod all stakeholders in the education sector to work hard to address the findings.

“This is a call to action, a call to our collective responsibility as a nation. 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,” Duterte said.

“Everyone’s efforts are counted and everyone is accountable for our children’s future,” she added.

Despite the negative mark, Duterte said the DepEd is making progress in addressing learning issues among Filipino students to further improve the quality of basic education in the country.

She pointed to the Marcos administration’s efforts to overhaul the K to 10 program under the aegis of its “Matatag Curriculum.”

“I call on everyone to pull our efforts together for a more resilient Matatag education system, an education system that aims to improve learning outcomes, prioritize student and teacher well-being, and promote accountability to close remaining disparities,” she said.

The Matatag curriculum is currently being pilot-tested in 35 schools in seven regions of the country.

Among the revisions in the K to 10 program include reducing the number of competencies and greater emphasis on the development of foundational skills such as literacy, numeracy, and socio-emotional skills for Kinder to