Shortchanging our children

The State, according to our Constitution, shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all. Article XIV mandates that the State assign the highest budgetary priority to education.

As always, we have a legal document that expresses the best intentions. But our leaders crumble in the implementation. PISA, the international diagnostic test, has determined that our youth are least able to read, write and count compared with those from other countries.

How could that tragedy happen when education takes the lion’s share of the national budget year after year?

Perhaps, a good part of DepEd’s humongous budget is wasted on corruption, an oversized bureaucracy and flawed educational strategies.

Also, according to international benchmarks, we are not spending at least four percent of GDP on education. In 2014, we only allocated 2.4 percent of GDP, 2.5 percent in 2015 and 3.3 percent in 2016.

In 2017, the Philippines finally reached the benchmark of allocating at least four percent of GDP to education. But this allocation level was not sustained. It was 3.4 percent in 2019, 3.9 percent in 2020 and 2021, and 3.6 percent in 2022 and 2023.

The four percent benchmark is the UNESCO reference point for countries in setting their spending targets. Research shows that countries that increase their investment per student as they progress through schooling from age 6 to 15 years old experience improvements in learning outcomes. The Philippines spends significantly less per student compared to our regional counterparts and remains below the international benchmark.

But large increases in our education budget are not enough. EDCOM 2, the commission looking into improving our education outcomes, points out that it is important to spend properly.

“Our analysis shows that per capita allocation in basic education has doubled over the past decade, primarily due to the addition of senior high school. However, learners in primary education consistently receive lower per-student funding compared to those in secondary and tertiary education. Additionally, the passage of RA 10931 (Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education), which provides free tuition for tertiary students, has significantly increased our spending on higher education.”

There is a better way – Vietnam’s.

Vietnam has historically scored higher than the Philippines in PISA tests even though they allocate a smaller percentage of their GDP to education compared to the Philippines. The difference lies in the fact that Vietnam invests considerably more in both pre-primary and primary education.

We are barely spending anything on pre-primary and primary education. Vietnam is smartly investing in teaching their youngest learners during a time when their minds are most receptive to new knowledge. We, on the other hand, are spending a bundle on secondary and college education, which becomes a waste without a good grounding in the primary level.

In 2022, Vietnam spent an additional P23,894 per student in primary education compared to the Philippines. Notably, Vietnam also invests considerably more in pre-primary education than the Philippines (UNESCO, 2016).

EDCOM2 explains: “Vietnam’s approach underscores that simply increasing the education budget is not enough to ensure student achievement. Effective distribution and targeted allocation of funds across the education system are crucial for success.” In other words, we cannot just throw more money at DepEd and expect our problems to be resolved.

We failed because we neglected the young minds of our children at pre-kindergarten and the primary grades. We ignored the scientific fact that the first five years of a child’s life are generally considered the core of the critical period for learning. The brain is incredibly absorbent during these years, taking in information rapidly. Everything from language to motor skills to social cues is learned and processed extensively. This ability decreases with age.

Our neglect of children from birth to age five explains why they can’t read, write or count by the time they get to high school and college. Our politicians prefer investing in free college education, because we have a culture that values a college diploma no matter how meaningless it is. Ironically, our failure to properly educate our children at the pre-kindergarten and primary levels means that going to college is a bridge too far for them.

Also, our state universities and colleges (SUCs) aren’t all that good. Aside from UP, PUP, MSU, and a few others, many SUCs were established by politicians for political brownie points and are no better than diploma mills—a waste of resources. High failure rates in various professional licensure examinations highlight this wasted investment in poor college education.

PISA test results and the experience of Vietnam are telling us that we are on the wrong path. Yet, not one education secretary has raised red flags to call for a recalibration of policies.

I asked Rep. Roman Romulo, co-chair of EDCOM2, about this, and he said they are now ready to apply the lessons learned from PISA and Vietnam. I understand that Education Secretary Sonny Angara is also seeing this point. So, maybe the reorientation that should have happened long ago will happen soon enough to benefit the next crop of pupils at the pre-primary and primary age groups.

Unfortunately, the system has already failed the older ones, who can now only pin their hopes on remedial classes to catch up, if at all. Or maybe they can benefit from good vocational courses that require less brain power to succeed.

The formula for success is clear: good prenatal care, good nutrition from birth to age five to six, coupled with good pre-primary and primary education. After five years of age, mental and physical stunting happens if deprived of good nutrition and mental stimulation.

It’s the end of the ball game for those our educational system has already failed. Our government shortchanged them. No demographic dividend for the country because the bulk of our working-age population does not have the intellectual capacity to take on leading-edge jobs needed for economic growth.

Boo Chanco’s email address is [email protected]. Follow him on X @boochanco.