DepEd to adopt new system to assess students' level of proficiency

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Education (DepEd) will adopt a new assessment tool using the letter system to assess the level of proficiency of students in public schools.

With the additional grade system, DepEd will stop the traditional practice in public schools of promoting students automatically to the next higher grade despite their failure to earn an acceptable level of proficiency.

According to DepEd officials, the move aims to raise the quality of education in all public schools in line with the K+12 (Kindergarten+12 Basic Education Curriculum) program.

Mandatory remedial classes will be given to under-achieving students at the end of each quarter, while students with poor grades at the end of the school year will have to attend summer classes.

Under DepEd Order No. 31, five levels of proficiency were identified, namely: Beginning, Developing, Approaching Proficiency, Proficient, and Advanced.

The level of proficiency will be based on the numerical grades earned by the students in a particular quarter and at the end of the school year.

The Beginning (B) level will be given to students with numerical grades of 74 percent and below; Developing (D) level for those with grades of 75 to 79 percent; Approaching Proficiency (AP) for those with grades 80 to 84 percent; Proficient (P) for those with grades 85 to 89 percent; and Advanced (A) for those with 90 percent and higher.

“The general average shall be the average of the final grades of the different learning areas, also expressed in terms of levels of proficiency with the numerical equivalent in parenthesis,” DepEd said.

Education Secretary Armin Luistro said that the enhanced K+12 program will also focus on character building and formation, with the goal of producing generations of good, responsible, and productive citizens.

“The assessment process is holistic and aims to ensure the quality of student learning with emphasis on formation and development,” Luistro said.