Fernan Carigma

In line with the Philippines’ learning recovery efforts, the Department of Education (DepEd) will roll out a special science program for students who will participate in the approaching Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA) 2025.

Photo Courtesy of DepEd/PISA/Philippine News Agency.

PISA will evaluate the capabilities of 15-year-old learners in mathematics, reading, and science where the Philippines ranked among the lowest, placing 78th out of 78 countries in 2018 and 77th out of 81 countries in 2022.

“The special science program will be rolled out in the second quarter of SY 2024-2025 for Grades 7-10,” Education Undersecretary Gina Gonong said during senate consolidation into learning recovery, September 16.

According to her, they are gearing up to cater more than a million 15-year-old students to take part in the PISA assessment preparation for next year. 

“We have identified the 1.6 million target learners that will be participating in the PISA 2025”, Gonong added. 

The special science program will gradually incorporate PISA-like questions into its lessons and will be implemented in 2 stages.

The first one will involve Grades 7 to 10, targeting 1.6 million learners from 150 to 180 schools.

Once they are evaluated, the special science program will retain around 7,500 to 8,000 students who will take the PISA exam later on. 

Concerns were raised about the program, with the DepEd’s PISA-centric approach that could overlook the needs of the majority of students behind.

“Ang nangyayari ngayon, it seems that we are just preparing for the test. But how do we reboot the curriculum? Yung intervention natin na ito is preparing for the test, but we are not really addressing the problem that was shown by the PISA results — which is the learning gaps”, Senator Nancy Binay said during the hearing of the Senate Committee on Basic Education. 

Dr. Portia Padilla from the UP College of Education highlighted the disparity between the small number of schools and students participating in PISA 2025 and the larger population of students who would not be involved.

Responding to the concerns,  Usec. Gonong reiterated that schools who will not participate in PISA 2025 would continue their regular instruction. 

Students identified as those needing educational assistance in the PISA-evaluated areas would receive specific literacy and numeracy interventions.