SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday urged education officials to learn from Vietnam’s experience when it comes to their best experiences in upgrading their education sector, including education spending.
Gatchalian said that while increasing funding can help improve education performance to a certain extent, it is equally important to ensure the optimal use of available government resources.
He pointed out that while there is not much difference between the two countries when it comes to education funding, Vietnam’s learner performance is way higher than that of Filipinos.
He said that Manila spends 3.8 percent of its Gross Domestic Product on the education sector while Vietnam spends 4.06 percent.
“On average, the Philippines spends around P55,000 per learner every year from kindergarten until the age of 15, while Vietnam spends on average around P69,000 per learner every year from kindergarten until the age of 15,” Gatchalian, the chair of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, said.
He added the results of the 2022 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) showed the dire state of the country’s education sector and the need for education officials to take immediate measures to address the problem.
Based on PISA results, 72 percent or seven out of 10 Vietnamese learners aged 15 have reached Level 2 or the minimum proficiency level in mathematics, while only 16 percent or less than two out of 10 learners have reached the minimum proficiency in mathematics.
Gatchalian said that Vietnam’s poorest learners, or those at the bottom 10 percent of the economic, social, and cultural status, scored 91 points higher than the Philippines’ poorest learners.
“The average score of Vietnam’s poorest learners was 427, while the Philippines’ average score was 336,” he said.
Under the PISA standard, at a minimum, learners who have reached Level 2 or the minimum proficiency level in mathematics can interpret and recognize, without direct instructions, mathematical representations of simple situations such as comparing the total distance across two alternative routes or converting prices into a different currency.
“Although both Vietnam and the Philippines do not spend that much, we have seen in the data that Vietnamese students score higher,” Gatchalian said.
“It is important that we learn from Vietnam because they show the importance of better use of resources and spending for education,” he added.
He said the matter will be taken up in the Second Congressional Commission on Education later this month.
“This initiative reflects a proactive approach to enhancing our education system by drawing insights from the successes of Vietnam, with the aim of identifying strategies and methodologies that can be adapted to elevate educational standards in our country,” he added.
Earlier, Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte termed the PISA 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,” the DepEd chief said.
