STATISTICS from the Department of Education (DepEd) show that there are now 26.3 million students who are officially enrolled in elementary and high school. This figure is 2.5 million short of the department’s target enrollment of 28.8 million students for school year 2023 to 2024.
The grand total of 26,304,338 students are enrolled in public and private kindergarten, elementary and high schools, as well as in Philippine schools overseas and under the Alternative Learning System (ALS).
Region 4-A (Calabarzon) tallied the highest number of enrolled students at 3,879,738, followed by Region 3 (Central Luzon) at 2,877,398; Metro Manila (National Capital Region) at 2,713,999; Region 7 (Central Visayas) at 2,017,317; Region 6 (Western Visayas) at 1,940,400); Region 5 (Bicol) at 1,673,156; and Region 11 (Davao) at 1,330,031. A total of 288,012 students were listed under the ALS while 15,483 enrolled in Philippine schools overseas.
It is already the third week since the opening of classes and to somehow close the gap between actual and targeted enrollments, the DepEd announced that schools would be accepting enrollees until the end of September.
In comparison, 28.4 million students were enrolled in public and private schools in the past school year 2022-2023.
‘The Marcos administration should not be complacent in just noting that student enrollment has decreased, especially if another cut is reported in the next school year.’
Two-and-a-half million children who opted not to enroll this year should be a cause for concern for our education officials, particularly Vice President Sara Duterte who heads the Department of Education in concurrent capacity.
An on-the-ground study should be conducted by the department among their divisions and districts to ascertain the reasons the target enrollment numbers were not met. Teachers, principals, supervisors, and other middle-level education officials should be able to provide inputs that would explain our schools’ lack enrollees.
Offhand, we can cite economic difficulties being suffered by many Filipino families due to prolonged inflation, especially in the food, energy, and transport sectors. Inflation and high interest rates together have slowed down the economy, as GDP (gross domestic product) and unemployment numbers have shown recently.
Another probable reason for the decrease in enrollment is the hardship most families struggle with in their effort to recover from the economic scar left by the COVID-19 pandemic, exacerbated by strong typhoons, heavy rains, and widespread floods in some provinces.
The Marcos administration should not be complacent in just noting that student enrollment has decreased, especially if another cut is reported in the next school year.
The right to education is mandated by the Constitution, which provides in Article XIV, Section 1, that “The State 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.”
Not only that, but the nation also needs young, educated and well-trained Filipinos to carry the banner of economic growth in the highly competitive global community.
With a declining student enrollment, we may be ensuring that the Philippines will be left behind in the near future.
