Literacy Crisis in the Philippines
I saw posts about people asking DepEd to return to the traditional academic recognition system with the "Top 10" ranking. While the transition to a new system (non-hierarchical recognition) was intended to promote fairness, people believe the quality of education has deteriorated. I get the concerns of the citizens. Some suggested using Formal Themes and Sulating Pangwakas books again.
I can't remember what grade we started writing on Formal Themes and Sulating Pangwakas but I still have mine from when I was in 6th grade. I was amazed at the level of writing we achieved at just 12 years old. I know the grammar wasn't perfect but the quality of education in our era was excellent. I agree that the traditional school system had better students. I still have a copy of our elementary school publication and it was written entirely in English. This serves as a proof of the high literacy standard we once held.
The Philippines consistently ranks among the lowest in the PISA, scoring poorly in reading, math and science. DepEd should take action on this. Imagine the country is in a literacy crisis. Students are struggling with simple sentence construction and reading comprehension.
Don't wait for this literacy poverty to get worse!
#DepEdPhilippines #EducationMatters #literacymatters #literacycrisis #readingcomprehension #sentenceconstruction #formaltheme #sulatingpangwakas
Growing up during the era when Formal Themes and Sulating Pangwakas were integral parts of learning, I can personally attest to how these writing exercises significantly enhanced my literacy skills. At just 12 years old, I was able to write structured essays that developed not only my grammar but also critical thinking abilities. These materials provided a clear framework for organizing thoughts, which is essential for both reading comprehension and sentence construction. From my experience, consistent practice in formal writing cultivates confidence and mastery in language use. The transition to a non-hierarchical recognition system, while noble in its aim to promote fairness, may inadvertently lessen the motivation for students to excel academically if not paired with equally effective teaching tools. The OCR content highlighting honor pupils and academic achievers underscores how merit-based recognition previously celebrated literacy achievements. This recognition created tangible goals for students and reinforced the value of academic excellence. Today, with the Philippines scoring low in PISA assessments, it’s clear that embracing some elements of the past education system—like encouraging formal writing exercises and structured reading tasks—could be vital. Additionally, introducing more reading materials in English at an early stage, as shown in my elementary school publication, helped deepen understanding and fluency. While grammar perfection wasn’t the focus back then, the emphasis on expression and comprehension was key. In my opinion, DepEd could consider integrating these traditional methods with modern pedagogical approaches and technology to address the literacy crisis effectively. Early and regular exposure to formal writing exercises and papers like Formal Themes and Sulating Pangwakas can nurture disciplined writing habits. Coupled with comprehensive reading programs, this could gradually improve the foundational skills of Filipino students in reading comprehension and sentence construction, helping to reverse the country's declining literacy rates.
