DepEd eyes improving medium of instruction in primary school years

The Department of Education (DepEd) is looking into the possibility of improving the medium of instruction in the primary years of Filipino students after the country ranked lowest in reading comprehension in the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) where English language was used.

"It's also an ongoing debate—others want to continue the mother tongue policy while there are also those who say that we should start using English since English is the language of the rest of the world. We are looking into this," Education Secretary Leonor Briones said during an interview on ANC on Tuesday.

"It could be in English and also in the mother tongue because the mother tongue is very helpful to the child in adjusting to school, separation from the parents and the family," she added.

Under the current K to 12 program, students from Grades 1 to 3 have to be taught in their mother tongue. English, as a medium of instruction, must be introduced starting Grade 4.

According to Briones, the PISA results showed that the National Capital Region had the highest scores in reading comprehension compared to other regions in the country, and access to resources could be the reason behind it.

"There are many ways by which a child can learn to read, not only in the classroom. You have TV, radio, and the Internet and also facilities," she said.

The 2018 PISA Results showed that 15-year-old Filipino students scored a mean of 340 points in the reading comprehension exam, which falls way below the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average of 487 points.

The Philippines also lagged behind in Mathematics and Science, ranking second to the lowest.

Briones said that reviewing textbooks that are being used in schools and boosting library use are also in the pipeline.

"We are encouraging schools to develop libraries. Usually the library is just one corner of the school building and children have to be encouraged to read beyond the textbooks," she said.

Moreover, the DepEd Secretary agreed that hunger also affects the learners' school performance because "the capacity to read or comprehend or to reason is linked to nutrition."

Briones said that the department advocates for the expansion of its school feeding program to address this issue. —Dona Magsino/KBK, GMA News