Gatchalian: National learning recovery program needs 'massive reform'

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Wednesday said the National Learning Recovery Program (NLRP) of the Department of Education (DepEd) was in need of reforms, a remark which Education Secretary Sonny Angara welcomed.

During a hearing of the Senate committee on basic education, it was revealed that initiatives under the NLRP have not yet reached the desired results to address the learning loss among students.

"It seems to me or to us that first, it's not hitting the right clientele. Second, it's not delivering the outcome that will help students keep up with their grade level," said Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate panel.

"For me, this program needs to be adjusted, needs to be reformed in order to target and in order to produce the desired results. I think in tweaking, adjustment hindi pwede [not enough]. It has to be totally reformed," he added.

In response to this, Angara told reporters that he was "definitely" open to reforming the NLRP.

"Makikinig tayo sa ating chairpersons in the Senate and the House dahil mga dalubhasa 'yun, pinag-aralan talaga," he said.

(We should listen to our chairpersons in the Senate and the House because they are experts, and they really studied that.)

Angara was at the Senate on Wednesday as the Commission on Appointments (CA) officially approved his ad interim appointment as the new DepEd chief, replacing Vice President Sara Duterte.

According to him, what DepEd lacks now is the measuring of the progress of the students under the NLRP.

"So dapat 'yung number one diyan. Sukatin mo muna, asan sila ngayon, and after the intervention, asan sila… pagkatapos? Para alam mo kung epektibo 'yung naging intervention," Angara said.

(The first thing we should do is to measure where they are now, and after the intervention, measure where they already are. With this, we'd know if the intervention was effective.)

Back in 2023, the DepEd, under the leadership of Vice President Sara Duterte, adopted the NLRP to address the learning gaps among students that were heightened by school closures and disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The NLRP also aims to deal with the "low performance" of learners in international large-scale assessments and national assessments.

During his third State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. said that the national learning recovery program should proceed as soon as possible. — VDV, GMA Integrated News