42% of Grade 5 students in PH share reading textbooks

MANILA, Philippines – Forty-two percent of Grade 5 students in the Philippines were sharing a reading textbook as the availability of which significantly declined, the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) 2024 report showed.

Of the percentage, two students sharing one reading textbook was at 23% and at least three students sharing one reading textbook was at 19%.

Meanwhile, 7% of Grade 5 students have no available reading textbooks.

While most or 52% of Grade 5 students have their own textbook, the figure is lower than the 92% logged in 2019.

“In the Philippines, there was a large drop, almost halving textbook availability,” noted the SEA-PLM, which is managed by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO).

The Philippines lagged behind other Southeast Asian countries that participated in the study in terms of textbook availability.

All Grade 5 students in Myanmar and Vietnam have one reading textbook per learner; 99% in Malaysia; 96% in Cambodia; and 84% in Laos.

“The differences in average reading achievement for children who attended a school with one reading textbook per child compared with children who attended a school with no textbooks or shared textbooks are not significant in most cases,” the report stated.

“This could be an indication of alternative teaching and learning materials (e.g., digital) being used to support learning, particularly in contexts where textbook availability may be limited.

“In 2024, only in the Philippines was textbook availability associated with higher learning outcomes in the class, with students attending schools with one textbook per child scoring higher, on average, in both reading and mathematics,” it said.

Based on the SEA-PLM report, 27% of Grade 5 students in the Philippines have “very low” proficiency in reading; in math, it was 16%.

DepEd says textbook procurement improves

The Department of Education (DepEd) said Secretary Sonny Angara cleared the hurdles to textbook procurement and delivery after seeing it as among the challenges when he was appointed as the agency chief last year.

Citing data from the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2), DepEd said it was able to procure 105 titles within a year, way higher than the 27 titles obtained from 2012 to 2023.

“Long-delayed textbook procurement was restarted, leading to 289% increase in procurement volume. Processing time was also reduced from 183 to 90 days, and delivery from 474 to 95 days,” DepEd said.

The agency also said that it is continuously rolling out DepEd Computerization Program packages across the country to “expand access to technology.” – Rappler.com