Harnessing private schools: The way forward to resolve PH’s education crisis

Economic analysis has shown that on the whole, improvements in school-level education lead to improvements in economic performance, and more so than the other way around. Thus, a lack of quality education is a threat to economic growth. The state of Philippine education is disheartening, and the government cannot do it by itself. That is why a partnership with the private sector is needed to solve the country’s education crisis.

True, access to education may no longer be an issue today but students’ retention rate in school and learning achievement continue to worsen, as shown by the results of various studies. Local and international student examinations have also shown poor results. Indeed, these are challenging times as the country still confronts the ongoing pandemic amid efforts to attain quality education. But the Philippines can recover and bounce back if educational leaders and managers get their act together as one.

Recognizing the critical role of education in development, the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) serve as a benchmark to measure school effectiveness and determine the alignment of national standards with international standards.

While the Philippine education system is in the middle of profound changes with the passage of the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013, the country was rudely awakened by the poor results of the country’s maiden participation in the 2018 Pisa.

The 2019 TIMSS reinforced these dismal results. The country participated again in TIMSS after 16 years of absence since 2003, and the country ranked dead last in both mathematics and science among 58 participating countries. Given that the tests were taken one year apart, these provide a good snapshot of what is happening in the elementary grades in the case of TIMSS and junior high school in the case of Pisa.

Student performance in international large-scale assessments confirms the Philippines has been in a learning crisis for a while now. The performance of 15-year-old students in Pisa, on average, is below expected given the country’s level of income. Private schools are performing better than expected given the level of income and better than public schools (Orbeta Jr. and Paqueo, 2022). The results in TIMSS that tests grade four students are similar but even much farther down from the expected outcome. Again, private schools are performing on or above expected given the level of income, and better than public schools (Orbeta Jr. and Paqueo, 2022).

Looking at TIMSS 1999 and Pisa 2018, a span of two decades, education stakeholders become aware that the problem of achieving quality education cannot be addressed overnight. The quality of Philippine education must have stagnated through the years. So, whether from public or private schools, student performance in international large-scale assessments is nationally embarrassing and worrisome. The embarrassment must have been the reason why the country opted out of TIMSS in 2003.

Since the performance of the private school sector is somewhat better, the state should consider public-private partnerships in education wherein students can be given vouchers to study in private schools at a predetermined tuition rate. Surveys also show that parents prefer to choose which school their children go to, rather than being forced to attend a poorly performing public school. The really good students who will otherwise be stymied by the public school system can blossom, and use their education as a ticket out of poverty.

Eden S. Anni,

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