Philippines’ dismal Pisa scores spark soul-searching over state of education

Filipino children ranked last in reading and second to last in maths and science in an international survey

For the average student, education is a struggle that pits him or her against poverty, bullying, overcrowded classrooms, and even hunger

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Filipino students, without chairs and desks, at a high school in Manila. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:00am, 8 Dec 2019Updated: 9:00am, 8 Dec 2019

A survey of 79 countries that ranked Filipino children last in reading and second to last in maths and science has highlighted what many experts have long believed: the country’s education system is in crisis.

The Philippines in 2015 for the first time joined the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), a grading system overseen by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Last year Pisa tested 600,000 15-year-old students from around the world. Some 7,233 Filipinos from both private and public schools took the two-hour test, administered via computer. One hour was devoted to English, and 30 minutes each for science and maths.

The results were disappointing. According to a former Philippine education official who asked not to be named, “less than a fifth of our participating students reached the minimum level of proficiency in reading in English”.

Students evacuate their school after an earthquake in Luzon. Photo: Reuters

Chinese students scored the highest overall (reading 555, maths 591, science 590), followed by Singapore (reading 549, maths 569, science 551).