The Second Congressional Commission on Education (Edcom 2) reported that based on Department of Education (DepEd) data from 2023 to 2025, about 70% of students continue to struggle with foundational skills by Grade 3.
According to the commission, these include identifying letters and sounds, reading common words, counting, and solving simple numerical problems.
Findings from the 2024 Early Language, Literacy and Numeracy Assessment also showed that only one-third of Grade 3 learners can be considered “proficient” or “highly proficient.”
By the time students reach Grade 6, proficiency reportedly drops by 11%, based on the results of the 2024 National Achievement Test.
This means that only one out of five students can be considered adequately skilled.
Nearly half of students are also unable to read by the time they reach Grade 3.
Edcom explained that this situation stems from the failure to master foundational competencies during the early years of schooling.
Because literacy is a crucial pathway to numeracy and other subjects, children who fall behind at this stage face a higher risk of struggling to understand more complex lessons in higher grade levels.
(PHOTO COURTESY: DepEd)
