JP Villanueva
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There were two important developments in Philippine Education in the past several days. The first one is on the results of the PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) 2022 creative thinking assessment. Results show that the Philippines is in the bottom of the list of 64 countries, with Albania, Uzbekistan and Morocco.
Apparently, 15 year olds in the Philippines scored 14 points on average in this assessment that tested how well they can use their imagination and creativity to generate and improve on ideas. This average is way below the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) which is 33. In contrast, the countries at the top include Singapore (average of 41), Korea (38), Canada (38), Australia (37) and New Zealand (36).
A few months earlier, the same organization presented their 2022 findings that the Philippines’ students are also among the weakest in math, reading and science. Less than 25% of the students reached the minimum proficiency in all these three subjects.
Another important development is the resignation of the Vice President Sarah Duterte as Secretary of the Department of Education. For several months now, many sectors have openly criticized the Vice President for having no expertise as an educator in leading the education department. Public school teachers’ organizations have welcomed the resignation, describing it even as relief. Many say that the country’s education system may have deteriorated during the leadership of Inday Sarah.
These are the big news on education lately, but why is education important to the country’s economic development?
The first is on human capital formation. Education equips individuals with skills and knowledge, increasing their productivity and potential to contribute to the economy. Also, Higher education and research institutions foster innovation, leading to technological advancements and new business opportunities.
Next is on labor market outcomes. Higher levels of education correlate with better employment prospects and higher earnings. As mentioned earlier, when individuals are more equipped with better skills and knowledge, they get more potential to be employed and be employed in better firms, resulting in higher earning capacity. On the other hand, the quality of the labor force also improves. An educated workforce is more adaptable and capable of handling complex tasks, enhancing overall economic efficiency.
And lastly, on poverty reduction. Education leads to higher wages and salaries, reducing poverty rates. Again, as mentioned, individuals who are more educated have higher potential to be employed, thus, increasing their earning capacity. With this earning capacity, they are able to pull themselves out of poverty. This may be the reason why many young people who come from poor families do the best they can to finish their education because they think that this is their way out of poverty. Many success stories, from rags to riches, were attributed to them having obtained education.
Also, educated individuals tend to have better health, reducing healthcare costs and improving productivity. Since they are more knowledgeable about health and well-being, they are able to make better decisions about their health. It is true that one of the prominent reasons why people are driven towards poverty is because of failed health. Many have lost their livelihood and property just to get them back to health. Some of these have never really recovered and are now poor.
Now going back to the PISA ratings. We can now see the contrast between the countries at the bottom and the countries at the top. Singapore, Korea, Canada, New Zealand and Australia have higher ratings, and they are among the economically-developed countries. While the ones at the bottom belong to the less developed economies. It may be safe to make a correlation between the education system and the country’s economy.
I hope that these current events that happened in the past days which affected the education sector, would make us realize that the government should make education a priority. Provide better facilities and school buildings. Remunerate teachers better. Less politics (and corruption) in managing the education department, and just focus on providing the best education for our citizens for the well-being of all.