State of Education

Just back from a trip to Davao City where I visited several public elementary schools. This was my first visit to schools outside of Metro Manila and it confirmed all that I had been reading and hearing about the state of basic education here in the Philippines. Here are some of the issues I saw first hand in Davao schools:

- Lack of resources: The Government estimates that there is a shortage of 23,000 teachers, 15,000 classrooms, 9.9 million textbooks and 4.1 million chairs across the country! In Davao I saw classes being conducted on the basketball courts, teachers were using outdated textbooks and students had to line up to use the few toilets- none of which had running water.

- Overcrowding: Due to the shortage of classrooms public schools are insanely overcrowded. With no money to build new schools the government has instead adopted a policy of “shifting” i.e. students go to school in two shifts. For example in Davao City the first group of students attends school from 6.30am to 12.00pm and then another group starts at 12.30pm and goes until 5.30pm. Even with this shift system most classes still have 45- 50 students crammed into a classroom.

- High drop out rates: For every ten students that enter Grade 1 only six will finish Grade 6. The numbers are even more depressing when it comes to High School. The main reason is poverty; children drop out because the cost of going school becomes too high (i.e. tranport costs, cost of books, pencils etc) or simply that families need the income generated by children working.

- Malnutrition and poor health: Many children who come to school are malnourished and/or have worms (A recent study on worm infestation found that 66% of children suffer from parasite infections) How are children expected to concentrate in school when they are hungry and lack energy?

Although donors are pouring money into education, the state of schools here seem to be going backwards. Why? There are many reasons...one is the high birthrate. With over a million new births a year the education system cannot keep up. And as in many developing countries, corruption and bureaucracy contribute to the problem. Funds meant for schools seem to deplete as they trickle down from national to local government bureaus....frustrating but unfortunately that is the reality here.

It all means much more needs to be done!