Senator Win Gatchalian has been designated by Senate Committee on Education, Arts, and Culture chair Senator Chiz Escudero as chairperson of the Senate Subcommittee tasked to hear Senate Resolution No. 675, which seeks an inquiry, in aid of legislation, into the current state of the Philippine education system and the efficacy and effectiveness of existing education laws and policies.
As subcommittee chair, Gatchalian is tasked to conduct hearings on the matter; submit to Escudero the subcommittee report, for appropriate action by the education committee, before the report is submitted to the Senate; and sponsor and defend the committee report before the plenary.
The legislator, who filed the resolution, said that despite legislative reforms introduced by the government in recent years to expand access and improve the quality of the Philippine education system, the country still ranked a “dismal” 113th out of 127 countries in the education category of the 2017 Global Innovation Index.
The lawmaker also noted the poor marks received by the Philippine education system on the Global Competitiveness Index 2017-2018 released by the World Economic Forum, where it ranked 66th out of 137 countries for primary education quality, 74th for secondary education quality, and 76th for quality of math and science education.
“The Philippines ranked 66th out of 137 countries for primary education quality, 74th for secondary education quality, and 76th for quality of math and science education in a survey released by the World Economic Forum.”
“A comprehensive review of the performance of the Philippine education system, with special emphasis on collecting and analyzing concrete empirical evidence regarding key educational access and quality indicators, is necessary to craft responsive legislation and policies that will put the country on the right path toward the transformation of the Philippine education system into a world-class institution,” the senator stressed.
“A comprehensive review of the performance of the Philippine education system is necessary to craft responsive legislation and policies that will put the country on the right path.”
He said further that the subcommittee’s output would help guide “joint legislative and executive reforms aimed at empowering the State to fulfill its obligation under the Constitution and international law to provide the Filipino people with access to quality education at all levels.”
