Education Secretary Sonny Angara pressed for expanded support for learning recovery efforts during his visit to the Visayas on Wednesday.
Speaking before over 800 education leaders and local officials at the Literacy and Numeracy Expo in Iloilo City and later before 3,000 educators at the 1st Regional Assembly of Education Leaders in Bacolod City, Angara emphasized President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to focus on foundational learning through the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program.
During the expo, which showcased school literacy and numeracy across Western Visayas, Angara led the launch of big books for Kinder to Grade 3 learners. Developed with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Iloilo provincial government, the materials integrate circular economy principles into early education.
Angara emphasized that learning recovery initiatives slashed the number of struggling learners nationwide, dropping from 6.7 million to 2.2 million in School Year 2025-2026.
“Iyon talaga ang gusto ng Marcos administration: bata pa lang, maturuan nang magbasa at kung mayroon mang deficiencies, ma-address at the earliest possible opportunity,” Angara said.
“Sabi nga ni Pangulong Bongbong Marcos, ‘Let’s focus on the basics.’ That’s why there is the ARAL Program nationwide, para ang inability to read na naki-carry lang year after year, hindi na natutuloy.”
Angara emphasized that learning recovery initiatives slashed the number of struggling learners nationwide, dropping from 6.7 million to 2.2 million in School Year 2025-2026.
Independent research from global organization Youth Impact validated the success of the ARAL Program, revealing a nine percentage point decrease in struggling readers, equivalent to 1.37 million children lifted out of the lowest reading bracket. Furthermore, more than 730,000 learners reached grade-level reading proficiency, reflecting a 4.8% increase.
To expand these gains, DepEd has launched ARAL Math this school year to complement reading interventions.
Angara also highlighted DepEd’s procurement of 172,654 Apple MacBook Neo laptops for public school teachers and administrators through competitive bidding, bringing total laptop contracts under the DepEd Computerization Program to over 231,000 units.
“Definitely it’s a long climb up, but the results from the ARAL Program are very encouraging. That’s only after one year, so I think after several years, makikita natin system-wide and nationwide ang pag-improve ng ating mga bata,” Angara said.
To sustain momentum, the Department of Education (DepEd) has requested a PHP15.68 billion additional allocation for the ARAL Program under the Fiscal Year 2027 budget, which will fund honoraria for teaching overload, tutor training, external tutor compensation, summer programs, and remediation consultations.
Angara also commended local governance in Iloilo, citing it as a benchmark for effective educational decentralization.
Angara also highlighted DepEd’s procurement of 172,654 Apple MacBook Neo laptops for public school teachers and administrators through competitive bidding, bringing total laptop contracts under the DepEd Computerization Program to over 231,000 units.
Angara also inaugurated the new three-story DepEd Regional Office VI building in Iloilo City, designed to accommodate 150 regional personnel and streamline administrative services.
He also traveled to Bacolod City to address around 3,000 education leaders from public and private schools at the 1st Regional Assembly of Education Leaders in the Negros Island Region (NIR).
Organized by the Philippine Elementary School Principals Association–Negros Island Region, the assembly brought educators together to strengthen instructional leadership, share best practices, and address educational challenges.
“Sa ating unang Regional Assembly dito sa NIR, umaasa tayo na mas pagtitibayin pa natin ang ugnayan ng bawat paaralan, guro, at komunidad para iangat ang kalidad ng edukasyon sa bagong rehiyon,” Angara said.
