Apart from the 24% decline of the Department of Education’s 2023 budget, the public education system still lacks 159,000 classrooms to accommodate a safe and comfortable learning environment for all students (Rappler).

When I interviewed the teachers in our local public school, they told me that some students of ages 10-12 are still not able to read, write, and perform basic mathematical operations.​ Out of curiosity, I asked to join their supplemental class during the summer for the kids who are behind on their learning journey.

I took the time to talk to these kids, and it brought me joy to know these well-spoken kids who have these big dreams for themselves. As someone who was once in their foot, I could tell that they have the potential to succeed in their academic journey.

Outside of the public school, in a simple nipa hut, I found out that my aunt is offering cheap afterschool tutorial services for the students in our local communty for only 3 USD an hour. She told me the same thing when I asked how her students were doing.

Some of her students were already too old to learn the basics easily. It turns out that some of them just don't go to high school and start working. However, most jobs in the community require them to be able to read, write and do some basic calculations. As a result, they end up not doing well on their job.

From my multiple long conversations with the teachers in my community, a pattern that I recognize is the lack of resources. Because the public education system cannot accommodate all children, they force students who failed to advance to the next grade level. Although it saves the family some money to make their kids go to school, it hurts them in the long run as the kids still have not fully grasped the basics.

This marks the entrance of the vicious cycle. Education is important in the Philippines because it is deemed to be one of the major things that could enable someone to break their family’s cycle of poverty. Without a college degree and a well-paying job, what’s to come for these children? A child born in this planet does not deserve to receive the burden that will keep them from dreaming. We’re not only endangering the lives of the people in this century but also the people in the next century, that is if there will still be a home for us by then.

My aunt said, "We have to make sure that these kids know how to read, write, and do basic mathematical operations as young as 6-7 years old." I'm glad that I am a witness to her several success stories of kids who learned how to read and write in just a summer of going to her nipa hut. Nonetheless, she still wishes to have enough educational resources to facilitate a fun learning journey for the children.

Continue: What now?