ADVANCING BASIC EDUCATION IN THE PHILIPPINES (ABC+)

The data presented could be more nuanced for transitioning reading skills to Filipino and English. Due to the learning gap incurred during the pandemic, the data imply that much of the reading skills described by informants are only for the mother tongue and Filipino, and transitioning the reading skills from the mother tongue to the second language will be taken care of after establishing foundational reading skills.

Survey results show that 80 percent of teachers in all the target regions feel that ABC+ initiatives have been instrumental in improving early-grade literacy instruction. These findings are supported by qualitative data where informants described ABC+ as their “partner” in literacy teaching. Figure 1 above unpacks the extent of ABC+’s contribution to literacy improvement across individual, institutional, and organizational levels.

At the institutional level, ABC+ contributed to school programs supporting literacy, learning continuity and recovery, materials development and distribution, and assessment-informed instruction. ABC+ contributed to school programs by providing teacher training and materials.

The most significant ABC+ contribution was its support of learning continuity and recovery. A teacher shared that ABC+ helped them design and implement an especially relevant intervention during learning recovery because there were so many non-readers. This effort to focus on fundamental skills such as literacy skills for learning recovery aligns with the World Bank’s Reach, Assess, Prioritize, Increase, Develop (RAPID) Framework for learning recovery, and the National Learning Recovery Plan was presented in DepEd’s Basic Education Report 2023.

On materials development and distribution, ABC+ assistance supported teachers’ skills development in materials writing and evaluation or quality assurance. Moreover, SRMs, which are leveled readers in the local language, help children practice their reading skills and develop an interest in reading. From a target of 576 titles, ABC+ produced 1,402 titles of EGR materials. These materials were made available to 750,479 learners (from a target of 523,201).

Schools implemented assessment-informed instruction through ABC+’s provision of the comprehensive rapid literacy assessment tool, which diagnosed learners’ reading skills and provided guidance for differentiated instruction tailored to learners’ diagnosed reading levels. Starting with an assessment to inform recovery learning intervention is consistent with the World Bank’s RAPID framework to regain learning lost during the pandemic.

ABC+’s collaboration with teacher education institutions (TEIs) resulted in the establishment of a pre-service course in literacy instruction. Through this partnership, ABC+ prepared pre-service teachers (including current and incoming teachers) early on for reading instruction.

Collaboration with the community involving the barangay, the police, private radio stations, and others provided the wraparound support needed to ensure learning continuity. The barangay and police helped ABC+ and partner schools deliver instructional materials to learners, while the partnership with radio stations enabled the broadcasting of lessons. ABC+ also initiated meetings to establish memorandums of agreement between schools and some stakeholder groups to ensure learning continuity. Meetings initiated by discussions paved the way for some stakeholder groups to express their commitment to supporting school programs.

Some of the following unexpected outcomes emerged from ABC+ activities:

1. Teacher training and materials development produced a ripple effect. FGD informants from Regions V and VI said that trained teachers went on to train intermediate-grade teachers in their school and early-grade teachers in other schools. One teacher informant shared that the training has “enriched [me]…in so many ways,” She planned to cascade these skills with other teachers in the Division.
2. FGD informants reported that learners at home used the materials that ABC+ produced, unlike the pre-pandemic practice where children were not allowed to bring home instructional resources. An informant from Region V shared that “learning became easier for children through the materials provided by ABC+.” Informants explained that materials benefited not only the learners but also their siblings and parents, some of whom had been illiterate and learned to read along with their children through the materials. An informant from Region VI said that “parents learned together with their kids” and that “illiterate parents were able to learn through reading materials put up [made available through hubs] in sitios and haciendas.”
3. In Region V, informants shared that schools reproduced ABC+ materials. Any excess they received was shared with other schools, so schools beyond partner schools also benefited.

Although literacy has traditionally been ABC+’s primary focus, numeracy development is also becoming an additional target since it has been identified as a skill for which children likewise need help. However, the project’s numeracy focus has been initiated only recently.

In 2021, ABC+’s efforts to improve numeracy began with research in collaboration with the University of the Philippines National Institute for Science and Mathematics Education Development (UP-NISMED). The study looked into the state of early-grade math instruction, and results were shared with DepEd. Based on the research results, math instruction pivots based in the research results were designed, piloted, and evaluated. In 2022, ABC+ conducted teacher training on numeracy in Regions V and VI (Teacher Training I). Consultations with the Early Numeracy Technical Working Group began, and Teacher Training 2, which trained participants to connect formal and informal mathematics for children, was conducted in Regions V and VI. Math instructional strategies in the two regions were piloted by distributing ABC+ home learning resource kits that included materials for numeracy and learning action cell modules on early-grade mathematics.

Activities for developing mathematics skills were only recently implemented, and their impact will only be noticed after some time. Informants shared that numeracy materials developed are slated for distribution to partner schools soon. Training support was scheduled for late 2022 at the time of this evaluation. This training involves integrating vital instructional strategies and collaborative lesson planning, which will be demonstrated to children or peers and revised based on trainer feedback. Class observations for developing numeracy skills are also scheduled for early 2023.

ABC+ integrated efforts to strengthen socio-emotional learning (SEL) through instructional leadership training, believing that school leaders are critical in fostering learning environments that encourage SEL. The ABC+ Quarter 3 report states that the training taught DepEd leaders to foster conditions resulting in a positive learning environment. The training provided resources and toolkits that featured SEL in school management and showed supervisors and school heads how to integrate SEL and GESI into their school programs and interventions. The report also noted that ABC+ embedded SEL in SRM development by featuring an SEL orientation and workshop in materials and training. Moreover, SEL messaging was strongly encouraged in the themes of produced SRMs. Teacher Training 2 also taught teachers how to integrate SEL/GESI themes in book selection and other class exercises.

Based on the survey of teachers, ABC+ helped in improving learners’ SEL to a large extent. Almost eight out of ten teachers in BARMM stated this was the case, while nearly six out of ten Regions V and VI teachers expressed the same. Qualitative data show that ABC+ helped improve SEL among learners through teacher training, which taught strategies for this.

However, teachers’ explanations of SEL integration in surveys and FGDs were mainly about the values inculcated in learners through SRMs. They explained that SRMs helped in learners’ value formation. According to teachers, “Children learned moral lessons and applied these to their life.” Given the cessation of classroom face-to-face instruction during the pandemic, it appears that values in SRMs became the primary source for SEL integration. Future training on SEL can be used to check the depth and accuracy of teachers’ understanding of SEL integration, and actual SEL integration can be monitored and confirmed in face-to-face classes.

Surveyed teachers claimed that ABC+ training helped them integrate GESI into their instruction. Annex 13 shows that almost eight out of ten teachers in BARMM stated that ABC+ contributions in their GESI integration were helpful to a large extent. In comparison, nearly six out of ten teachers in Region V and VI evaluated ABC+ initiatives as useful to a great extent. While these data are favorable, teachers from Region V and VI could be further supported in the following years of program implementation so that more teachers in these areas could integrate GESI into their instruction.

At the individual level, ABC+ incorporated and promoted GESI through training that developed teachers’ and HLPs’ awareness of the concept. At the institutional level, the contribution of ABC+ GESI training was manifested in GESI integration in the SRMs that teachers and writers developed and in teachers incorporating GESI in their instruction. One informant explained that featuring different tribes, different colors, and skin “was a way of supporting GESI.” Another informant said ABC+ training “made the teachers aware of gender stereotypes or potentially discriminating ideas in pictures and words in books given to learners.” Informants also explained that the provision of materials and activities that benefited struggling and special learners provided a means of living up to the principles of social inclusion.

Another informant expressed that their improved awareness of gender stereotypes has also influenced how they assign tasks to learners. One informant said, “girls are not the only ones asked to sweep the floor. Even boys are asked to sweep the floor.”

The most significant change in context that the ABC+ program had to adapt to was the COVID-19 pandemic. Indeed, ABC+ made several adjustments in consideration of the capabilities and capacities of recipients in the face of COVID-19. All adjustments were due to the prohibited or restricted face-to-face interactions, which were most strict in early 2020. Though program activities had to be conducted remotely, ABC+ continued its activities by adapting to restrictions on physical interactions. The instructional and technological support provided by ABC+ aligns with World Bank’s RAPID framework for learning recovery and DepEd’s Basic Education Report 2023, particularly the advice to increase the efficiency of instruction by supporting teachers through upskilling in technology used for remote learning. Key project pivots included the following:

1. Because there was no face-to-face training and physical contact at the onset of the pandemic, ABC+ provided pre-training orientation on the technology used to prepare partners for online training platforms.
2. ABC+ also provided communication and Wi-Fi (internet) support or allowance to beneficiaries to ensure they could sustain online training participation.
3. ABC+ reached out to recipients, monitored their progress, and sought to identify concerns through online means (virtual chat groups, emails).
4. ABC+ utilized an adaptive training schedule that accounted for teachers’ busier schedules and other pandemic-related concerns. Training activities were made more flexible because they could be completed online or offline.
5. ABC+ provided modules and materials for the training to give teachers more time to prepare.
6. ABC+ also provided a longer time to finish training outputs.
7. Eventually, some areas accommodated limited face-to-face training, allowing ABC+ to conduct onsite training only with smaller groups of trainees and with adjustments to fit into the “new normal” setup. Health protocols were followed strictly during training, and onsite COVID-19 testing was conducted to protect the health of participants and staff.
8. Because a limited number of people were available to help with materials distribution, and due to limited transportation resources, ABC+ collaborated with the community, like the barangay and the police, for systematic distribution of materials from schools to the houses of learners to ensure the continuity of learning activities.