Editor's Notes

Vol. XXX No. 6

P h i l i P P i ne

institute for

DeveloPment

stuDies

Surian sa mga Pag-aaral Pangkaunlaran ng Pil ipinas

DevelopmentReseaRch news

5 PIDS, Trade dep’t start work on roadmap to

boost manufacturing

6 PIDS Corner in Region III inaugurated

What's Inside

8

When a new school year started in June, public interest was again drawn to the sorry state of the country’s basic education sector. Public discourse, most notably in the media, highlighted myriad

problems and challenges. We saw on television newscasts dilapidated public school buildings and facilities as well as chronic shortages in classrooms, teachers, and teaching materials. We heard from radio programs heart-breaking stories of parents unable to send their children to school because of poverty. We also read from dailies the alarming decline in general and functional literacy rates among students.

These problems are no longer news. Reporting about them every June has become a regular part of the news media’s editorial calendar. That these issues are rehashed time and again attests to the rather languid pace of re-forms, tepid government support, and the underprioritization of the sector. But continued discussion on these issues manifests our collective yearning for genuine change and the high value accorded by the public to education.

This edition of Development Research News tackles some of the issues hound-ing the Philippine basic education sector. Based on the PIDS Policy Notes penned by Senior Research Fellow Jose Ramon Albert, research consultant Lucita Lazo, and UP Professors Clarissa David and Sheryl Monterola, this article examines various demand-side factors that hinder children from at-tending and completing primary school as well as maximizing their learning when they are in school.

Improved but still lackingIn 2010, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) launched the Global Initiative on Out-of-School Children, aimed at working with more than 20 countries, including the

Time and again, education has been touted as the long-term solution to the country’s development challenges. A well-trained workforce means greater productivity and a better standard of living for ev-eryone. As policymakers address these challenges one by one, it would be relevant to look deeper into the underlying causes of what ails education, particularly the basic education sector.

Research by PIDS has been fruitful in this regard, and we present to you the salient points of a study conducted by PIDS Senior Research Fellow Jose Ra-mon Albert, research consultant Lucita Lazo, and UP Professors Clarissa David and Sheryl Monterola on the economic and sociocultural factors that tend to dis-courage children from going to or staying in school.

Hard-pressed to meet the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goal of achieving universal primary education by 2015, the Philippines needs to shift gears and look at the problem of school attendance from different perspectives. What is the extent of the problem of non-attendance and dropping out? Do teachers have the right expectations on children enrolling for Grade One? Is the problem purely an economic one?

Education for all: addressing problemsin primary schooling

November–December 2012 ISSN 0115-9097

PHOTO: Lea Valenzuela, www.behance.net

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS November - December 20122

Philippines, to study the plight of these kids. PIDS, together with the Department of Edu-cation (DepEd), was tapped by UNICEF Phil-ippines to put together the comprehensive Philippine country report on out-of-school children as well as on children at risk of dropping out.

Using data from the Annual Poverty Indica-tors Survey (APIS), DepEd’s Basic Education Information System, and the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) administrative reporting system on day care centers, the country report found that a con-siderable magnitude of children who should be availing themselves of basic education were not in school. The 2008 APIS showed that around 2.9 million children aged 5–15 years did not go to school. Some 800,000 of these are five-year-old children; 1.27 million children are of primary age (i.e., from 6 to 11 years old); and nearly one million are of secondary school age (between 12 and 15 years old). Combined data from DepEd and DSWD yield a slightly higher figure of 3.3 million out-of-school children aged 5–15 in the period 2008-2009.

Recent trends suggest that the number of such children has been reduced over the years, but at a dispiriting pace. For instance, DepEd and DSWD data placed the number of out-of-school children aged 5–15 at 2.8 million in the period 2010-2011, or half a

million lower from the 2008-2009 figure. The APIS, meanwhile, placed the count at 2.6 million, from 2.9 million in 2008. These trends show clear improvements, yet not enough to help meet the goal of achieving universal primary education by 2015. It is therefore important for our policymakers to accelerate the pace by looking at other factors that affect school attendance.

Equally urgent problemsTo improve the country’s pace in achieving the MDG on education, it is important to first answer the fundamental question of why children are not attending and completing primary schooling. Much of the discourse points to “input deficits” or supply-side contraints as major impediments to school attendance. For decades, basic education suffered inadequate funding, resulting in the prevalence of a long list of supply-side barriers—from lack of nearby schools, classrooms and school facilities, shortages of teachers and teacher training to address gaps in teaching competencies, to lack of learning materials.

While it is undeniable that these inadequa-cies should be prioritized, there are, how-ever, equally urgent demand-side barriers that need to be addressed simultaneously to translate education inputs and investments into relevant education outputs and out-comes. These barrriers are largely economic and sociocultural in nature and stem from families’ desire for and commitment to com-plete children’s basic education.

Flawed perceptions on school readinessAccording to APIS data, as much as 85 per-cent of children between the ages of five and eleven who are not in school are at most seven years old. School leaver rates and rep-etition rates are also highest at the first grade level. This is because most teachers are of the opinion that children between five and six years old, particularly six-year-old children with no pre-primary schooling, are not yet ready for school because they are uncomfort-able in a classroom environment, unable to readily socialize with other children, do not possess the fine motor skills necessary to write, and unable to identify letters and numbers. In addition, these children are

Poverty has largely been the primary reason for children not to attend school. (PHOTO: "Lunchtime", by Omsel Adams, via flickr.com)

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS 3 November - December 2012

found to be emotionally unprepared to be left in school without their mothers, causing disruptions in class which push teachers to recommend that school entry be delayed by another year.

Experts have argued however that expecta-tion of fine motor skills at six years old is developmentally inappropriate. Teachers tailor their lessons according to the learn-ing strategies they believe are appropriate at the level they are teaching, not according to the level of preparedness of their pupils. This inflexibility consequently results in mismatched expectations of children among teachers and poses a serious barrier to effec-tive learning.

To address this issue, the government has implemented the Universal Kindergarten program to prepare children for primary school. However, not every child makes it to daycare. The study finds that many par-ents also think that three- and four-year-old children are “too young to go to school” because they could not be left in school alone. Consequently, parents, particularly mothers, decide not to send their children to kindergarten as they would be unable to work if they wait until classes finish.

PovertyIt is common knowledge that the problem on school participation is largely an eco-nomic issue. Almost all studies that explore reasons for children not attending school find that economic pressures on household resources weigh very significantly on the de-cision to either drop out of school or delay school entry.

APIS data showed that the bottom 20 per-cent income group has a much smaller elementary school participation rate at 87 percent than other per capita income groups, including the richest 20 percent whose school participation is 94 percent. This disparity in school participation among income groups is more pronounced among secondary school-aged children. Only 81 percent of 12- to 15-year-old children in the poorest income group are in school, compared with 98 percent in the richest income group.

The PIDS study noted that economic pressures on household resources weigh significantly on school attendance and drop-ping out. For example, many children are unable to go to school because they cannot afford the indirect costs of education such as transportation fare, school supplies and baon, among others. The study also found that poverty is interlocked with other eco-nomic shocks brought about by disasters and conflicts. When household income drops because of an unforeseen event, the family generally copes by not sending their children to school.

Moreover, older children especially in rural areas have to help out in farming or other livelihood activities to contribute to house-hold income. Other older children are tasked to look after their younger siblings while their parents work. This contributes to the high opportunity cost of schooling among poor children and can possibly explain the high dropout rates and non-attendance in secondary schools.

An interesting finding of the study indicated that when parents could not afford to send all their children to school, the choice of who to send to school depends on poten-tial returns to investment based on school performance, desire to attend school, and proximity to completing an education cycle. More often, parents prefer girls because they are more desirous to finish school. They also prefer a younger child over an older one.

Educational attainment of parentsThere is a saying that mothers are the first teachers. True enough, the relationship between parental educational attainment and a child’s likelihood of success in the educational system is one of the most fre-quently cited causal relationships in local research. However, little has been done by way of intervention to help parents who have limited or no formal education.

Parents, particularly mothers, are expected to spend time with children who are in younger grades, helping them in assign-ments, projects, and accompanying them to school. They are also expected to attend parent-teacher conferences to keep track

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS November - December 20124

Volunteers of the "Kariton Revolution" provide hygiene and education programs for underprivileged children. (PHOTO: www.duldulao.net)

of their children’s scholastic performance. The inability of parents to provide educa-tional guidance and to be actively engaged in their children’s education explains the “lack of interest” among children not in school. The extent of parents’ engagement in their children’s education is a crucial fac-tor in instilling interest and desire among children to study.

When parents have less than an elementary education, they do not have enough experi-ence to support their children’s education through lessons at home. They are also ex-tremely poor and cannot afford to provide the basic needs of the family. They do not have the ability to help their children in their homework nor the luxury of time to attend parent-teacher conferences. Even if they had time to attend these meetings, the study found that most parents could not really understand what was going on and felt alienated.

Varied expectations on boys and girlsFindings of the PIDS study also exposed yawning gender gaps in educational out-comes with boys at the disadvantage in almost every single measure. For instance, trends indicate that boys are more likely to drop out, be absent often, have disciplinary problems, have low grades, repeat grade levels, and be overaged for their grade level.

Two contributing factors are most conse-quential for such trends. First, parents and

teachers have a preconceived notion and expect less in academic performance from boys than from girls. Boys are often viewed as not being able to adjust well in a routine school environment, from daycare onwards. Teachers also say boys are difficult to disci-pline, have a hard time sitting still, do not participate in class, and are unable to focus on written tasks such as assignments and exams. The study suggests that the current learning approaches may not be sensitive to incorporating the interests and best learning styles of children, especially boys, in their lessons.

Second, boys bear the burden of being expected to contribute to livelihood at an earlier age than girls, especially among the poor. In rural communities, boys from the age of 10 are generally expected to help out in farming or other livelihood activi-ties, which result in excessive absences and sometimes dropouts.

Policy and program interventionsDespite these challenges, a good deal has been accomplished in the basic education sector, such as the introduction of the K to 12 curriculum and the increase in the number of teachers and classrooms. It is also noteworthy that the overall enrollment rate in primary school has continued to rise over the years. The pace of progress, as earlier pointed, is insufficient to ensure that, by 2015, all children are in school. To attain universal primary education, ac-tions and programs need to address both demand- and supply-side barriers. These include further investments in improving school facilities and a further increase in the number of teachers, as well as interven-tion programs addressing the sociocultural factors discussed above.

Education plays an important role in the development of the country, since it is a key lever to an individual’s having a better future and status in life, including potential higher incomes. On a larger scale, education has also been acknowledged to be “the great equalizer”; hence, an essential front in the fight against poverty and the campaign for genuine and inclusive development. PJB

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS 5 November - December 2012

PIDS, Trade dep’t start work on roadmapto boost manufacturing

The task of drawing up a national strat-egy to make Filipino manufacturers competitive has begun, with PIDS

and the Department of Trade Industry’s Board of Investments (DTI-BOI) holding the Inception Workshop on the Formulation of the Manufacturing Industry Roadmap last October 19.

In January this year, DTI-BOI launched the Industry Roadmap Project in partnership with the private sector to craft sectoral road-maps that would cover industry vision, goals and targets, possibly till 2030. The sectoral roadmaps will serve as basis for the formula-tion of a Comprehensive National Industrial Strategy. The private sector is taking the lead in determining the course of development of the industry, with the government serving as “catalyst”, “facilitator”, and “enabler”.

To achieve these goals, the DTI-BOI tapped the expertise of PIDS to formulate the Com-prehensive National Industrial Strategy that will integrate the sectoral roadmaps and link the overall manufacturing roadmap with other economic sectors such as agriculture, fishing, forestry, mining, construction, and services.

The Institute, led by Senior Research Fel-low Rafaelita Aldaba, crafted an analytical framework to be adopted in integrating the various sectoral roadmaps submitted to DTI-BOI. The framework will cover the following elements: (i) dynamically growing industries and those with latent comparative advantage; (ii) most binding constraints to industrial upgrading; and (iii) government action to remove constraints.

PIDS experts presented the analytical frame-work during the Inception Workshop, which brought together various stakeholders from business, government, academe, labor, and civil society. Aldaba’s framework can be used to identify the most binding constraints

preventing industrial and technological up-grading and propose alternative measures to address these constraints, as well as to trans-form manufacturing into a major source of growth and employment.

Top government officials present during the workshop include DTI Secretary Gregory Domingo, Undersecretary Adrian Cristobal, Jr., National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Deputy Director-General Emmanuel Esguerra, and PIDS President Josef Yap.

Domingo commended the partnership be-tween the government and business in orga-nizing the event. The number of industries volunteering to craft their own roadmaps has increased, he said. This is a bellwether, said Domingo, of the positive reception and support extended by the private sector to the project, which is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2013.

Meanwhile, Aldaba said the roadmap proj-ect is crucial to achieving faster and more inclusive and sustainable growth, as well

Incoming PIDS Vice-President Rafaelita Aldaba speaks at the DTI-BOI Industry Roadmap Project inception workshop. (PHOTO: Ma. Gizelle Manuel, PIDS)

8

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS November - December 20126

PIDS Corner in Region III inaugurated

As part of its research dissemination efforts, the Institute inaugurated the 21st PIDS Corner last December 5 at

the Central Luzon State University (CLSU) Library in the Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija.

The PIDS Corner, one of the Institute’s foremost research dissemination strategies, is aimed at providing reading and research materials on development-oriented topics to students, researchers, faculty, and poli-cymakers in locations where there is a lack of such resources. The “Corner” provides shelves containing various studies and publications produced by the Institute and its research partners. These include books, research papers, discussion papers, journals, and newsletters .

The PIDS Corner at CLSU Library is the first of its kind in the Central Luzon region. Since inception in 2006, there have been 21 Corners (10 in Luzon, 6 in Visayas, 5 in Min-

danao), strategically located in provincial libraries and public and private academic institutions all over the country.

Students, university officials, and local gov-ernment executives attended the inaugura-tion. PIDS President Josef Yap and CLSU President Ruben Sevilleja led the ceremonial ribbon cutting and signed the Memorandum of Agreement between both institutions. The signing, which was witnessed by CLSU Chief Librarian Zoraida Bartolome and PIDS Director for Research Information Sheila Siar, formalizes the partnership between PIDS and CLSU.

Delivering remarks in Filipino, Yap under-scored the importance of the PIDS Corners as well as the Institute’s partnership with universities and research institutions. He said, “Hangad din namin na mas maintindi-han ng mas nakararami ang mga bagay-bagay na nangyayari sa ating ekonomiya; kaya bukod sa mga opisyal ng ating pamahalaan, ang mga pag-aaaral namin ay amin ding ibinabahagi sa mga eskuwelahan at mga pamantasan sa pama-magitan ng kanilang mga aklatan at gayun din sa ibang research institutions (We also aim to increase the public’s literacy and under-standing of issues that affect our economy; hence, aside from government officials, we also share our studies with academic and re-search institutions through their libraries).”

Meanwhile, Sevilleja thanked the Institute for bringing its studies closer to CLSU stu-dents and faculty members. He said it was imperative for CLSU, as an institution of higher learning, to continuously enrich its knowledge materials not only for students but also for the general public. The Corner provides a new platform for understanding

PIDS President Josef Yap talks about the role of the manufacturing sector in achieving regional economic integration and inclusive growth. (PHOTO: Ma. Gizelle Manuel, PIDS)

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS 7 November - December 2012

PIDS President Josef Yap and CLSU President Ruben Sevilleja sign the Memorandum of Agreement between PIDS and CLSU. Other officials from both institutions witness the event. (PHOTO: Ma. Gizelle Manuel, PIDS)

how socioeconomic policies are crafted and how socioeconomic problems can be better addressed, he added.

To spur development discussions in the local area, PIDS Corner inaugurations are followed by a discussion forum on development-related topics by a PIDS senior researcher. For this occasion, Yap talked about “Regional Economic Integration and Inclusive Growth: The Role of the Manufac-turing Sector.”

In addition, Siar took the audience com-posed primarily of Economics students of the university on a “tour” of the SocioEco-nomic Research Portal for the Philippines (SERP-P), a Web-based knowledge resource of socioeconomic studies maintained by the Institute. SERP-P contains more than 5,000 publications produced by PIDS and other academic and research institutions. PJB

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS November - December 20128

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH NEWS is a bimonthly publication of the PHILIPPINE INSTITUTE FOR DEVELOPMENT STUDIES (PIDS). It highlights the findings and recommendations of PIDS research projects and important policy issues discussed during PIDS seminars. PIDS is a nonstock, nonprofit government research institution engaged in long-term, policy-oriented research. This publication is part of the Institute's program to disseminate

information to promote the use of research findings. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Institute. Inquiries regarding any of the studies contained in this publication, or any of the PIDS papers, as well as suggestions or comments are welcome. Please address all correspondence and inquiries to:

Research Information Staff Philippine Institute for Development Studies

Fifth floor, NEDA sa Makati Bldg., 106 Amorsolo Street, Legaspi Village1229 Makati City, Philippines

Telephone numbers 894-2584 and 893-9585 up to 893-9592Telefax numbers (632) 893-9589 and 816-1091

E-mail address: publications@pids.gov.ph

Reentered as second class mail at the Makati Central Post Office under Permit No. PS-570-04 NCR. Valid until December 31, 2013. Annual subscription rates are: P200.00 for local subscribers and US$20.00 for foreign subscribers. All rates are inclusive of mailing and handling costs. Prices may change without prior notice.

Development ReseaRch news

Vol. XXX No. 6Nov - Dec 2012ISSN 0115-9097

Editorial Board: Dr. Josef T. Yap, President; Dr. Rafaelita M. Aldaba, OIC Vice-President; Mr. Mario C. Feranil, Director for Project Services and Development; Dr. Sheila V. Siar, Director for Research Information; Ms. Andrea S. Agcaoili, Director for Operations and Finance; Atty. Roque A. Sorioso, Legal Consultant.

Staff: Sheila V. Siar, Editor- in-Chief; Felipe F. Salvosa II, Issue Editor; Claudette S. Malana, and Precious Jose E. Baroy, Writers; Jane C. Alcantara, Romero F. Lopez, Kristine Carla O. Oteyza, and Ma. Gizelle G. Manuel, Contributors; Jose Ignacio O. Tenorio, Layout; Valentina V. Tolentino and Rossana P. Cleofas, Exchange; Delia S . Romero, Gerald Jay S. Libiran, Necita Z. Aquino, and Michael A. Caturan, Circulation and Subscription.

staff Box

Findings by PIDS researchers indicate that poverty is not the only controlling factor. Teachers and parents have flawed expectations on their children, and even the educational attainment of the parents affects the decision to send kids to school. Moreover, there is a yawning gender gap in educational outcomes. Boys are often at a disadvantage.

This issue also features the “Inception Workshop” organized by PIDS and the Board of Investments, an attached agency of the Department of Trade and In-dustry, to start the ball rolling on the Comprehensive National Industry Strategy which is meant to boost the manufacturing industry as a source of growth and employment. PIDS has crafted the analytical framework being used by different manufacturing

sectors to prepare their respective sectoral roadmaps, which will be integrated into an overall roadmap.

We also report on the inauguration of the first-ever PIDS Corner in Central Luzon. So far, the Institute has opened 21 PIDS Corners all over the country as part of its research dissemination efforts. As reiterated by PIDS President Josef Yap in his remarks during the inauguration of the PIDS Corner at the Central Luzon State University, the Institute’s aim is to increase the public’s literacy and understanding of issues that affect the economy. Thus, PIDS caters not just to government policymakers, but also to the public at large, who will eventually benefit from the fruits of its research. DRN

Ed notes...from p. 1

as employment generation. The govern-ment will adopt a growth-oriented strategy to improve productivity growth, increase investment, promote export diversification and facilitate structural transformation. This

Roadmap...from p. 5 growth-oriented action by the government is a major way to address the “progeria” that most manufacturing industries suffer from, she said. PJB