Following the Philippines’ historic gains in the 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Education Secretary Juan Edgardo ‘Sonny’ Angara led the national recognition of educators, learners, families, local government leaders, and public and private partners, celebrating a whole-of-nation effort that helped the Philippines emerge as the world’s fastest-improving nation in Reading performance, while securing significant score increases across Reading, Science, and Mathematics compared to the 2022 cycle.
‘This achievement was brought about by years of consistent guidance, encouragement, and support from our teachers, families, schools, communities, and all our partners. That is why today we are here to recognize the people and the institutions that helped make all these possible,’ Marcos said during the thanksgiving gathering, held at President Corazon ‘Cory’ C. Aquino National High School, brought together representatives and supporters from 20 public and private schools in the National Capital Region (NCR) that participated in the assessment.
The results also showed a higher percentage of learners reaching baseline proficiency level across all three domains.
Angara emphasized that while the international recognition marks a turning point for Philippine education, the true victory belongs to the grassroots communities that rallied behind schools.
‘We owe this breakthrough first and foremost to the clear vision and support of President Bongbong Marcos, who made education reform a national priority and gave us the mandate to support our schools on the ground…These results prove what is possible when a country rallies behind its youth. But more than that, it was a triumph of local solidarity,’ Angara said.
Angara acknowledged the broad network of supporters who stepped up to ensure schools were fully equipped during the global assessment. He lauded local leaders, including lawmakers, governors, mayors, and barangay officials, who channeled local resources directly into participating classrooms. Electric cooperatives, local businesses, corporate foundations, and civic groups also joined the effort by providing backup generators, stable internet connectivity, and essential school supplies.
Beyond logistics, Angara praised the deep personal commitment of families, school personnel, and especially the teachers. ‘Our teachers and partners proved that resourcefulness and grit can bridge the resources gap. Our educators, especially those who went out of their way to support neighboring schools, demonstrated the absolute best of the Filipino spirit,’ he said.
The public schools recognized during the event were Amparo High School, Caloocan City Business High School, Bagong Silang High School, Caloocan City Science High School, Esteban Abada High School, Jose P. Laurel High School, Claro M. Recto High School, Tondo High School, Fortune High School, President Corazon ‘Cory’ C. Aquino National High School, Manggahan High School, Sagad High School, New Era High School, San Bartolome High School, Pitogo High School, and Taguig Science High School.
Participating private institutions, including Divine Light Academy, Jose Rizal High School-Arellano University, Servite School, Inc., and Inocencio School, Inc., were also recognized.
The education partners recognized at the event included ConnecEd, Frontlearners, Inc., Khan Academy Philippines, the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines (ITBAP), One Meralco Foundation, Meralco, and Rebisco.
A total of 8,702 learners from 208 schools nationwide participated in PISA 2025.
‘This is not a moment to rest on our laurels, but a clear sign that the systemic reforms initiated under President Marcos’ leadership are taking root. With the continued backing of our local government units, private partners, and dedicated teachers, we will push harder to close the achievement gap and make quality education accessible to every Filipino child,’ Angara said.
ARAL program, curriculum reforms to build on PHL’s gains in PISA
Learning recovery efforts and curriculum reforms will further improve Filipino learners’ performance with the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program as a key intervention in addressing learning gaps, following the Philippines’ improved performance in the 2025 round of the PISA.
Senate President Win Gatchalian made this projection as he cited the impact evaluation conducted by nonprofit organization Youth Impact, in collaboration with the Department of Education (DepEd) and the World Bank. That assessment found that the ARAL program resulted in 4.5 million fewer struggling readers in School Year 2025-2026.
While the ARAL Program received P8.9 billion this year, the National Expenditure Program (NEP) for fiscal year 2027 has zero allocation for the program. Gatchalian vowed, however, to fight for the program’s funding.
Gatchalian expressed optimism that learning outcomes will further improve following the enactment of Republic Act No. 12322, which removed the mandatory use of the spiral progression approach and gave DepEd greater flexibility in implementing the basic education curriculum.
‘Ngayong nakikita natin sa resulta ng PISA na nasa tamang direksyon ang mga reporma sa edukasyon, patuloy nating susuportahan at patatatagin ang mga programang lalo pang magpapahusay sa kakayahan ng ating mga mag-aaral [Now that we’ve seen with PISA’s results that our educational reforms are in the right direction, we will continue to sup[port and strengthen these programs that will further improve our learners’ capacity],’ Gatchalian said.