Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has filed a resolution seeking to conduct an inquiry that will assess the Department of Education’s (DepEd) procurement of textbooks and other learning materials.

Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate Committee on Basic Education, filed Senate Resolution No. 972 following the findings of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) in its year one report.

The report revealed that since the K to 12 curriculum’s introduction in 2013, the DepEd only managed to procure 27 textbook titles out of the 90 required for Grades 1 to 10. The EDCOM also found out that only learners in Grades 5 and 6 have complete sets of textbooks for all subjects.

During the EDCOM II consultation with the DepEd, the National Book Development Board and groups of private textbook publishers identified several procurement issues such as insufficient development time and a prolonged review process. Other issues include high participation costs and pricing issues.

The EDCOM report also flagged the low utilization of the budget allocated for textbooks and other instructional materials. Between 2018 and 2022, more than P12.6 billion was allocated for textbooks and other instructional materials. However, only 35.3 percent (P4.47 billion) of this allocation was obligated and only 7.5 percent (P951.9 million) was disbursed.

Based on the results of the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics 2019 (SEA-PLM 2019), eight in 100 Grade 5 Filipino learners shared their language and mathematics textbooks with more than two students. Furthermore, results of the SEA-PLM 2019 revealed that compared to those who have their textbooks, learners who shared their textbooks scored five points lower in Mathematics and Writing, and six points lower in Reading.

“Sa gitna ng pagsisikap nating iangat ang kalidad ng edukasyon ng ating bansa, mahalagang tiyakin natin ang pagkakaroon ng sapat na aklat para sa bawat mag-aaral. Napapanahong masuri natin kung paano matutugunan ang mga hamong kinakaharap ng ating sistema ng edukasyon pagdating sa kakulangan ng mga aklat (In light of our efforts to uplift the quality of education in our country, it's imperative to ensure that we have adequate books for each learner. It's high time we analyze how to address the challenges in our education system when it comes to the lack of books),” said Gatchalian.

Ahead of the expected rollout of the MATATAG curriculum starting School Year 2024 to 2025, the DepEd has committed to deliver 80 percent of textbooks for Grades 1, 4, and 7 by July 2024.