The Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) has revealed that the number of functionally illiterate Filipinos has almost doubled over the past three decades, reaching 24.8 million in 2024, based on the latest Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS). According to EDCOM 2, functional illiteracy refers to the inability to understand and apply basic reading, writing, and numeracy skills in daily life. The Commission warned that this alarming increase reflects the long-standing challenges in the country’s basic education system. The group noted that despite the 1994 restructuring of the education sector—which divided the former Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS) into DepEd, CHED, and TESDA to improve focus—DepEd’s priorities appear to have become scattered. The Department now participates in 261 interagency bodies, diverting attention from its main responsibility of improving students’ literacy and learning outcomes. EDCOM 2 stressed the need for DepEd to return to its fundamental mission of ensuring that Filipino students can read, write, and comprehend effectively, warning that the country’s progress depends on addressing this deep-rooted literacy crisis.
