At the turn of the 20th century, William McKinley’s concept of benevolent assimilation dictated the exclusive use of the English language, which it considered manna from heaven,for teaching all Filipino children in Reading, Writing and Arithmetic, thereby casting aside the pagan languages of the Philippines. With the release of PISA 2022 last December 5, 2023, the Philippines lays at the bottom of all the countries that participated in the test. The PISA debacle stresses that language play a critical factor in education that demands from all Filipinos to rethink their adulation of the English language.

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a test in reading, mathematics and science developed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to help its member countries in formulating education policies that will help human development and nation building. Students who are 15 years old are given the PISA test. When the Philippines participated in PISA for the first time in 2018, the country placed last among all participating countries. For the second time in 2022, the Philippines’ overall ranking did not change in spite of insignificant lift in numbers in reading and mathematics brought about by other countries who did worse than us in these fields.

What many academics and politicians refuse to discuss is the fact that Filipino students took PISA 2018 and 2022 in English. The difference between these two batches of 15 year olds is that PISA 2022 takers had some years of education in the early grades under the MTBMLE program that started in 2013 because of the K to 12 Law. The question of how strong is the causality in the results of PISA 2022 in reading and mathematics with the use of the mother tongue or first language of the child (L1) requires further analysis from experts. The language in education factor is underscored by the fact that top ranked countries in PISA used their respective national languages in the test.

The point of view Filipinos must take is to link PISA with the most important statement of the 1925 Monroe Report that the English language is the root of all educational problems in the Philippines. Except for the rich and powerful, the English language is not the natural first language of most Filipinos.

Compared to their American counterparts, Monroe revealed that Filipino children are four to five years behind in reading, writing and math (except for simple arithmetic that does not require word problem solving). Monroe emphasized that Filipino children would have definitely scored higher if they were taught and tested in their first languages. Filipinos ignored the Monroe Report. As a result, our children have been left behind by all the countries of the world in PISA 2018 and 2022.

Monroe’s second important statement is the unpreparedness of teachers to conduct classes using the English language which teachers are not proficient with. We sincerely doubt if the 1 million DepEd teachers are all proficient in English. DepEd would be in an easier position to radically change the literacy landscape if Filipino and the other first languages of the pupil are used in delivering education.

The DepEd secretary of this administration should ponder on the country notes of PISA 2018 and 2022 and seek the help of educators in interpreting, analyzing and synthesizing data that can be used to intensify the MTBMLE program, reduce the curriculum to essentials in order to accommodate the training of critical thinking and devote more funds into these programs without delay or disruption. After more than a hundred years (120 years to be exact), the English language obsession has dragged Filipino education to hell. It is alright to learn English as a subject, but this language should take a back seat in Philippine education.