ILOILO — The province of Iloilo has recorded a dramatic leap in literacy, with reading proficiency among learners soaring to 90 percent from just 28 percent within a year, prompting Education Secretary Sonny Angara to hail the province as a model for nationwide education reform.
The Department of Education (DepEd) chief said the turnaround — from only three out of 10 children able to read to nine out of 10 — underscores the impact of coordinated efforts among teachers, local government units (LGUs), parents, and communities.
“Nakakatuwang makita ang malaking pag-angat ng literacy sa Iloilo, mula 28% naging 90%, sa tulong ng sama-samang pagkilos ng mga guro, local government unit (LGU), magulang, at komunidad. Patunay ito na kapag pinagtutulungan ang pagbasa ng bawat bata, mabilis nating naiaangat ang learning outcomes,” Angara said in a statement on April 23.
Angara attributed Iloilo’s success to a combination of sustained teacher training, long-term solutions instead of “band-aid” approaches, strong community involvement, collaboration among LGUs, parents, and schools, regular monitoring, accountability mechanisms, and nutrition and feeding support.
Parents and community members were also trained to serve as reading teachers, reinforcing learning beyond the classroom.
The education chief noted that the province’s literacy gains took off following a pilot collaboration involving the Commission on Education, DepEd, the Synergeia Foundation, and the Iloilo provincial government.
“Taos-puso akong nagpapasalamat sa inyong lahat sa pagpapakita na ang teacher training, regular assessment, at matibay na local leadership ay susi sa tagumpay. Ang modelong ito ay inspirasyon para sa iba pang lalawigan sa buong bansa,” he added.
Angara said the national government, under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., is looking to expand similar initiatives nationwide to ensure more Filipino children learn how to read, with no one left behind.
The Iloilo provincial government, led by Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr., welcomed the recognition, emphasizing that the milestone was a shared achievement with development partners and local leaders.
“We extend our sincere gratitude to DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara for recognizing the Iloilo provincial government’s initiative to enhance the reading literacy of Ilonggo learners. We share this milestone with our dedicated development partners – the DepEd, the Synergeia Foundation, and our mayors whose unwavering support was vital to our success,” the provincial government said in a statement.
Speaking at the 2026 Washington Sycip National Education Summit, Defensor stressed that addressing reading proficiency requires a whole-of-community approach that goes beyond the classroom.
“So what did we do? We created a pool of education champions. We engage LGUs, parents, engage whole communities. As I said earlier, it takes the whole community to teach reading. And that is really true. Yung iba sa atin, one-on-one ‘yan. Ako, nag-aral, natutong magbasa one-on-one. Nanay ko ang nagturo sa akin. I think, sa karamihan ng bata, ganoon. That’s why we have a problem. The classroom setting is not enough. Top-down and bottom-up. Again, we need the whole community to engage when we want to address the problem of reading proficiency, leverage data for urgency and evidence of success for motivation,” Defensor said.
To sustain the gains, the provincial government is doubling down on its commitment to ensure every Ilonggo learner becomes a proficient reader.
A memorandum of agreement has been signed with municipal mayors to support the expansion of the BES Basa program — a localized version of the Synergeia Foundation’s Proof of Concept (POC) model in partnership with DepEd.
The BES Basa POC, a beginning reading intervention program, targets critical gaps in early childhood literacy and serves as a key component of the province’s Bulig Eskwela sang Probinsya (BES Probins) education reform agenda.
Initially rolled out in 2024 across 11 pilot municipalities — Guimbal, Igbaras, Leganes, Pavia, Maasin, Cabatuan, Mina, Sara, Lemery, Batad, and Barotac Viejo — the program trained teachers and facilitators, distributed instructional materials, and conducted pre- and post-assessments to monitor learner progress.
After just one year, the initiative delivered transformative results, raising Grade 3 reading proficiency from 30 percent to 90 percent, positioning Iloilo at the forefront of literacy reform in the country./PN
