Mandaue aims for deeper learning

THE Department of Education (DepEd) Mandaue City Division has committed to intensifying efforts to bridge the gap between basic and functional literacy among learners, following the city’s top ranking in both categories among the country’s highly urbanized cities.

Based on the 2024 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority, Mandaue City posted a basic literacy rate of 95.2 percent, the highest in the country, narrowly edging out Cebu City at 94.7 percent. It also led in functional literacy, with a score of 72.7 percent.

Despite these positive figures, DepEd Mandaue Schools Division Supt. Dr. Bianito Dagatan emphasized in an interview on Thursday, May 29, 2025, that the real challenge lies in improving learners’ ability to apply what they know to more complex, real-world situations — the essence of functional literacy.

“Malipay man gyud ta (We’re really glad), but at the same time, the challenge is how to capitalize on this situation to move from high basic literacy to high functional literacy,” Dagatan said.

“Mas nindot man gud nga high ang functional literacy, kay dili lang makasabot ang bata sa simple situations, pero kabalo sila mo-tackle og mas komplikado nga mga sitwasyon,” he added.

(It’s better to have high functional literacy because children won’t just understand simple situations, but they will also know how to tackle more complicated situations.)

Basic literacy refers to the ability to read and write simple messages — understanding words, phrases and sentences. It means a person can identify letters, form words and read basic text. In contrast, functional literacy involves the ability to use reading, writing and numeracy skills in everyday life, such as understanding instructions, interpreting signs, analyzing content and making informed decisions.

Dagatan said that in educational terms, functional literacy gauges a learner’s ability to go beyond answering who, what, when, where, why and how, and instead develop higher-order thinking skills such as explaining, summarizing, evaluating and applying knowledge to new contexts.

To address this learning gap, Dagatan said they are launching a week-long enhancement training for teachers from June 2 to 7, ahead of the school year opening. The training aims to prepare educators with new strategies and tools to help learners transition from merely decoding text to comprehending and analyzing information more effectively.

“They have to reassess and retell,” Dagatan said, noting the need for continuous teacher training. “This is part of how we prepare our teachers for the demands of the new school year.”

He added that aside from training, sustained support from the local government is critical. Prior to his appointment in Mandaue, the City Government had already been providing laptops and other learning tools to schools, a practice that continues today.

While no updated figures are yet available to determine where Mandaue currently stands in terms of functional literacy improvements, Dagatan said they hope it has not declined. The division also plans to hold strategic discussions with curriculum planners to align programs and teaching methods that can better support learners’ transition to functional literacy.

“We need to sit down with the curriculum representatives and assess how we can move from basic to functional literacy. What strategies can we adopt to further enhance our approach,” he said. / CAV