18.9M Filipino graduates in 2024 found to be functionally illiterate
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MANILA, Philippines—A total of 18.96 million Filipino students who graduated from junior and senior high school in 2024 are considered functionally illiterate — they can read but have difficulty understanding what they read.
This was revealed during a Senate education panel hearing on Wednesday, with committee chair Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian reacting to data presented by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
“If you look at the 2024 figures, the PSA found that 18 million senior and junior high school graduates are not functionally literate,” Gatchalian said.
Gatchalian said this situation should not exist, given that the “basic goal” of education is for students to become functionally literate, or someone who can read, write, compute, and comprehend.
“That’s non-negotiable, that a student who will graduate from our basic education system should be functionally literate. That’s not the case now,” he said.
Functional illiteracy refers to a condition where a person can read and write simple words or sentences but cannot apply these skills effectively in daily life. This means they struggle to understand written instructions, follow the meaning of a short story, fill out forms, or handle tasks that require basic numeracy.
Assistant National Statistician Adrian Cerezo disclosed that only 79 percent of senior high school graduates nationwide in 2024 are functionally literate.
The PSA data showed that about 24.8 million Filipinos have difficulty understanding a simple story.
“This is the gravity of our situation right now,” Gatchalian said.
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Meanwhile, the provinces with the highest illiteracy rates are:
- Tawi-Tawi (67 percent)
- Davao Occidental (53 percent)
- Zamboanga del Sur (49 percent)
- Northern Samar (48 percent)
- Basilan (48 percent)
- Sarangani (48 percent)
- Western Samar (46 percent)
- Agusan del Norte (44 percent)
- Sultan Kudarat (44 percent)
- Lanao del Norte (44 percent)
