President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has approved the creation of the Cabinet Cluster for Education to address the gaps within the educational system from early childhood to the senior high school phase.

During the Cabinet sectoral meeting on Tuesday, the President acknowledged the need to reform the current education system to ensure positive long-term effects on every Filipino student and graduate.

According to the Presidential Communications Office’s (PCO) press briefing with the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II), the ongoing learning crisis has crippled the system for decades, resulting in a learning gap of 5.5 years for Filipino students.

“If you’ve seen our report, the miseducation, the failed system of Philippine education, the inside really was all of the agencies are doing their respective jobs but they do it independent of one another with no mechanism of really coordinating, making sure that the plans come together and they deliver an integrated system of education,” EDCOM II Executive Director Mark Yee said.

During DepEd’s learning camp, Yee observed that students were unable to solve mathematical problems aligned with their grade levels. However, the problem does not stop with the student’s learning abilities, as not enough daycare teachers and workers have been given enough training programs since 2011.

The prevalence of teaching mismatch also weighs on the ongoing learning crisis, as school job postings have become generic, not specifying the required skills and specialization for the position.

Moreover, the Cabinet Cluster would also address the effects of bullying on students, the shortage of classrooms and guidance counselors, and teaching mismatches.