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LCC Support Funds for Community Literacy Programs of LGUs

As part of the LCC Support Funds for Community Literacy Programs of LGUs, the Literacy Coordinating Council Secretariat, together with the LCC Technical Working Group, conducted monitoring and evaluation activities to the 28 LGU recipients of the Php 1.5 Million pesos from the 2015 Abot-Alam Program Funds to be used in the implementation of literacy programs in their localities. Focus Group discussions, interviews, and site visits were conducted on the following LGUs: Balanga, Bataan; Alaminos, Pangasinan; Cuyo, Palawan; Laoac, Pangasinan; Baguio City; San Mateo, Isabela; Del Carmen, Surigao del Norte; Tigbauan, Iloilo; Tagum City; General Santos City; Cagayan de Oro; Butuan City; Rizal, Laguna; Cervantes, Ilocos Sur; Bacnotan, La Union; Natividad, Pangasinan; Agoo, La Union; Plaridel, Bulacan; Marilao, Bulacan; Antipolo City; Tagaytay City; Tanay, Rizal; Daet, Camarines Norte; Lupi, Camarines Sur; Pasay City; Bayugan City; and Tubungan, Iloilo.

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MEETING FOR LCC WEBSITE

Literacy is commonly described as  the ability to read and write and use the printed material. In our rapidly changing world, literacy is increasingly viewed as a “way of being,” a manner of carrying out social transactions and developing oneself.

The United Natio0ns Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization defines literacy as the “ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate, compute, and use the printed and written materials associated with varying contexts.It involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, develop their knowledge and potential, and participate fully in their community and wider society.”

MEETING FOR LCC WEBSITE

Literacy is commonly described as  the ability to read and write and use the printed material. In our rapidly changing world, literacy is increasingly viewed as a “way of being,” a manner of carrying out social transactions and developing oneself.

The United Natio0ns Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization defines literacy as the “ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate, compute, and use the printed and written materials associated with varying contexts.It involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, develop their knowledge and potential, and participate fully in their community and wider society.”

What is basic literacy?

Basic literacy is the ability of a person to read and write with understanding a simple message in any language or dialect.

What is functional literacy?

Functional literacy is a range of skills and competencies – cognitive, affective, and behavioral, which enables individuals to:

  • live and work as human persons;
  • develop their potentials;
  • make critical and informed decisions; and
  • function effectively in society within the context of their environment and that of the wider community (local, national, global) in order to improve the quality of their lives and that of society.
What are the major indicators of functional literacy?
  • communication skills
  • critical thinking and problem solving
  • sustainable use of resources and productivity
  • development of self and a sense of community
  • expanding one’s world vision
What is the operational definition of literacy?

Functional literacy is the ability to communicate effectively, to solve problems scientifically, to think critically and creatively, to use resources sustainably and be productive, and to develop one’s sense of self and of community and to expand’s one’s world view.

Why promote literacy?
Literacy means freedom. It is a tool for empowering ourselves and our community. It can free us from many personal, economic, and social constraints by helping to:
  • eradicate poverty,
  • eradicate child mortality,
  • curb population growth,
  • achieve greater equality;
  • make participation in all social economic and political processes possible;
  • ensure sustainable development, peace, and democracy; and
  • enhance our capacity to lead a free and more fulfilled life.
LITERACY IS EMPOWERMENT.

Get on the bandwagon of literacy and help build our beloved country, the Philippines.

Project Barangay Apokon, Manuel B. Suaybagenio Village Phase II, Tagum City

Project Barangay Apokon is a training-cum-production project for relocated squatters faced with the problem of building their own houses in the face of severe financial constraints. As they underwent training, their basic and functional literacy skills were enhanced.

The Project in a Capsule

This is a training cum production project for relocated informal settlers faced with the problem of building their own houses in the face of severe financial constraints. The men underwent training in the various aspects of building construction to prepare them for building their own houses. The women attended livelihood skills training classes and put up their own income earning projects. As they underwent training, their basic and functional literacy skills were enhanced.

The men built their own houses after being trained and certified by TESDA and the Association of Construction Workers. The LGU extended some assistance like sand, gravel, and water and from stakeholders GI sheets, rods, and cement. The actual experience of the men in building their houses qualified them for employment as construction workers. The women trained in livelihood skills now have income-generating projects that help augment the family income.

Project Barangay Apokon demonstrates how a local government can provide for the development of functional literacy according to the LCC definition “a range of skills and competencies … which enable individuals to live and work as human persons, develop their potential, make critical and informed decisions, and function effectively in society within the context of their environment and that of the wider community in order to improve the quality of their life and that of society.”

Where is the project located?

  • Barangay Apokon, Manuel B. Suaybagenio Village Phase II, Tagum City

What problems/situations propelled the initiators to develop the project?

  • Lack of basic education, high incidence of illiteracy and lack of skills/means of livelihood of relocated informal settlers
  • Difficulty of informal settlers in building decent homes because of financial constraints

Who conceptualized the program?

  • The heads of the Engineering, Planning, and Social Welfare and Community Affairs Offices of Tagum City under the leadership of Mayor Rey T. Uy

What are the objectives of the project?

  • To maximize the benefits and impact of the relocation project by helping the beneficiaries improve the quality of their life through enhanced functional literacy.

What strategies were adopted to solve the problem addressed?

  • Convergence and resource sharing which means that much can be achieved if people come together and pool their resources
  • Skills training: enhanced functional literacy
  • Parameters set by officers/agency involved so that resources available can be utilized
  • Involvement of stakeholders in planning the project
  • Signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to establish understanding of what each participant’s role should be
  • Coordinating the different projects and making them work together as one project of the LGU

How was support for the project derived?

  • The LGU acquired the relocation site and facilitated its development and subdivision into lots including titling.
  • Sand, gravel, and water were provided by the LGU for free.
  • Water was hauled by the Bureau of Fire Protection and City Fire Station from the city motor pool.
  • The LGU provided the honorarium for TESDA-accredited supervisor amounting to P56,000.00.
  • GI sheets, rods, and cement were donated by stakeholders out of the P10,000.00 core shelter assistance given through the DSWD.
  • Fund sources: 
    > DSWD-CIDSS P500,000 Core Shelter Project, National Housing Authority through a MOA of P1.4m for septic tank and power facilities
    > DSWD-CIDSS Capital Saving, Mobilization Project – P450,000 livelihood project for bag making, ice cream making, and vending and individual projects 
    > DANECO – free installation of main power lines

How was the project implemented?

  • Rigid training cum production routine of menfolk coordinated by TESDA and Association of Construction Workers (ACW)
  • Rigid implementation of rules for reporting of trainees according to construction site routine
  • Training of menfolk in masonry and carpentry given under ACW/TESDA accredited supervision: theory before the practicum as basis for TESDA certification
  • TESDA trained and certified learners built their own homes.

How was the project monitored/evaluated?

  • Regular monitoring through meetings and on-site visitation by project proponents
  • Regular monthly reports required by agencies involved

What problems were encountered?

  • Need for higher level literacy skills
  • Lack of sanitary toilets
  • Need for expanded livelihood assistance

How were the problems solved?

  • Provision of work-related training for developing higher level literacy skills
  • Monitoring of progress in the development of literacy skills relevant to the construction of houses
  • Transfer of funds for septic tanks and individual power connections from NHA to LGU
  • Temporary communal toilets constructed with neighborhood taking turns for their maintenance
  • Capital of P200,000.00 earmarked by LGU as initial additional capital for expanded livelihood ventures for the community the following year

What are the results of project implementation?

Impact on the community
  • Development of higher level literacy skills
  • Feeling of importance of relocated informal settlers because of attention given to their community
  • Sense of belonging, closeness among community members, desire to learn more to have a better quality of life, development and application of problem solving skills initiated by the community members themselves
Impact on implementers 
  • More focused program implementation
  • Enhanced team spirit
  • Feeling of personal satisfaction over the success of the project

How can the project be replicated?

  • Actual site visitation (lakbay aral)
  • Interview of project leaders/implementers
  • Study of materials on the project
  • Project can also be easily replicated by: 
    > establishing alliance with identified partners; 
    > defining with partners the parameters of the project and indicating what each is willing to contribute; 
    > forging a memorandum of agreement among partners to bind them to their commitment; and 
    > identifying people who know the project well to guide the chief executive and other policy makers in providing funds and other forms of support.

What lessons did the implementors learn?

  • Convergence and resource sharing ensure more successful and sustainable project implementation.
  • Benefits of a project can be maximized and its impact more felt if it is well-planned and implemented according to plan.

What is Education for All?

Philippine Education for All (EFA) 2015 is a vision and holistic program of reforms that aim to improve access and quality of basic education for every Filipino by 2015. Providing education to all Filipinos opened an alternative learning system to complement formal schooling to reach and better serve those in difficult circumstances. This entails not only the Department of Education but the involvement of the entire society, including the national and local government agencies and civil society organizations as providers of basic learning needs.

EFA 2015 Objectives

To provide basic competencies to everyone to achieve functional literacy for all, Philippine EFA 2015 aims to make:

  • All youth and adults functionally literate
  • Children 3-5 year-olds ready to participate in schools to eliminate dropout and repetition in Grades 1 to 3
  • All pupils and students complete the basic education with satisfactory achievement level
  • Education be made a societal responsibility

Critical and Urgent EFA Tasks

To attain the above goals, nine urgent and critical tasks which are as follows:

  1. Make every school continuously perform better
  2. Expand Early Childhood Care and Development
  3. Transform non-formal and informal interventions into an alternative learning system yielding more EFA benefits
  4. Promote practice of high quality teaching
  5. Adopt a 12-year program for formal basic education
  6. Enrich education curriculum in the context of articulation, enrichment the pillars of new functional literacy
  7. Provide adequate and stable public funding for country-wide attainment of EFA goals.
  8. Create a network of community-based groups for local attainment of EFA goals.
  9. Monitor progress in efforts towards attainment of EFA goals.

Literacy Mapping of 5th and 6th Class Municipalities: Policy Implications to Local Government Units

In May 2003, the Literacy Coordinating Council (LCC) commissioned the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to undertake a literacy mapping study on 5th and 6th class municipalities and their local government units. Due to financial constraint, the study was conducted from 2005 to 2006.

The DILG study 1) measured the basic and functional literacy levels of 20.20% (82) of the 406 5th class municipalities and 16.67% (7) 42 of the 6th class municipalities; 2) determined the literacy policies in these municipalities and the extent to which literacy concerns have been incorporated in municipal development plans, programs and projects; 3) described the scope of literacy practice in program/project participation in the same municipalities; and 4) specified possible policy directions in the decentralization of literacy programs and projects.

The survey method was used and the unit of analysis was the household. The respondents were 41,861 household heads and their representatives who were randomly chosen using the Table of Random Numbers. Five survey forms were used to collect data, including the two forms which the national Statistics Office (NSO) used in its 2003 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS).

Among the findings were:

  • The identification of Barangays Matampa, Alipuaton and Banal in the Municipality of Salay, Province of Misamis Oriental as the tail-ends among the Bottom 30 barangays (that is, with the lowest literacy rates)
  • Of the 89 surveyed municipalities, (82, 5th class; 7, 6th class), only Daguioman and Tayum in Abra; Sadanga in Mountain Province; Mahatao in Batangas; and BAto in Catanduanes had LGU resolutions from 2003 to 2004 which allotted a literacy-related budget. Only 32% of the 89 municipalities had literacy projects in their development plans.
  • The LGU’s common reasons for not initiating literacy projects were:
  1. The Department of Education or its teachers have the responsibility to initiate literacy projects.
  2. There are no available funds for literacy projects.
  3. No interested parties had proposed to the LGUs to implement a literacy project.
  4. No resolutions on literacy had been made.
  5. Literacy projects were not the priority of the LGU.
  6. Unfamiliarity with the previous administration’s literacy projects.

These were among the study’s recommendations:

  • Congress should pass a law mandating municipal governments and other LGUs to set aside some percentage of the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) for literacy projects.
  • Within the framework of the Social Reform Agenda, beneficiary participation in the planning and implementation of literacy programs and projects should be made a policy and the DILG should lead the LCC member agencies in advocating this policy among LGUs.
  • Barangays with the lowest basic or functional literacy rates should be top priority in the delivery of LGU literacy services. As a policy decision, literacy programs and/or projects should be included in the annual municipal development plans.

NEDA and Literacy

NEDA supports the Universal Literacy Campaign of the LCC and other related advocacies such as those embodied in the Philippine National Action for EFA 2015. As the country’s primary planning agency, NEDA ensures that literacy policies and priorities are included in the national development plans and other related subsectoral plans.

NEDA strongly supports the achievement of universal literacy in the Philippines. It has been an active member of the Council since its creation in 1991, actively participating in its activities such as advocacy programs, policy formulation, and monitoring and evaluation. Among its contributions to the LCC is the conduct of Analysis of 2003 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS) Results. This study aimed to examine the trends in literacy at the national and regional levels and relevant policies and programs in order to derive areas for possible policy or program formulation.

(Link to open power point presentation of the study) 
(Link to NEDA website)

Why is literacy important?

Can you read the question? Can you count the number of letters contained in the question? Can you write your answer? If you can, good for you! You have what it would take to live a good life, and contribute to the wealth of the nation.

Literacy: a matter of life and death.

Literacy is life, as it is the set of skills necessary for existence and development.

Living and earning

Marina’s illiterate parents used to live a hand-to-mouth existence, roaming the mountains and often being mistreated by lowlanders. Determined to change their fate, Marina decided to study. With the competencies she possess, she started to earn a living that affords to give her family a decent life.

Developing potentials

Fourteen year-old Maricel just learned to write her name at the community learning center in a far-flung sitio in Digos City. Now that she knows how to write her name and things about health and nutrition, she has made one step closer to becoming a nurse.

Making informed decisions

The indigenous people of Mindoro lamented that when they were still illiterate, they used to be quiet and aloof people. But after being provided literacy, they were empowered to organize themselves, make critical decisions on matters that affect their lives, and participate in democratic processes such as elections.

Contributing to society

Illiterate mothers of a remote barangay in Cotabato used to spend their day gambling, gossiping, and nagging their husbands. Then an NGO that brought literacy transformed them into responsible mothers and wives, earning family members, and valued part of the community.

Averting death

On the other side of possessing these range of skills and competencies that lead to quality life for individuals and the society, is the dark side of illiteracy.

Illiteracy is death…literally, as in the father who accidentally poisoned his child because he could not read the label that said toxic; or figuratively, as in throwing a good life away as a housemaid committed a crime out of ignorance thereby spending the better years of her life in prison.

Those were just newsworthy incidents involving illiteracy. Unfortunately, illiteracy is not just a form of bad luck befalling people randomly; it is a reality for four million Filipinos who cannot read and write. Tsk, tragic cases of illiteracy might just be a common occurrence, and tragedies could multiply by four million!

Literacy is the key towards a good life…and against meaningless and tragic death. Good for those who know this truth… and better for those who act on this knowledge and multiply the values of literacy in theirs and others’ lives.