Moving in lockstep for learning
The Philippines’ learning crisis is no longer a distant concern. It is a daily reality in classrooms across the country. The challenges are wide-ranging, from early childhood development and foundational learning to teacher support, infrastructure, and governance. Faced with this complexity, a difficult question arises: where do we begin?
This is a question we continually ask ourselves at Metrobank Foundation. Like many organizations committed to education, we aim to contribute where we can make the greatest difference. Yet the breadth of the challenges can sometimes make it difficult to determine where resources, partnerships, and efforts will have the most meaningful impact.
In a problem this complex, we need clarity, focus, and a shared understanding of the issues we are trying to solve—something we have learned firsthand at Metrobank Foundation. It requires us to look beyond what we have always done and ask where our efforts can create the greatest impact, listen to evidence, and reassess long-standing approaches.
This is precisely the value of the Second Congressional Commission on Education’s (Edcom 2) final report and the National Education and Workforce Development Plan. By identifying key priority areas, it gives institutions like ours a clearer basis for where to direct scarce resources to maximize impact.
One finding is especially alarming. After years of decline, child stunting has begun to rise again, which reinforces that the learning crisis does not begin in the classroom, but with whether a child is healthy enough to learn.
In response, we have strengthened our efforts to address child malnutrition through programs that pair feeding support with nutrition education, livelihood assistance, and improved access to basic services.
Edcom 2’s focus on foundational learning also points to the urgency of addressing gaps in numeracy and literacy early on.
For many years, we proudly supported the Metrobank-MTAP-Department of Education (DepEd) Math Challenge (MMC), a program that nurtured mathematical excellence among generations of Filipino learners. But as evidence on learning outcomes became clearer, another reality emerged: too many students were struggling with basic numeracy long before they could aspire to excel.
This realization forced us to rethink where our efforts would matter most.
The result was Metrobank Foundation Solution (Support for Optimal Learning and Understanding To Improve Overall Numeracy), a remediation program that helps grade schoolers rebuild foundational numeracy at their own pace while strengthening confidence and well-being.
The challenge before us is not simply to produce more top performers. It is to ensure that every learner develops the foundational skills necessary to learn, grow, and succeed—for it is on these foundations that excellence is built.
The same principle guided another recent commitment.
Learning cannot happen without safe and conducive learning environments. Recent earthquakes and other natural disasters have highlighted how fragile educational continuity can be when classrooms are damaged or inaccessible. Every disruption affects learners, but its impact is often greatest on those who are already vulnerable.
Recognizing this, the Foundation will contribute to the construction of classrooms in DepEd’s last-mile schools. While infrastructure alone will not solve the learning crisis, it addresses a foundational requirement for learning to take place. It is one way different stakeholders can contribute to different parts of the solution.
These shifts reflect how efforts are beginning to align with Edcom 2’s priority areas and why no single institution can solve the learning crisis alone.
Government cannot do it alone. Schools cannot do it alone. Foundations, businesses, civil society organizations, parents, and communities cannot do it alone.
But together, guided by evidence and aligned around shared priorities, we can make meaningful progress.
The challenge remains immense. Yet what once appeared overwhelming becomes more manageable when there is a common agenda to direct our efforts. Resources are used more effectively. Partnerships become more purposeful. Interventions become more responsive to actual needs.
Most importantly, learners benefit.
The learning crisis did not emerge overnight, and it will not be resolved overnight. But what is different today is that we better understand both the problem and the pathways forward.
If we stay aligned in our efforts, act on evidence, and invest where impact is greatest, overcoming the learning crisis becomes a goal that moves well within our reach. What is required now is not just commitment—but collaboration.
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Philip Francisco U. Dy is president of Metrobank Foundation, Inc., one of the Philippines’ leading corporate foundations, and executive director of GT Foundation, Inc. He has worked in public service, philanthropy, and community development, including serving as chief of staff to former Vice President Maria Leonor G. Robredo. He holds a Master in Public Policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
