‘Books in private schools also full of errors’

A self-styled crusader for better textbooks in schools identified yesterday three more error-riddled textbooks being used in public secondary schools.

Antonio Calipjo-Go, academic supervisor of the Marian School in Sauyo, Novaliches in Quezon City, said as many as 40 percent of textbooks, both in private and public schools, are filled with erroneous information.

"Our students are being immersed in errors. And the Department of Education (DepEd) continues to do nothing about it," Go told reporters at a press conference yesterday.

He said the textbook "Science and Technology in the Modern World II" — authored by Maria Olivares, Eloisa Bermio and Juanita Cruz and published by Diwa Scholastic Press — was supposed to have been disapproved by the DepEd for use in public schools.

However, despite being disapproved, Go said the book has continued to be included in the DepEd’s list of textbooks approved for use by public high school sophomores.

Two other textbooks, "Science and Technology in the Modern World I," authored by Marlene Gutierrez, also published by Diwa Scholastic Press; and "Kasaysayan ng Daigdig III," authored by Teofista Vivar, Nieva Discipulo, Priscilla Rillo and Zenaida de Leon and published by

SD Publications, are still used by public high school students despite what Go said were factual and grammatical errors their pages contain.

Go caused a stir last month when he exposed a history textbook titled "Asya: Nuon, Ngayun at sa Hinaharap II," published by Vibal

Publishing through its sister company SD Publications and authored by teachers Teofista Vivar, Evelina Viloria, Ruth Fuentes and the late Remedios Quiray, for having around 431 factual and grammatical errors.

In the case of the "Science and Technology in the Modern World II" textbook, Go said it was obvious that the DepEd was buying and distributing textbooks it supposedly disapproved.

Go said he mentioned the errors in this book in a letter to the editor dated Feb. 18, 2002. The publication of the letter, he said, earned a reply from Education Undersecretary Fe Hidalgo, who said the

book was disapproved during textbook evaluation under the DepEd’s social expenditure management project in 2001 and "was not procured by the DepEd."

After exposing the error-riddled textbook last month, Go himself was questioned by DepEd for spending his own money to place a paid advertisement in a newspaper just to condemn the book.

The DepEd described Go as a textbook evaluator for school textbook publishing companies and that he earned money from correcting these mistakes.

Education Secretary Florencio Abad even said they plan to sue Go over his allegations.

Go stood pat on his allegations and questioned the DepEd officials’ seeming resistance to seriously look into the textbooks they purchased and check if these books bear the correct information.

"All of us are affected by these defective textbooks. They don’t need to destroy me because they do not solve the errors that way," he said.

Go pointed out that Abad did not have to take his allegations personally, since he assumed the post only this year.

He said he has been evaluating school textbooks for errors as a personal advocacy for the past nine years.

Go added that his advocacy is not limited to books. He also scans newspapers for mistakes and regularly writes to editors calling attention to such errors.