MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) will send computers to 200 schools nationwide where students are expected to take the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), in which Filipinos have performed poorly in two assessment years.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara said that by January, 200 schools would have been identified by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the organizer of PISA, as potential sites to get students to take the assessment.
As part of preparations to improve PISA test scores, Angara said the DepEd and its Task Force PISA are prepared to pour resources in three steps, the second of which is providing computers to the 200 shortlisted schools and creating special sections that would focus on numeracy, literacy and science.
“During the last PISA, a lot of the students chosen to take it were not aware how to use computers because they come from remote areas, so we’re trying to prepare them for the exam technique so that they would not be nervous,” Angara said in an interview over dzRH yesterday.
The first stage of preparations this year involves the OECD’s screening of 1.9 million students who could take the PISA, among which are the crafting of PISA-type reviewers and practice tests for those shortlisted, according to the education chief.
“The OECD keeps its exams secret because it appears that they repeat some of the questions from previous years. It’s difficult to look for these types of exams so we looked for experts to craft us these materials,” he said.
He added that schools in Metro Manila, Central Luzon and Cordillera that scored above average during the last PISA would be studied for best practices in terms of preparing students.