PHILIPPINES 2010 MDG PROGRESS REPORT CITES IMPACT LEARNING SYSTEM
The Philippines 2010 Progress Report on Millennium Development Goals (MDG) has identified the IMPACT Learning System as an effective way for attaining universal primary education—the second millennium development goal. The Report states that the rate of achievement of MDG Goal 2 is considerably low but a case study of the IMPACT Learning System as reported by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) reveals its benefit in ensuring access to and quality of primary education for all children.
The Philippines 2010 Progress Report on Millennium Development Goals (MDG) has identified the IMPACT Learning System as an effective way for attaining universal primary education—the second millennium development goal.
The Report states that the rate of achievement of MDG Goal 2 is considerably low but a case study of the IMPACT Learning System as reported by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) reveals its benefit in ensuring access to and quality of primary education for all children.
The Instructional Management by Parents, Community and Teachers (IMPACT) system is an alternative learning delivery mode for basic education developed by SEAMEO INNOTECH more than three decades ago, in cooperation with the then Department of Education and Culture, and with funding support from the International Development Research Center (IDRC) of Canada.
The system initially intended to address overcrowding in Philippine public schools and the lack of teachers and learning materials. Its most salient feature is the active participation of the parents, the school teachers and officials, and the community leaders in the learning process of the children.
The Report shares that studies have proven how the IMPACT Learning System “consistently demonstrated cost-efficiency (reducing the cost of elementary education by up to 50 percent without sacrificing quality) and has positively contributed to the improvement of instructional quality and pupils’ academic performance.” In addition, students exposed to this system “consistently achieve higher level of cognitive skills compared with students in conventional schools; be more socially sensitive, spontaneous, and uninhibited in their activities and expressions; communicate well with their groups, teachers, parents and visitors; and be more responsible, committed and exhibit leadership skills.”
The Report further cites the improvement in the performance of a learning center in Zamboanga City, the Culianan Learning Center (CLC) which adopted the IMPACT system in 1980. CLC consistently ranked among the top ten high achieving schools in its division and even gained recognition as one of the best performing schools in its region in School Year 2006-2007 for its National Achievement Test (NAT) results.
The Maasin Learning Center, which picked up the innovation from CLC only in 2006, was also mentioned by the NEDA validation. The Learning Center improved on the number of its enrollees, as well as on the number of its teachers and classrooms after implementing the technology-enhanced IMPACT learning system. Despite having a big number of enrolees, the Learning Center is able to provide quality education through peer group learning sessions and a 1:1 pupil-module ratio.
At the end of September 2010, all nations committed to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals will converge for the UN General Assembly to present their progress in the last 10 years and their plans for the remaining five years to accelerate achievement of the MDGs. The MDG refers to a set of eight goals primarily aimed at eradicating poverty by the year 2015.
