The Department of Education (DepEd) on Monday clarified the misconception that 18.9-million senior high school graduates were “functionally illiterate,” explaining that the figure actually referred to a broader group of Filipinos and was based on a revised definition of literacy in the Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS).

The clarification was made in response to concerns raised during a Senate Committee on Basic Education hearing on Monday.

DepEd Undersecretary Ronald Mendoza explained that the 18.9-million “functionally illiterate” individuals actually referred to Filipinos aged 10 to 64, not just recent high school graduates. He pointed to a revised definition of basic and functional literacy by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

Under the old definition, people aged five and above who could read and write were considered “basic literate,” while those aged 10 to 64 who could read, write, compute and understand what they read, and who had completed at least high school or junior high school under K-12, were classified as “functionally literate.”

However, in 2024, stricter criteria were introduced: basic literacy now included reading, writing with understanding, and basic computation. Functional literacy now required not only reading, writing and numeracy skills but also comprehension.

“As a result of these changes, overall literacy rates have decreased,” Mendoza said.

The DepEd also clarified that 80 percent of 18-year-olds expected to graduate from senior high school this year (about 1.5 million out of 1.9 million) meet the updated functional literacy standards. The department further explained that the number of junior and senior high school learners for the 2024-2025 school year is about 11.6 million, far lower than the 18.9 million figure.

“The total number of Junior High School (JHS) and Senior High School (SHS) learners for SY 2024-2025 is only about 11.6 million, so it’s incorrect to attribute the full 18.9 million figure solely to high school graduates,” Mendoza said.

Under the old definition, the functional literacy rate in 2019 was 91.6 percent. With the revised definition, PSA estimates that 61.7 percent of Filipinos were functionally literate in 2019. This figure has since increased to 70.8 percent in 2024, meaning around 11 million Filipinos are now considered functionally literate.

Despite these positive trends, Mendoza emphasized the need for continued reforms to support Filipinos who are still struggling to achieve literacy.