Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said he believes the larger education budget for 2026 will help boost Filipino students’ reading proficiency.

Gatchalian made the statement after results of the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) showed that Grade 5 Filipino students lag behind their regional peers in reading, with 27 percent assessed as having “very low proficiency.”

The findings indicate that many students struggle with basic reading tasks such as matching words to pictures, highlighting persistent learning gaps. Only 14 percent of Filipino Grade 5 students reached high proficiency in reading, placing the Philippines second to the last among participating countries.

The country trails Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Cambodia in reading proficiency.

Despite the results, Gatchalian said he remains optimistic that the historic P1.3 trillion education budget for 2026, approved during the bicameral conference committee meeting, will serve as a turning point for the country’s education system.

Under the approved budget, funding for textbooks and other instructional materials increased to P19.5 billion, up from P11.2 billion in the National Expenditure Program.

The senator said the higher allocation would ensure that all learners have a complete set of textbooks.

Citing the SEA-PLM study, Gatchalian noted that 52 percent of Grade 5 students have only one reading textbook, while 42 percent share a reading textbook with at least one other student.

An additional P3.3 billion has also been allocated for 440,000 tutors under the Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning Program.

Gatchalian said the funding is expected to benefit 6.7 million learners nationwide.