500K children affected as USAID program faces suspension

By Rhaydz B. Barcia

ABOUT half a million Bicolano pupils benefiting from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) programs will be affected after President Donald Trump froze foreign aid globally.

Gilbert Sadsad, DepEd Bicol regional director, said that USAID is assisting 500,000 Bicolano pupils, particularly through the ABC+ program, which aims to improve literacy among non-readers and moderate readers.

Aside from the literacy program, USAID has also helped students recover and continue their education following successive typhoons, according to Sadsad.

Sadsad stated that the USAID program in Bicol is set to run for three years and will end this year. However, they do not know if it will be continued.

“We don’t have any information yet on whether the USAID program will continue this year. The USAID ABC+ program focuses on Grades 1 to 3, runs for three years, and is scheduled to end this year,” Sadsad told The Manila Times.

The USAID ABC+ project in Bicol supports DepEd in mitigating learning loss in literacy and assisting school heads in making decisions on appropriate learning delivery modalities.

The pilot schools for the ABC+ project in the Bicol region include Albay Central School and Lamba Central School in Legazpi City, as well as Villa Aurora Elementary School and Parang Elementary School in Camarines Norte. Another ABC+ program is being implemented in Tabaco City.

As part of the intervention, the schools will administer a rapid assessment to determine the literacy levels of incoming Kindergarten to Grade 3 pupils, helping teachers identify the level of support each child needs. Based on the assessment results, each student will receive level-appropriate reading materials.

Teachers and home learning partners can use these booklets to develop word recognition, comprehension, and fluency skills while fostering a love for reading among children.

The DepEd official in Bicol noted that the literacy assessment tools provided by ABC+ are valuable for teachers in identifying the specific needs and reading levels of learners, allowing them to implement appropriate interventions. He also emphasized the importance of equipping teachers and home learning partners with skills in beginning reading instruction.

USAID’s ABC+ project, in partnership with DepEd, aims to improve the basic literacy skills of early-grade students in the Bicol Region.

Over the past two school years, USAID, through the ABC+ project in partnership with DepEd, has distributed more than 11 million copies of reading materials to Kindergarten to Grade 3 children in the three regions covered by the program.

Four schools in Bicol will explore different learning modalities for early grades through USAID’s Advancing Basic Education (ABC+) project, as part of DepEd’s Basic Education–Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP).

USAID has been assisting students and teachers in the Bicol Region in recovering and continuing their education after the recent typhoons.

Last year, USAID donated essential educational materials worth more than P7.6 million ($136,000) to support over 18,500 students in areas hardest hit by storms in the Bicol Region, particularly after the occurrence of weather disturbances Kristine and Pepito. The agency also provided 18,600 learner kits, 8,884 early-grade reading materials for Kindergarten to Grade 3, and 528 teacher kits for 54 schools in the Bicol Region.