The Philippine Education For All (EFA) 2015 plan aims to improve the quality of basic education for all Filipinos by 2015. Its overall goals are to provide universal coverage of out-of-school youth and adults, ensure universal participation in school without dropping out in the first three grades, achieve universal completion of basic education with satisfactory skills, and gain total community commitment to education for all. EFA seeks to give all people basic literacy skills in their native language as well as in Filipino and English. Nine urgent tasks are outlined to achieve EFA's goals, such as improving school and teacher performance, expanding early childhood programs, and ensuring adequate and stable public funding for education nationwide.

1. PHILIPPINE EDUCATION FOR ALL (EFA)
What is EFA 2015 Plan?
The Philippine Education For All (EFA) 2015 is a vision and a holistic program of
reforms that aims at improving the quality of basic education for every Filipino by 2015.
Overall Goals & Objectives of Philippine EFA 2015
1. Universal coverage of Out of School Youth (OSY) and adults in the provision of
basic leraning needs;
2. Universal school participation and elimination of drop outs and repetition in
firsts three grades;
3. Universal completion of full cycle of basic education schooling with satisfactory
achievement levels by all at every grade or year;
4. Total community commitment to attainment of basic education competencies for
all.
Real Dimensions of EFA
EFA aims to provide basic competencies to everyone to achieve functional literacy for
all. The four components outcomes to achieve EFA goals are as follows:
1. Universal coverage of out-of-school youths and adults in the provision of basic
learning needs. All persons who failed to acquire the essential competence to be
functionally literate in their native tongue, in Filipino, and in English.

2. 2. Universal school participation and elimination of drop-outs and repetition in first
three grades. All children aged six should enter school ready to learn and
prepared to achieve the required competencies for Grades 1 to 3.
3. Universal completion of the full cycle of basic education schooling with
satisfactory achievement levels by all at every grade or year.
4. Total community commitment to attainment of basic education competencies for
all: Every community should mobilize all its social, political, cultural and
economic resources and capabilities to support the universal attainment of basic
education competencies in Filipino and English.
Nine Urgent and Critical Tasks
1. Make every school continuously improve its performance.
2. Expand early childhood care and development coverage to yield more EFA
benefits.
3. Transform existing non-formal and informal learning options into a truly viable
alternative learning system yielding more EFA benefits;
4. Get all teachers to continuously improve their teaching practices.
5. Increase the cycle of schooling to reach 12 years of formal basic education.
6. Continue enrichment of curriculum development in the context of pillars of new
functional literacy;

3. 7. Provide adequate and stable public funding for country-wide attainment of EFA
goals;
8. Create network of community- based groups for local attainment of EFA goals;
Monitor progress in effort towards attainment of EFA goals.
LARGER STAKES TO THE NATION
1. Language. Education for all should enable everyone to speak in the vernacular,
Filipino and English.
2. National Identity. Education should not only develop critical thinking, but also
enlarge horizons and inspire self reflection and hope in every generation.
3. Social capital. Education for all builds social capital. It makes possible the
achievement of certain ends that would not otherwise be attainable in its absence.
4. Cultural practices. Cultural values can be a highly productive component of social
capital, allowing communities and the whole country to efficiently restrain
opportunism and resolve problems of collective action such as individual refusal
to serve the public good, etc.
5. Individual freedom. Education for all is really about assuring the capacity to fully
exercise freedom by all.
Source: Philippine Education for All (EFA) National Action Plan 2015
(Lovella A. Manlangit, Division Planning OfficerMember, Web Page Committee )