Can ‘No Read, No Move’ Solve the Country’s Illiteracy Crisis?

A recent report from the Philippine Statistics Authority reveals a staggering truth: 18.9 million high school graduates are considered functionally illiterate. These Junior and Senior High School graduates may be able to read, write, and compute, but struggle with comprehension.

In response, some educators are calling for the restoration of the “No Read No Move” policy from the Department of Education (DepEd). Under Department Order 45, series of 2002, “Reading Literacy Program in the Elementary Schools,” the DepEd initially implemented the policy in 2002. The initiative enforced the policy “Every Child A Reader,” aimed to ensure that students would be successful readers by the end of Grade 3. The students will not get promoted to the next higher grade unless they manifest mastery of the basic literacy skills in a particular grade level. 

Could the "No Read No Move" policy solve the country's deepening illiteracy crisis?

We asked members of the Smart Parenting Village, an online community of 110,000 parents, about their thoughts on bringing back DepEd’s “No Read, No Move” policy—and whether it’s a better approach than the “No Child Left Behind” policy from 2020.

The majority of the parents preferred the proposed “No Read No Move” policy. “Mas okay for me yung no read no move. Dami ngayong walang reading comprehension, error sa grammar, and kahit simple apostrophe hindi alam gamitin,” an anonymous parent shared.

Another anonymous parent said, “Mas okay yung no read no move, para sa mga bata rin naman yun eh. Dahil sa no child left behind na yan, nakaabot ng junior highschool na hindi maintindihan ang binabasa tapos nasa honor. Parang binibigyan ng false hope ang bata, nawawala yung challenge kasi sure pass naman.”

Some parents also shared firsthand stories, “No read no move kesa no child left behind. Teacher ang mother ko sa isang university, and one time nagkwento siya na may student siya na hirap magbasa. Imagine, nakakarating ng college pero hirap magbasa. Meron din akong nakakwentuhan na may nakasabay daw silang mag-enroll ng highschool. Hindi matapos tapos magfill up ng form kasi hirap siyang basahin yung nakasulat. Hindi lang yung bata yung mahihirapan kung hindi siya makakabasa kundi yung susunod na magtuturo sa kanya.”

Irene Llagas-Bautista, a parent and an upcoming teacher, shared her experience, “As a parent and teacher na nakita first hand ang resulta ng 'No children left behind policy' sa Junior High School? I'd say YES! Yes to the new memo. Para hindi na tumawid pa ng Senior High School at lalo na sa college ang mga batang non-readers. Nakakaawa po kapag ang bata pinapasa lang dahil 'kailangan' rather than 'deserving'. In the long run mga bata mismo ang nagsusuffer at nahihirapan sa pagiging non-readers nila. Imagine some of them umaabot pagiging non-reader into adulthood. How? By being FUNCTIONAL ILLITERATE. Nakakabasa nga pero walang komprehensyon. Ni walang basic literacy skills. ”

On the other hand, parents also weigh in other factors affecting children’s literacy, “Sana lang maging fair for every child. I mean not all of them has the privilege (poor child/ rich child, private and public, may tutor vs wala, matalino/hindi), may bata ngang mahirap pero may work na. Plus all the school/teachers sana equipped, hindi yung gumawa lang ng batas ng wala naman concrete plan or plan B para sa mga batang gustong mag-aral pero hirap sa buhay kaya hirap pa din makapagbasa. Magsimula sana sila sa mga teachers at school, tsaka gumawa ng batas para sa mga bata.”

Another parent explained this, “Ang pasok ng mga bata sa public school (elem and HS) is half day na lang dahil sa kulang na classroom. While sa private na 7AM to 3-4PM. Sana bago gawin ang batas is sana applicable yan to all kind of kids. I mean not all kids ay may privilege to get the good kind of teachings, kawawa ang mga batang may pangarap pero nagkulang sa privilege. Sana bago gawin ang batas improve sana ang mga school and teachers. May nauuwi na bang complete set of books ngayon ang mga bata sa public? ”

Teacher Thumby Veloso, member of the Smart Parenting Board of Experts and an educator with more than 30 years of experience, says the issue is urgent.

“With the No Read No Move policy, educators are asking to be allowed not to promote learners in early grades to the next level if they are not able to demonstrate reading proficiency in both English and Filipino before being promoted to the next grade level,” Teacher Thumby started.

“While the ‘No Child Left Behind’ policy aims to make sure all Filipino children complete elementary and secondary education. And while it is not officially mandated, many teachers feel they do not have the option to hold back students and must instead follow mass promotion protocols. This is what is currently being practiced.”

She continued, “But the effects are being seen in poor performance of our students in international assessments, and based on a report made by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), a total of 18.96 million Filipino students who completed junior and senior high school in 2024 were unable to read and comprehend a simple story.”

“So there is an urgent need to address the illiteracy rate, and the first step would be to stop promoting students to the next level, so that teachers can meet them at their reading developmental level, and give them the appropriate reading instruction so that they can begin to read proficiently,” Teacher Thumby tackled the possible solutions one by one.

“The second step would be to determine the root cause for our Filipino learners to have such a difficult time in learning to read. We will not be able to solve the main problem without digging deeper - is it an issue of overcrowding in the classrooms, poor conditions (lighting, temperature), lack of classroom resources, being malnourished, need for reading specialists to guide teachers, better libraries, or more access to books, or something else? We should not also assume that one problem in one school or area would be the same for all others. Then, the next step would be to address the problem, specific to each school or area.”

Teacher Thumby pointed out possible interventions for students’ reading skills:

WORD STUDY: Go back to the basics, which is Word Study. This includes letter-sound recognition, working with short and long vowels, digraphs (two letters that make one sound), and discovering patterns in words. Strengthen their ability to decode words and read and spell frequent words by sight.

ALL TOGETHER: Reading together, whether as a whole class or in a small group. This allows students who are not confident to follow along.

PIGGYBACK: It meant reading a story one-on-one with a child. The parent/teacher and child read together, but allow the child to read the parts he is comfortable with while the adult reads along softly. But when the adult notices that he is slowing down or becoming unsure, the adult continues to read and can even pause and point out words or break down the word for the child, so they can understand how to read it.

READING BUDDY: Giving students time to sit with a friend and read together or take turns has been a wonderful experience for students. They love the chance to practice their emerging skills and are very open to learning from each other.

READING BREAKS: Offering a time for students to have reading breaks in class is a great way for them to relax and develop a love for reading. This only works if there is a vast collection of books to choose from, with different topics and at various levels. This fosters an opportunity for independent reading.

STORYTELLING: Reading stories to a class, not just the little students, but even the Grade 6 class. We change voices for characters, stop at unfamiliar words or expressions to analyze them, and even discuss character flaws or plot predictions. I even assign them character parts, so that they can read the lines of different characters, and this allows them to embody the characters and empathize with them. This helps their comprehension skills level up, and they become much better at understanding, discussing, and writing about the story.

EXERCISE TIME: Reading comprehension needs to be practiced. After reading, there should be follow-up questions. In its simplest form, it's asking students to answer: who is in the story, and what is happening? When it comes to reading informational texts, we teach learners how to draw out the important information by looking for the main idea and supporting details, and just doing this over and over.

“Schools should aim to help learners not just develop reading skills, but also confidence in reading. Which will in turn allow them to enjoy the process of reading,” she added.

"Students’ reading skills should be continued at home," Teacher Thumby reminded. "The interventions above (Word Study, Piggyback, Reading Breaks, Storytelling, and Exercise Time) can be done with parents and guardians."

She shared a helpful tip: “Parents who have time should help children build the foundations of reading with Word Study. Making sure your child can identify letter sounds and work with word lists will help your child immensely."

But the ultimate secret, Teacher Thumby adds, is not just about reading. “Decoding and reading words is not the only thing you should focus on. It’s also the genuine love for reading,” she emphasized.

“You can help develop it when you give your child time to explore books on their own. Allow them to pick books that interest them (whether they want to read about dinosaurs or TV characters), and at a level where they can read independently.”

“Another way to help children really love reading is by making sure to make storytelling a part of your family routine. While the frequency might change as they get older, it’s still essential to read with your child. Not only because you will be able to see how their reading skills are developing, but also so that you can talk about the story and help your child develop their comprehension and communication skills,” Teacher Thumby added.

While the majority strongly support the "No Read, No Move" policy and foresee its positive effects on students’ literacy, it’s also important to note that it’s not the only problem in our education system. There are still current and pressing problems within the education sector that require long-term solutions: classrooms remain insufficient, public schools often lack adequate textbooks, and in many rural areas, one teacher is responsible for multiple grade levels in a single classroom.

Addressing student illiteracy requires more than a single policy; it demands holistic, collaborative efforts from the entire community, including the government, parents, and educators. And a hope that in the future, students develop not just the skills, but also a genuine love for reading.