Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian has raised concern over the extent of subject–specialization mismatch among public school science teachers, citing data from the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II).
According to EDCOM II, 98% of Physical Sciences teachers and 80% of Biological Sciences teachers are teaching subjects outside their college specialization.
The issue is more pronounced in junior high school, where 99% of Physical Sciences teachers and 47% of science teachers have backgrounds not aligned with the subjects they handle.
In senior high school, the mismatch affects 98% of Physical Sciences teachers, 80% of Biological Sciences teachers, and 71% of science teachers.
Even at the elementary level, at least 98% of teachers handling Grades 4 to 6 reported teaching subjects unrelated to their academic training.
Gatchalian said the figures point to systemic gaps in teacher deployment and preparation, which could affect learning outcomes in science education.
He pushed for interventions, including targeted teacher training and support for struggling learners.
The senator also pointed to Senate Bill No. 1899, which seeks to give the Department of Education (DepEd) more flexibility in delivering the basic education curriculum.
The bill, already approved on third reading, proposes moving away from the spiral progression approach under the K to 12 program.
“Kung matibay ang Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math curriculum sa ating bansa, then we can create and develop more advanced technologies,” Gatchalian said.
