No Learner Left Behind: Division of San Juan City Empowers Learners Through National Literacy Remediation Program (LRP)

DepEd San Juan City
Jun 26
3 min read

Schools across the Philippines participated in the National Literacy Program 2025 as part of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) summer initiative under the “Bawat Bata ay Makakabasa” (Every Child a Reader) campaign. This program was implemented to address the needs of learners who are struggling with reading. Its main goal is to help students identified as "low emerging" in literacy achieve grade-level reading proficiency.

In its continued effort to ensure that no learner is left behind, the Schools Division Office (SDO) of San Juan successfully conducted the Literacy Remediation Program (LRP) from May 14 to June 10, 2025, hosted at Pinaglabanan Elementary School. The program brought together four participating schools: Pedro Cruz Elementary School, Pinaglabanan Elementary School, Salapan Integrated School, and West Crame Elementary School.

Despite San Juan City being recognized as one of the cities with the highest literacy rates in the Philippines in 2024, the Division identified a total of 16 Grade 3 learners from these schools who were still categorized as low emerging in literacy. These learners struggled with basic literacy skills such as letter recognition, reading words, and understanding simple sentences and paragraphs.

Through the LRP, they received intensive, targeted support and guidance aimed at helping them reach grade-level readiness. The program was made possible through the dedication of volunteer teachers, particularly Ms. Ma. Helenna F. Davalos and Ms. Florence M. Sevillo of Pinaglabanan Elementary School. These volunteer teachers went beyond their teaching responsibilities even conducting house-to-house visits to encourage consistent attendance, which was one of the major challenges throughout the four-week program.

The learners were divided into two groups, each having two sessions where every learner participated in two hours of reading activities per session. Grouping was based on individual learning abilities to provide targeted instruction suited to each learner's pace and level.

Instructional materials were provided by the Department of Education, specifically designed to address learning gaps and improve reading proficiency, especially among Grade 3 students. In addition to the standard Reading Assessment Sheets (RAS) and Learning Activity Sheets (LAS), the volunteer teachers also crafted engaging materials that captured the interest of the learners and increased their enjoyment of the reading sessions.

To continuously enhance their instructional approach, the volunteer teachers also held Collaborative Expertise sessions every fifth day of the week. These sessions served as a platform to reflect on challenges, refine strategies, and plan responsive actions to improve learners’ outcomes.

The program aimed to transition students from the low emerging level to grade-level proficiency in reading. As a result, the learners demonstrated remarkable improvement—progressing from basic letter recognition to confidently reading words, phrases, full sentences, and even short paragraphs. The inclusion of fun and interactive activities further enhanced learning, fostered confidence, and helped learners develop a genuine interest in reading.

With the full support of SDO San Juan City—especially through the guidance of the Division’s Education Program Supervisor in English, Ms. Marnelli Tolentino, who consistently monitored and provided assistance to the teachers—the Literacy Remediation Program was successfully implemented. This initiative further strengthened the city’s commitment to inclusive, equitable, and responsive education. Although the number of learners served was small, the impact was significant, proving that with the right strategies and dedicated teacher involvement, every learner has the potential to succeed.

The program culminated in a simple yet meaningful recognition ceremony on June 10, 2025, where learners proudly showcased their newly acquired reading skills and received certificates of participation in front of their teachers and parents—a celebration of growth, effort, and the belief that no learner should ever be left behind.