Coronavirus Lockdown: Lost Classics, Computer-Assisted Instruction, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government. 

The Asian Development Bank has issued a report on computer-assisted learning during the pandemic. 

https://www.bworldonline.com/economy/2025/12/08/717229/technical-snags-hindered-phl-efforts-to-roll-out-computer-assisted-instruction-during-pandemic/

THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) said computer-assisted instruction improved math but not English outcomes among students in remote Philippine locations during the pandemic.

The bank said the program was hindered by poor internet connectivity and the instability of operating systems in low-cost tablets.

In a working paper, the ADB, together with the Department of Education, said it conducted a 42-school randomized trial of computer-assisted instruction in remote areas.

“We find that the intervention increased student learning in mathematics, but not in English,” it said.

The tablets were the main source of instruction for 2.5 months before schools reopened, after which they served as a supplement to, rather than a replacement for, in-person instruction.

Filipino students were among the world’s weakest in math, reading and science, according to the 2022 Program for International Student Assessment. The Philippines ranked 77^th out of 81 countries and performed worse than the global average in all categories.

“During implementation, schools and teachers faced challenges. Schools lacked staff with the skills to administer the servers, as they had no dedicated IT personnel,” the ADB said.

The bank added that power outages affected connectivity, despite the installation of solar panels and batteries.

It also said the Wi-Fi networks struggled to provide connectivity to synchronize the digitized learning modules with the tablets, particularly when classroom instruction resumed as the networks had been designed to enable connectivity from outside the schools.

The ADB also noted that the tablets provided to students were “relatively low-cost” and experienced operating system crashes and instability, which prompted teachers to assign static PDF file handouts, rather than using the interactive materials available.

“When teachers used static PDFs… server logs indicate little use,” it added. 

It turns out Philippine schools lack the proper infrastructure to use tablets for learning. That is a big challenge for the nation which will certainly continue to leave Filipino students far behind their international peers who do have the proper infrastructure to use tablets and other computer systems. 

Philippines foreign investments have reverted to COVID-19 lockdown levels. 

https://mb.com.ph/2025/12/10/foreign-direct-investments-sink-to-over-5-year-low-in-september-amid-flood-control-corruption-scandal

Largely due to a mix of onshore concerns stemming from the flood-control graft scandal, net inflows of brick-and-mortar foreign direct investments (FDI) in the Philippines dropped to $320 million in September—the lowest level since the $313.8 million recorded in April 2020, when the most stringent Covid-19 lockdowns were first imposed.

The latest preliminary data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Wednesday, Dec. 10, showed that September FDI inflows fell by over a quarter from $432 million in the same month last year.

Japan emerged as the primary source of FDIs during the month, with the manufacturing sector receiving the largest inflows.

Japan was likewise the top source of equity capital placements since January, followed by the United States (US) and Singapore.

“Industries that received most of these investments were manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, and real estate,” the BSP said.

As of end-September, net FDI inflows dropped 22.2 percent to $5.54 billion from $7.12 billion in the same period in 2024. It can be noted that year-to-date inflows were lower year-on-year since January.

Measured against the Philippines’ FDI target of $10 billion this year, the nine-month total now stands at 55.4 percent. This year’s target is higher than last year’s $9.44 billion in attracted investments.

FDI refers to cross-border investments where a nonresident investor owns at least 10 percent of the equity in a local enterprise and may take the form of equity capital, reinvested earnings, or intercompany borrowings.

FDI net inflows as of end-September, the BSP said, were equivalent to 1.6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) during the period.

Private-sector economists believe the decline in FDIs could be attributed to both global and local developments.

Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) senior research fellow John Paolo Rivera argued that while global uncertainty is a contributing factor, a more serious drag stems from onshore developments “due to the corruption scandal that stalled government spending, weaker-than-expected GDP growth, and the resulting dip in investor confidence.”

“These created hesitation among foreign firms, especially those assessing long-term projects in manufacturing, infrastructure, and services,” Rivera said, adding that the wild swings of the peso, compounded by delays in project approvals, contributed another layer of cautiousness to sentiment.

SM Investments Corp. (SMIC) group economist Robert Dan Roces said the over-five-year-low FDIs could be attributed to investors’ cautiousness amid slower economic growth domestically and still-elevated global interest rates.

Growth slowed sharply to four percent in the third quarter of the year due to dampened business sentiment and tightened government spending. GDP expansion averaged five percent in the first three quarters of 2025, below the government’s 5.5- to 6.5-percent goal.

Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong & Co., said the decline reflects “global uncertainty, high borrowing costs, and lingering policy gaps,” noting that a strong rebound in the last quarter is needed to hit the central bank’s target.

Looking ahead, Ravelas expects “modest inflows in manufacturing and real estate if confidence improves.” He also asserted that “now” is the appropriate time for businesses to “push clarity and competitiveness to attract capital.”

Roces believes inflows to the country remain “positive, but momentum will likely stay moderate until borrowing costs ease and reforms gain traction.”

Rivera said the drop implies that “investors are waiting for clearer governance signals, more stable policy execution, and stronger economic momentum before committing fresh capital.”

It's more proof that corruption is more destructive than a virus which caused economically crippling lockdowns.

During the pandemic one author wished she could read classics. However, libraries were closed. That's when she decided to start her own press.

https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/arts-and-culture/2025/12/10/2493016/filipino-author-brings-lost-classics-food-books-new-readers-collectors

At a time when most people would rather scroll through their phones than read an actual book, it’s surprising to find a local publishing house adamant on bringing lost classics back to the forefront. Mara Coson is the writer and visionary behind Exploding Galaxies who has made this her goal. 

A published author herself — her first novel “Aliasing” (Book Works, 2018) has a magic realism vibe and is situated in a town peopled with unique characters — Coson’s realized her mission during her stint as a part of the editorial staff of Rogue Magazine more than a decade ago. 

“We once did a story on weeklies like The Philippines Free Press and Mr. And Ms. That’s where I first encountered the stories of Greg Brillantes, Resil Mojares, Wilfrido Nolledo, and many other writers,” she told this writer in an email interview. 

Moved to locate these writers’ published works, she met with twin roadblocks: they were either hard to find in bookstores or she needed to arrange a visit to a library. “It was always a matter of going to libraries, or finding a rare copy, but during the pandemic, libraries were closed! That’s when I decided it was time to start a press focused on just that.”

In 2023, Exploding Galaxies published its first book, Nolledo’s “But for the Lovers” (1970) described as the author’s magnum opus that challenges the idea of liberation in World War II Manila. 

Important work

“I wanted to share Nolledo’s writing with more people because it’s such an important work of Philippine literature. It’s crazy to think that [the novel] had not had an edition people could really easily access in over 50 years,” Coson said.

This was followed by Linda Ty Casper’s “The Three-Cornered Sun” (1979) that tells the story of the Philippines on the brink of Revolution against Spain in 1896; and Erwin E. Castillo’s “The Firewalkers” (1992) that is set in Cavite in 1913 after the Philippine-American War.

“With the novels, I found readers who were also struggling to find these rare titles. I hope they’re no longer considered rare these days,” Coson quipped. 

Last month, Exploding Galaxies published two books containing essays on food and Philippine culture by Doreen G. Fernandez and Edilberto Alegre, “Sarap” (1988) and “Palayok” (2000). 

“With ‘Sarap’ and ‘Palayok,’ the interest seems far broader because people love connecting with and through food. We have been getting readers across different generations, people who were readers of Fernandez or Alegre’s newspaper columns, or who have been wanting a copy of ‘Sarap,’ or who knew them in some way. [There are also those] who love food and are discovering these two voices for the first time.”

The two books (sold on the Exploding Galaxies' website and at select National Book Stores and Fully Booked branches) can be purchased separately or as a set in a slipcover case. The second option clicked with collectors who have since added the books to their respective libraries. Exploding Galaxies’ managing editor Sam Marcelo told this writer that the slipcased books have since sold out online although there are plans to make them available again. 

It's another story of resilience during and after the pandemic. 

The transfer of funds from PhilHealth to the national treasury has been a scandal. Former Finance Secretary and now Executive Secretary Ralph Recto says some of those funds were used to pay healthcare allowances.

https://politiko.com.ph/2025/12/12/philhealth-fund-used-to-pay-healthcare-workers-allowances-during-covid-19-pandemic-recto/politiko-lokal/

Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said that part of the P60 billion funds transferred from the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) to the National Treasury was used to pay the allowances due to healthcare and non-healthcare workers who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an interview on Bilyonaryo News Channel’s On Point, award-winning broadcast journalist Pinky Webb asked Recto where the transferred fund was used.

“We wanted to have health to health lahat. Apparently, possibly hindi napunta hindi napunta heath to health. But a big portion of that was used to pay the public health emergency benefits and allowances for health care and non-healthcare workers during COVID-19,” he said.

“In fact, we paid more than, from programmed and unprogrammed, more than a P120 billion.

Ito yung mga pinangakuan natin to pay them during the pandemic na hindi nabayaran. So under our administration, we paid them from programmed and unprogrammed,” Recto added.

Asked for clarification, Recto said about P28 billion was used to pay the allowances.

Recto, who was the Finance secretary when the fund was transferred, explained that the responsibility of the Department of Finance was to look for funds and manage the deficit, and they had nothing to do with where it would be used.

“Our job is to raise the revenue, manage our debt…, determine the deficit target so revenue kami. Ang public works ang nagde-determine kung anong project ang ipa-fund. And it is the DBM who manages the expenditures,” he said.

Now, being the Executive Secretary, Recto said, “I have more visibility in all the departments, and my job now is to help clean the house, so to speak.”

“That’s why we changed the secretary of the DPWH. I am working closely with Sec. Vince [Dizon] to reform the system in DPWH. Same thing with the DBM, we have a new secretary, and we are all working together to improve government performance, maximize the department’s outputs, and monitor the performance of the departments. And to ensure that the departments follow the instructions of the President,” he added.

Too bad some people are still waiting on those allowances.