Abstract

Persistent learning gaps among students in basic education remain a top concern in most educational systems, particularly in contexts where learners progress through grade levels despite not fully mastering foundational competencies. This study explored the factors influencing teachers’ promotion decisions when students exhibit observable learning gaps in Philippine basic education. Specifically, it examined how institutional policies, classroom realities, and professional judgment shape teachers’ decisions to promote students who may not yet show full academic readiness. Using a qualitative descriptive research design, the study gathered data from fifteen private school science teachers in Region IV-A (CALABARZON), Philippines, each with at least three years of teaching experience. Data were collected through an online questionnaire with open-ended responses and follow-up semi-structured interviews to obtain deeper insights into teachers’ experiences and perspectives regarding student promotion. Thematic analysis was used to identify recurring patterns and themes in responses. The findings revealed that promotion decisions are influenced by multiple related factors. Teachers reported persistent learning gaps among promoted students, particularly in reading comprehension, conceptual understanding, and basic numeracy and problem-solving skills. Institutional pressures such as promotion policies, grading guidelines, and administrative expectations were identified as major influences on decision-making. Also, parental expectations, financial consideration in private schools, and concerns about students’ emotional well-being were found to shape promotion outcomes. Classroom realities, including limited remediation time, curriculum pacing pressures, and large class sizes, further constrained teachers’ ability to address learning gaps before promotion decisions were made. As a result, many teachers reported frequently compromising academic standards due to institutional and contextual pressures. The study highlights the complex environment in which teachers make promotion decisions and underscores the need for stronger systemic support to address learning gaps. Findings suggest that policies promoting learner progression should be enhanced by continuous remediation programs, clearer promotion guidelines, and institutional support that empowers teachers to balance academic standards with students’ well-being. The study contributes to ongoing discussion about learning gaps, and policy implementation in Philippine basic education

1. Introduction

Student promotion refers to the advancement of a learner to the next class or grade level which is dependent on the learner achieving the required academic standards. In basic education student promotion is intended to reflect students’ academic readiness and mastery of required competencies. Ideally, students who progress to the next grade level have gained the foundational knowledge and skills necessary for continued learning. However, in most educational settings, teachers face situations where students advance despite obvious gaps in literacy, numeracy, and conceptual understanding. This circumstance raises important questions about the factors influencing teachers’ decisions to promote learners who may not yet demonstrate full academic preparedness. This study explores the factors influencing teachers’ promotion decisions despite students’ learning gaps.

Globally, concerns about learning gaps have increased in recent years. International education reports have highlighted a growing “learning crisis” in which children attend school but fail to obtain essential competencies. Reference ¹ introduced the concept of “learning poverty” which refers to the inability of children to read and understand a simple text by age ten, a benchmark considered fundamental for further academic development. This condition reflects a broader educational challenge in which attendance alone does not guarantee meaningful learning. The global learning crisis increased following the interruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which significantly affected instructional time and student learning outcomes across countries ². As a result, teachers increasingly confront students who advance through grade levels while still struggling with important competencies which should have been acquired in the lower grades/classes.

In the Philippine context, learning gaps have been emphasized through international assessments and national educational reports. Results from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) showed that Filipino students ranked among the lowest in reading, mathematics, and science performance among participating countries. These findings suggest that progression through the education system does not always reflect actual mastery of learning outcomes, raising concerns about the factors that influence teachers’ promotion decisions. A study concluded that these learning gaps will continue to hinder students’ academic progress and development ³.

Promotion policies within educational systems are designed to encourage continuous learning and reduce dropout rates. In the Philippines, policies implemented by the Department of Education (Philippines) highlighted inclusive education and learner progression, often combining remediation programs to support struggling learners. However, these policies may also create conflict for teachers who must align academic standards with institutional expectations, administrative directives, and the socio-emotional needs of students. Research suggests that promotion decisions often extend beyond academic performance, including considerations such as student well-being, classroom dynamics, and school policies ⁴.

Hence, teachers operate within a complex decision-making environment. Large class sizes, curriculum pacing requirements, parental expectations, and limited opportunities for remediation may influence how teachers evaluate students’ readiness for promotion. Studies have shown that teachers often rely on professional judgment when balancing these factors, especially when strict adherence to academic standards may have unintended social or emotional consequences for learners. In such contexts, promotion decisions may become practical responses to systemic constraints rather than purely academic determinations.

Despite increasing attention to learning recovery and academic gaps, limited research has explored teachers’ lived experiences and perspectives about promotion decisions in Philippine basic education. Most existing studies are focused on student outcomes, policy frameworks, or large-scale assessments, leaving a gap in understanding how teachers interpret and respond to promotion dilemmas within their daily practice. Qualitative investigations that examine teachers’ perspectives can provide important insights into how institutional policies, classroom realities, and professional responsibilities meet in shaping promotion decisions.

This study therefore seeks to explore the factors influencing teachers’ decisions to promote students despite observable learning gaps. By examining the experiences of science teachers in private schools within Region IV-A, the research aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of how teachers navigate the tension between academic standards, policy expectations, and the contextual realities of classroom instructions.

2. Materials and Methods

This study employed a qualitative descriptive research design to explore teachers’ perspectives on the factors influencing promotion decisions in basic education. Qualitative descriptive approaches are particularly appropriate when the goal of the research is to gain rich descriptions of participants’ experiences and interpretations of a specific phenomenon ⁵. In educational research, qualitative methods allow researchers to examine complex decision-making processes that cannot be fully understood with just quantitative measures.

The study particularly aim to understand how teachers interpret learning gaps among students and how institutional, instructional, and contextual factors shape their decisions to promote students despite these gaps, by focusing on teachers’ narratives and reflections, the research aimed to generate a nuanced understanding of promotion practices within the realities of classroom instruction.

The participants of this study consisted of fifteen (16) private school science teachers from Region IV-A (CALABARZON) in the Philippines. Participants were selected using purposive sampling, a non-probability sampling technique commonly used in qualitative research to identify individuals who have relevant knowledge or experience related to the phenomenon under investigation.

To ensure that participants had enough professional exposure to students’ promotion practices, the following inclusion criteria were applied:

1. Must be currently teaching science in basic education (Grades 4-10) in a private school in Region IV-A.

2. Must have at least three years of teaching experience.

3. Must have experience participating in student evaluation and promotion decisions.

Although the number of participants was limited to fifteen, qualitative studies typically prioritize depth of information rather than large sample sizes. Smaller samples are appropriate when the research aims to explore participants’ perspectives in detail ⁶. Furthermore, the number of participants was considered enough to achieve information richness and thematic saturation, where recurring themes emerge across responses.

Data were collected using two primary instruments:

1. Online Questionnaires via Google Forms

2. Semi-Structured Interviews

The online questionnaire served as the initial data collection tool and consisted of two sections. The first section gathered demographic information, including teaching experience, grade level taught, and school type. The second section included open-ended questions designed to obtain teachers’ experience with student promotion decisions and their observations of learning gaps among promoted students.

Following the questionnaire, semi-structured interviews were conducted to obtain deeper insights into teachers’ perceptions. Semi-structured interviews allow flexibility for the respondents to elaborate on their experiences while allowing the researcher to examine important themes that emerge during the discussion.

Before the data collection, the researcher informed participants about the purpose of the study and obtained informed consent from each respondent. The online questionnaire was distributed via Google Forms, allowing the respondents to provide initial responses at their convenience.

Based on the questionnaire responses, participants were invited to participate in follow-up semi-structured interviews conducted through online communication platforms. such as google meet or zoom. Interviews were conducted sequentially and continued until data saturation was achieved, meaning that respondents began to show recurring patterns and no new themes were emerging from the discussions. At this point, further interviews were deemed unnecessary, as additional data were unlikely to contribute new insights to the study.

The collected data were analyzed using thematic analysis, following the framework developed by Braun and Clarke. The analysis involved several stages:

1. Familiarization with the data through repeated reading of questionnaire responses and interview transcripts.

2. Initial coding, where key ideas and significant statements were identified.

3. Theme development, where related codes were grouped into broader thematic categories.

4. Review and refinement of themes to ensure consistency and alignment with the research questions.

Through this process, recurring patterns were identified to describe the factors influencing teachers’ promotion decisions and the contextual conditions shaping these decisions

3. Results and Discussion

The Prevalence of Perceived External Control over Promotion Decisions

The survey revealed that most teachers perceive promotion decisions are largely outside their professional control due to institutional pressures. When asked how often promotion decisions feel outside their control 9 respondents answered “Often” and 5 answered “Sometimes,” compared to only 1 “Rarely” and none selecting “Never.” This distribution indicates that teachers experience promotion as an order rather than a professional judgement most of the time.

This finding aligns with the phenomenon of “mass promotion” documented in Philippine basic education. With the findings of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), eighteen million high school graduates from 2019-2024 have not attained the competencies prescribed by the curriculum for their current grade. Recent reports show that despite official policies like DepEd Order No. 8, series of 2015, which mandates retention for students failing in at least three subjects, the practice of promoting students regardless of competency mastery has been pervasive ⁷. Senator Gatchalian has noted that a “culture of mass promotion” persists despite the absence of any official policy supporting it, suggesting that the pressure teachers experience emanates from institutional culture rather than formal guidelines ⁸.

Critical Learning Gaps and Their Implications

Respondents consistently identified foundational literacy and numeracy as the most critical learning gaps among promoted students. One respondent noted that “difficulties in reading comprehension and a lack of basic numeracy skills” were primary concerns, while another pointed out that “weak reading ability” and lack of basic number sense” were common. Some respondents specifically emphasized problems with interpreting graphs, tables, and charts, as well as reliance on memorization rather than conceptual understanding.

These findings are highly concerned given recent national and international assessments. The Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) 2024 found that while the Philippines showed growth in higher proficiency levels, significant gaps remain between high and low performers, with reading and math disparities persisting across socioeconomic and regional lines ². Similarly, the 2022 PISA results confirmed that Filipino students continue to struggle with literacy and numeracy, a situation worsened by COVID-19 pandemic disruptions ^{9, 14}.

The survey respondents identified reading comprehension as the most critical gap because “they cover the fundamental skills that every student must have” and “affect learning in all subjects.” This finding underscores that promotion without these foundational skills makes compounding difficulties as students’ progress to higher levels where text complexity and analytical demands increase

Institutional and Systemic Drivers of Promotion Despite Gaps

When asked why students are promoted despite significant learning gaps, respondents identified multiple connected factors operating at different levels of the education system. These factors are outlined below.

Policy and Administrative Pressures: Most teachers specified explicit policies such as “mass promotion” and “no student left behind” as an order from superiors. One respondent explained that “teachers follow directives from superiors, especially ‘mass promotion’ and ‘no student left behind’ policies,” while another cited that “administrators want to show progress in numbers, and promotion keeps statistics looking positive.” This is confirmed by DepEd reports that elementary completion rates reached near-perfect levels of 99.83% in SY 2021-2022 and 99.56% in SY 2022-2023, figures that critics argue reflect promotion practices rather than actual learning mastery.

Emotional and Social Considerations: Teachers reported being influenced by “pity” and concerns about student self-esteem and mental health. One respondent stated, “Pity that the student will be the only one to remain on the grade level, or it will affect their mental health.” In the study conducted by Reference ¹⁰, it shows that grade retention in high school has a negative impact on student’s educational outcomes by dramatically increasing dropout rates. Even in the early grades, students can feel the emotional effects of being “left behind.” Being retained may cause the child to feel embarrassed in facing their peers. Another described the guilt induced by statements like “We are teachers, not judges” which positions retention as a moral failure rather than an academic necessity. These findings suggest that promotion decisions are shaped by what teachers called “compassion and policy” rather than solely by academic readiness.

Practical Resource Constraints: The lack of remediation resources emerged as a significant factor. One teacher noted, “Many schools lack the resources to provide intensive remediation. With large classes and limited support staff, it is easier to move a student forward than to design a tailored program.” The influence of large class sizes, limited remediation time, and curriculum pacing pressures was corroborated in Question 5, where 5 respondents said that these factors “Always” affect their promotion decisions and 6 indicated “Often.”

Private School Dynamics: Respondents from private institutions identified additional pressures, including financial considerations. One teacher explained that in private schools, financial considerations like high tuition fees can also influence decision making as schools aim to retain enrolled students. Another cited that “In private institutions, it becomes teachers’ fault when a student fails since parents are paying a large amount of money.” This reflects broader challenges in the Philippine private education sector, with over 860 private schools closing between 2020 and 2022 ¹¹.

Stakeholder Influence on Promotion Decisions

Question 7 and 8 examined the influence of parents and administrators on promotion decisions. Administrators were perceived as more influential than parents, though both groups exerted notable pressure.

Parental Influence: Seven respondents rated parents as “Very influential,” 5 as “Somewhat influential,” 2 as “Slightly influential.” Teachers reported that “parents often resist the idea of their child staying behind, believing it will harm self-esteem” and that parental complaints are a concern when considering retention.

Administrative Influence: Administrators were perceived as even more influential, though the distribution suggested more variation in how this influence manifests. Some teachers described direct pressure, while others noted indirect influence through policy implementation and evaluation expectations.

These findings align with research on teacher autonomy in the Philippines. A study on job satisfaction among Filipino teachers found that while teachers enjoy their work and relationships with colleagues, they face “many rules and procedures that make it difficult” and that “sometimes the rules and procedures are not clear.” ¹². This ambiguity may leave teachers vulnerable to various stakeholder pressures when making promotion decisions

Teacher Agency and Professional Compromise

Question 8 asked how often teachers feel they must compromise academic standards due to pressures. Six respondents answered “Always,” 7 answered “Often,” and only 1 each answered “Sometimes” and “Rarely.” This striking distribution indicates that compromised academic standards are a normative experience rather than an exceptional one.

One teacher expressed this tension clearly: “The decision to promote often reflects compassion and policy, but it can leave the child unprepared for the demands ahead.” Another noted the accountability paradox: “if you fail a student, teachers will be blamed, administrators will ask what have you done? You should have done more because you are the teacher.”

This finding resonates with PBEd report’s observation that teachers are held responsible for learners’ failures and the consequences of retaining or failing underperforming learners. The mismatch between teacher accountability and teacher authority where teachers are blamed for poor outcomes but lack the power to retain students who are unprepared represents a fundamental tension in the current system.

Factors Influencing Retention Decisions

Question 4 asked teachers to identify factors influencing their decisions to retain or promote students. While the detailed responses were presented in tabular format, qualitative responses throughout the survey indicated that teachers consider multiple factors including mastery of foundational skills, student effort and engagement, attendance, availability of remediation support, and administrative directives.

Notably, most teachers indicated that retention might be appropriate for students with “severe and persistent foundational gaps that hinder meaningful learning despite support.” However, the prevalence of promotion pressures suggests that even in these clear-cut cases, retention is often avoided.

4. Conclusion

This study explored the factors influencing teachers’ promotion decisions in Philippine basic education, specifically examining why students are often promoted despite constant learning gaps. Drawing on survey responses from practicing teachers, the findings reveal a consistent and concerning disconnect between official competency-based promotion policies and on-the-ground classroom realities. The findings from this survey showed a consistent pattern: Philippine basic education teachers operate within a system where promotion decisions are heavily influenced by institutional, administrative, and parental pressures that often override professional academic judgment. While official policies such as DepEd Order No. 8, s 2015 provide a framework for competency-based promotion, the actual practice reflects what critics have termed “mass promotion”.

The results demonstrate that promotion decisions are rarely based solely on academic readiness. Instead, teachers report significant external pressures from multiple stakeholders. Administrators influence decisions through implicit and explicit derivatives, including mass promotion policies, enrollment retention due to concerns about self-esteem, social stigma, or, in private school contexts, financial expectations tied to tuition payments. Teachers themselves experience moral and emotional conflicts, where compassion for students and fear of psychological harm often supersede professional judgments about academic mastery.

These pressures are not just perceived but are reinforced by systemic constraints. Large class sizes, limited remediation time, fast-paced curricula, and insufficient learning resources make it difficult to provide the individualized support needed by struggling students. Therefore, promotion becomes the path of least resistance to avoid immediate conflict, administrative scrutiny, or parental complaints even when teachers recognize that promotion will leave students unprepared for higher grade levels.

Critically, this study found that foundational literacy and numeracy gaps are the leading concern among promoted students. Reading comprehension difficulties, weak number sense, and reliance on memorization rather than conceptual understanding were repeatedly identified as barriers that make future learning increasingly difficult. When students are promoted without addressing these foundational gaps, the problem compounds: teachers at higher grade levels inherit learners who cannot access appropriate grade texts or mathematical reasoning, yet they face the same institutional pressures to pass them forward.

The grading system itself, especially the transmutation process, was identified by teachers as a contributing factor. A passing grade of 75 can mask severe competency gaps, allowing students to advance regardless of obvious lack of fundamental knowledge and skills. This creates a false sense of progress for parents, students, and even school administrators, while teachers bear the burden of explaining why promoted students continue to struggle ¹³.

Perhaps most tellingly, most teachers in this study reported that they always or often feel they must compromise academic standards due to classroom or institutional pressures. This finding suggests that compromised standards are not exceptional occurrences but normalized features of the current promotion system. Teachers are placed in an untenable position: they are held accountable for student outcomes yet denied the authority to retain students who are clearly unprepared.

5. Recommendations

Building on the findings that promotion despite learning gaps is a systemic norm rather than an exception, the following recommendations are proposed to address the underlying causes and mitigate the negative consequences for students.

Given that teachers cited limited remediation time as a major constraint, schools should implement structured remediation programs that do not compete with regular curriculum pacing.

5.1.1 Proposed model: A six-week intensive bridging program conducted before the school year starts (summer bridging) for students identified with foundational gaps in literacy and numeracy.

5.1.2 Alternative model: For in-school-year remediation, after-class pull-out sessions twice per week, focusing only on the most critical competencies (e.g., reading comprehension, number sense, interpreting graphs/tables).

5.1.3 Feasibility note: In private schools, this can be offered as an optional paid service or included in tuition fees. In public schools, partnerships with local government units or NGOs can support teacher stipends and materials.

To address teacher concerns about student self-esteem and mental health, remediation should be normalized rather than punitive.

5.2.1 Recommendation: Rename remediation programs as “Learning Boost Sessions” or “Competency Camps”. Avoid labeling classes as “slow learners” or “remedial.”

5.2.2 Logistics: Hold sessions in regular classrooms, invite mixed-ability peer tutors, and issue certificates of completion to all participants. Mainstream media campaigns within schools should frame remediation as a normal part of academic support, not as punishment for failure.

Since teachers reported ambiguity between “mass promotion” culture and official competency-based policies (DepEd Order No. 8, s. 2015), the following policy-level recommendations are made:

5.3.1 DepEd (Philippines): Issue a clear, non-contradictory memorandum stating that retention is academically acceptable when foundational gaps persist after remediation, and that teachers will not be penalized for recommending retention in documented cases.

5.3.2 School administrators: Create a formal promotion appeal process where teachers can submit evidence of learning gaps to a committee, removing sole accountability from the teacher.

Teachers identified the passing grade of 75 (transmuted) as masking severe competency gaps.

5.4.1 Recommendation: Require separate reporting of foundational competency mastery on report cards (e.g., a checklist for reading level, numeracy level) alongside the transmuted grade. Parents must see two things: the passing grade AND a clear indicator that the student is below grade level in specific skills.

Instead of automatic promotion or retention, adopt a “promote with mandatory summer bridging model”.

5.5.1 How it works: A student with learning gaps is promoted to the next grade but must complete a summer bridging program before the next school year starts. Promotion is conditional failure to attend bridging without valid reason reverts to retention.

5.5.2 Advantage: Addresses teacher “pity” (student is not left behind alone) AND academic concern (gaps are addressed).

Given that large class sizes and limited time were cited as barriers:

5.6.1 Recommendation: Schools should cap remediation class size at 15 students per teacher. If not possible, deploy student peer tutors or parent volunteers trained in basic literacy-numeracy drills.

5.6.2 For DepEd: Reinstate or strengthen the Learning Resource Centers at the district level to produce low-cost, ready-to-use remediation materials (worksheets, video lessons) so teachers do not have to design programs from scratch.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author would like to express sincere gratitude to Roots Academy for granting permission and approval to conduct the data collection essential for this study. Special thanks are also extended to my former co-teachers, whose insights and support were invaluable throughout the research process.

References