THE Second Congressional Commission on Education or EDCOM 2 has signed a partnership agreement with Ateneo de Manila University for an education research fellowship through the Ateneo School of Government and the Gokongwei Brothers School of Education and Learning.

The EDCOM 2 – Ateneo Research Fellowship will generate the final set of studies that the Commission will utilize for its reforms.

This initiative is also one among the many research endeavors undertaken by EDCOM 2, aiming to recommend transformative, concrete, and targeted reforms to enhance the global competitiveness of the Philippines in both education and labor markets.

“The importance of research was very clear when we started with EDCOM 2, as we understood that we cannot jump into solutions without first and foremost doing proper diagnosis of the problems we face. That is what real research requires. Not just general statements of what needs to be done, but an incisive analysis of the factors that cause it, and clear recommendations as to how to solve these issues, while accounting for the context in which we operate,” EDCOM 2 Executive Director Karol Mark Yee said.

Ateneo President Fr. Roberto Yap likewise emphasized the role of evidence in policy making.

“This collaboration not only underscores our shared commitment to improving the Philippine education sector but also highlights the importance of evidence-based policy recommendations. The Ateneo is eager to work with EDCOM II in pursuing this endeavor of improving the education sector in our country through studying its challenges and forging the path towards its reformation. We believe that through this fellowship, we will uncover significant insights that will pave the way for substantial and lasting reforms to address the educational crisis,” he said.

The EDCOM 2 – Ateneo Research Fellowship will engage researchers affiliated with a higher education institution to work on 16 studies that will answer priority research questions on early childhood care and development, basic education, higher education, teacher education, technical-vocational education and training and lifelong learning, and governance and financing for education.

The Commission will be working very closely with education research fellows to produce powerful studies that can truly inform and direct the recommendations that it is advocating for.

“We are really working step by step with our scholars to make sure that whatever we know from the field, whatever we know from our hearings, we are able to share with our research fellows so that the studies really give us the most concrete and instructive recommendations,” added Yee.