SENATOR Loren Legarda has underscored the urgency of passing Senate Bill No. 1853, or the proposed K to 3 Foundational Learning and Nurturing Care Act, describing it as a concrete and strategic response to the country’s ongoing learning crisis.

In her privilege speech, Legarda stressed that the State must strengthen the educational and developmental foundations of children from birth through Grade 3, a period widely recognized as critical for cognitive growth and lifelong learning.

“When students fall behind in the early years, they face mounting difficulties in grasping more complex lessons in higher grades, and many never fully catch up,” Legarda said.

The senator explained that the measure directly addresses the urgent need to reinforce literacy, numeracy, and socio-emotional development from Kindergarten to Grade 3.

She emphasized that early deficits, if left unaddressed, often evolve into long-term disadvantages that affect not only academic performance but also future opportunities.

“The measure directly responds to the urgent need to strengthen literacy, numeracy, and socio-emotional development during the critical years of Kindergarten to Grade 3, so that no child is left behind at the very start of their educational journey and early deficits do not turn into lifelong disadvantages,” she added.

Legarda highlighted that the K-3 stage serves as a foundational period that prepares children for the academic demands of higher levels of education.

Under the proposed legislation, the education system would adopt a prevention-first strategy, focusing on building strong foundational skills early on to reduce the need for remedial interventions in later grades.

The bill also promotes the use of high-quality, language-rich, and numeracy-rich instruction integrated with socio-emotional learning and values formation.

The approach aims to ensure that children not only develop strong reading and math skills but also learn to manage emotions, build healthy relationships, make responsible decisions, and respond to challenges with empathy and resilience.

“Let us act with urgency. Let us act with resolve. We cannot allow this crisis to persist,” Legarda asserted.

She warned that continued delays in reform could result in more children advancing through the education system while carrying preventable learning gaps.

“We cannot allow another generation to be lost. Every year of delay means more children reach higher grades carrying gaps that could have been prevented in their earliest years,” she said.

Legarda further noted that the learning crisis already has broader national implications, affecting productivity, employability, and social cohesion.