SENATE President Win Gatchalian has filed Proposed Senate Resolution 429 seeking an inquiry into the Department of Education (DepEd) grade transmutation policy, which may be contributing to the promotion of students to the next grade level despite not fully meeting grade-level learning expectations.
The grade transmutation table for Grades 1 to 12 is provided under DepEd Order 8 s. 2015.
Under this policy, a learner’s initial grade from the weighted scores of various assessment components is converted into a higher quarterly grade through transmutation formula.
For example, those who get an Initial Grade of 60 get a transmuted grade of 75.
The average of a learner's quarterly grades determines the final grade.
Learners who obtain a final grade of at least 75 are promoted to the next grade level. As a result, students with initial grades that fall below the traditional passing mark may still advance because of the higher grade equivalents produced through transmutation.
“The practice could allow students to advance to the next grade without fully mastering key lessons,” Gatchalian said.
:If we want to end the education crisis, we need to ensure that we are measuring the abilities of our students in the right way,” he added
DepEd recently released its updated grading system through DepEd Order 015 s. 2026, which provides an adjusted transmutation table for Grades 4 to 12, including Grades 2 and 3 that are still implementing the numerical grading system.
Under the new policy, an initial grade of 70 to 71.17 will have a transmuted grade of 75 for School Year (SY) 2026-2027. This measure is meant to transition toward a zero-based grading system starting SY 2027-2028, where the reported grade is reported without transmutation.
Ealier, Gatchalian also proposed bigger school feeding programs set for rollout this school year.
Following the opening of SY 2026-2027, expanded feeding programs in public schools and child development centers (CDCs) will start rolling out this year as part of efforts to address malnutrition among Filipino learners, Gatchalian said.
The School-Based Feeding Program (SBFP), which received P25.7 billion under the 2026 national budget, will now cover all Kindergarten and Grade 1 learners in public schools.
The program will also expand feeding days from 120 to 200 and is expected to benefit 4.6 million learners, including wasted, severely wasted, stunted and severely stunted learners from Grades 2 to 6.
For its part, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Supplementary Feeding Program (SFP) received P9.2 billion under the 2026 national budget.
The allocation is expected to benefit around 1.8 million children enrolled in Child Development Centers (CDCs) and Supervised Neighborhood Play, while increasing feeding days from 120 to 200.
“One of the most important focuses of the historic funding we have allocated for education is the fight against hunger and malnutrition among our students. When children have enough food and proper nutrition, they are better prepared to learn and achieve their dreams,” said Gatchalian.
