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What is the Effectiveness of Catch-up

Fridays as Intervention for Grade 8
Learners in Reading Comprehension?

MARY ANN, MACUTAY, CASTICON

Cagayan State University-Aparri

Abstract

Reading comprehension is one of the most complex

cognitive activities in which our students engage resulting it as
a problem in most of our schools. Nowadays, some students can
read the words but they cannot comprehend them. They are
unable to explain what they have read in their own words
because of lack of reading comprehension skills. According to
the national and international tests of literacy, such us the
Program for International Assessment (PISA) and National
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), students are
unable to do relatively easy literary tasks such as locate
relevant information to determine the main idea of a text or
make simple inferences. (Kastberg, Chan, & Murray, 2016;
National Center for Education Statistics, 2017).

The educational system faces this challenge among

students. As to resolve this emerging issue, the government
make every effort to improve literacy rates in the Philippines,
thus giving intervention that can help every Filipino student to
improve their reading comprehension, vocabulary development,
and critical thinking skills. And one of this measure is the Catch-
up Fridays which will be discuss in this paper to examine its
effectiveness as intervention in the reading comprehension
through the implementation of this program.

Keywords: Catch-up Friday, Intervention, Reading

Comprehension

1. Introduction
Reading comprehension is the ability to understand and
interpret written text. It is an instrument to learning in school and
throughout life because it allows everyone to comprehend and express

©Authors
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oneself. It is one of the most important skills that a person should

learn. It is a lifelong skill that is significant in every aspect of life. This
skill allows everyone to connect their prior knowledge with their
learning, enhance their understanding of ideas and practices, and
ensure that these will be passed on continuously to the next
generation (Torres, 2019).
Reading is the first step to be taught in every school. It allows the
learners to learn simple words and comprehend them. Through simple
reading, students can differentiate the meanings of words. Thus,
making reading as one of the basic skills each student should have to
gain knowledge, attain learning, and move on to a higher level in
education to live day-to-day life. Reading is the backbone of most
learning as it is important in the academic success, lifelong learning,
and critical thinking. (Dadzie, 2008).

Reading involves actively engaging with the material, making

connections, and extracting meaning from the words on them. there
are many forms of these materials that can help the students improve
their reading comprehension skills.
These various formats, include printed materials like books and
articles and non-printed items like digital media or spoken word
recordings. The students’ capacity to effectively absorb and apply this
information from these sources need their critical talent for personal
and professional success thus making the ability to read as paramount
in today’s society. Requiso-Jimenez & Bascos-Ocampo (2022)

Reading is not merely a pastime but a fundamental prerequisite

for fully embracing life and actively participating in nation-building
endeavors as it is significant in language arts, social studies, science
and mathematics. Their emphasis on the importance of reading stems
on applying reading comprehension in everyday life such as
comprehending the steps and procedures, analyzing the main ideas,
supporting details and implications of current events. Reading, they
argue, is indispensable for mental and cultural enrichment highlights
the pervasive role of reading in daily activities, suggesting that
learners engage in reading for approximately 80% of the tasks they
undertake each day as to understanding the ingredients of
measurements and preparation methods to cook a dish and
comprehending spatial information and following step-by-step
instructions. Acedillo (2023.

Reading comprehension across subjects is also important in

understanding the concepts. In language arts, comprehending literary
texts including fiction, poetry, and drama. Reading does not include
only reading the text, but it means to understand and comprehend the
text. Reading comprehension is one of the most important skills to be
acquired during a language course (Bani Issa, 2004). Birsch (2011)
defined reading comprehension as the ability to get meaning from
what is read. There are different steps on how a student can develop
reading comprehension such as reading aloud, discussing the text,
teaching strategies, and providing feedback. According to Gilakjani &
Sabouri (2016), reading comprehension needs different reading skills

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such as a word recognition, fluency, lexical knowledge, and pre-

existing knowledge to be undertaken quickly so that the reader gets
knowledge from the text. Tompkins (2011) defined reading
comprehension as the level of comprehending a text. He argues that
comprehension is a creative process that hinges on four skills called
phonology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics.

Moreover, Helarde (2021) posits that it serves as the

foundational skill for all other study skills. Despite the long-standing
recognition of reading comprehension’s crucial role in learning, it
remains a significant challenge for Philippine schools. There are
different factors affecting reading comprehension such as reader
factors, text factors, and environmental factors. In readers factors,
prior knowledge, vocabulary, fluency, and motivation impact a
reader’s comprehension. While in text factors, the complexity,
structure, and content of the material can influence comprehension.
Lastly, environmental factors includes distractions, lack of support,
and poor lighting can hinder reading comprehension.

Reading endows individuals with valuable skills and grants them

access to a vast repository of information thus, schools need to expose
students to rich language and model fluent reading. Engage the
learners in conversation about content and meaning then explicitly
instruct them in comprehension strategies and techniques, thereby
aiding them in their academic pursuits.

As emphasized by Deluao et al. (2022), proficiency in reading is a

prerequisite across all learning domains such as understanding
informational texts, such as historical documents and current events.
Reading can also help extract meaning from scientific articles, lab
reports, and text book passages. It is also significant in
comprehending word problems and interpreting mathematical
language and symbols. Reading comprehension, according to Clarke et
al (2004), it is an essential skill for all students because it involves the
process of simultaneously deriving meaning from written language
through engagement and involvement. Miciano (2007) presented that
in reading, there were two main problems for Filipino learners. The
first is that the learners read but need help understanding what they
have read. This is one of the most common issues that schools are
facing nowadays. Most students can identify the words but they
cannot determine their meanings and proper usage. Students cannot
interpret these ideas from the reading materials given to them. They
just simply read without analyzing its meaning and thoughts. She
added that most Filipinos are good at reading for details unless the
article explicitly labels it. Filipino, often they but often they miss the
main idea. The other main problem is that learners must comprehend
the details and get the wrong paper. However, this should serve as a
signal for the entire department to concentrate on enhancing and
growing the reading habits of students resulting to the implementation
of reading interventions for Filipino students. Reading comprehension
levels (literal, interpretive, critical, and application) must be
introduced to students for deeper understanding and better usage of

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appropriate texts (Gardner & Lambert, 2002). This paper provides the
reading comprehension problems experienced by many schools that
challenge the educational system in the country nowadays thus
implementing the Catch-up Fridays.

2. Methodology
This systematic review examined the different concepts about
reading comprehension and how it affects the learners. It also
provided context and background of reading comprehension through
the different research studies that were presented this paper. This
paper provided the significance of reading in the improvement of
reading comprehension skills of learners. The study employed a
mixed-methods approach, characterized by the collection and analysis
of quantitative data followed by the gathering and evaluation of
qualitative data through surveys and interviews.

Design

Treatment of Data

Ethical Consideration

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Catch-up Friday serves as an strategy to address learning gaps.
It allows the learners to enhance their reading comprehension skills
that will enables them to interpret and express their thoughts and
ideas clearly coping with the other learners.

Reading comprehension is essential for future learning and

understanding; without it, learners will struggle academically (Acedillo,
2023). To address learning gaps among grade school and high school
students, the Department of Education (DepEd), began its “Catch-up
Fridays” program, which dedicates every Friday of the whole school
year to reading, values, peace and health education. According to
Deped, Catch-up Friday is a “learning mechanism intended to
strengthen the foundational, social, and other relevant skills necessary
to actualize the intent of the basic education curriculum.” The
Department’s current initiatives provide opportunities to enhance
learners’ academic performance, addressing issues such as low
proficiency levels in reading based on national and international large-
scale assessments. In the PISA results of 2022 (Program for
International Student Assessment), the Philippines ranked among the
lowest in the concluded assessment, with Science scoring 24.00%,

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English (Reading) scoring 23.00%, and Mathematics scoring 16.00%,

indicating that students have only achieved basic proficiency in these
major subjects. Notably, reading scored only 23.00%, indicating a
need for prompt attention to address learning gaps and strengthen the
reading proficiency of every learner.

In alignment with these priorities, the Department of Education

(DepEd) has initiated the “Catch-Up Fridays” project. Launched
nationwide on January 12, 2024, across elementary and secondary
schools and community learning centers (CLCs), this intervention
program is designed to maximize learning opportunities. Every Friday
throughout the academic year is dedicated to the “Drop Everything
and Read” (DEAR) activity, fostering a culture of reading and
knowledge acquisition. Moreover, Catch-Up Fridays are a platform for
gathering invaluable feedback from field implementers regarding the
program’s guidelines. Additionally, it provides an opportunity to collect
data on students’ perspectives regarding the implementation of the
project, ensuring its effectiveness and relevance in meeting
educational objectives ((DepEd Memorandum No. 001, series of 2024).
Catch-up Friday is a significant intervention method for grade 8
learners to achieve such comprehension skills. With this intervention,
they can skim the materials given to them to get a general
understanding before reading in-depth. Students can actively engage
with the text by asking questions about the content and purpose. They
can also connect new information to what they already know to build
understanding and most importantly, they can regularly check their
understanding and clarify any confusion or gaps.

4. Conclusion and Implication

The reading comprehension of the students is assess through
different methods such as ongoing evaluation to identify strengths,
weaknesses, and area for improvement, end-of-unit or end-of-year
tests to measure overall reading comprehension skills, and
observations, discussions and informal tasks to guage understanding
in the moment. The implementation of Catch-up Fridays for Grade 8
learners is a significant intervention method that demonstrated
remarkable progress in their reading abilities throughout the sessions.
They were given the opportunity to have an enrichment activities that
help them cope with their learning gaps. The learners enhanced their
reading comprehension through the different learning strategies in
each session. Through the interactive and interesting learning
activities, learners learn to love reading. The grade 8 learners engage
themselves in every session.
Moreover, the analysis of student feedback further interpret the
positive impact of Catch-Up Fridays on reading proficiency. The grade

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8 learners highlighted the sessions’ role in expanding vocabulary,

enhancing comprehension, and fostering critical thinking skills .

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