A local EdTech start-up has signed a memorandum of agreement with the Manila and Makati offices of the Department of Education (DepEd) to expand the pilot phase of its learning platform and align with the government’s efforts to push blended learning in the Philippines.
With schools currently still closed due to COVID-19, the tech provider said over 21.7 million students stand to benefit from its platform which integrates innovations in digital learning into an all-in-one platform. Their subjects are interesting but can be quite challenging for some students to comprehend. The platform introduces new immersive gamified learning tools (GLT) to make the subject matters more interesting for every student, they added.
The pilot implementation complements the DepEd Makati’s efforts to institutionalise digital platforms in its online learning alternatives and complement its Basic Education information Systems (BEIS) which is intended to improve data collection and help with future planning, monitoring, and quality assurance, while also serving as a venue to digitally share resources within DepEd offices nationwide.
The new platform integrates gamification with customised learning systems along with innovations in virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.
The first schools to have access to the technology are Makati Science High School, Makati High School, and Pitogo High School. The pilot phase spans one year.
DepEd Manila said the new tech platform is a welcome addition to its e-learning tools. DepEd Manila is currently reviewing alternatives that can provide immersive learning to their students not only as they weather this global pandemic storm but also in the future as they pursue more learning options that are truly accessible, affordable and delivers high effectivity rates, the agency added.
Moving forward, the tech provider said it is working to make more advances to its platform capabilities based on student feedback by introducing the platform to more potential investors as education technology continues to be one of the most promising niche investment options in start-up ecosystems around the world.
As reported by OpenGov Asia, to further boost the country’s education sector, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) announced that they are providing tablets, laptops and pocket Wi-Fi to the City of San Juan to be distributed to public school students in the city.
This initiative is part of the agency’s efforts to assist the education sector, especially students and teachers, as the country adopts blended learning for the continuance of education amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, said the DICT. The agency targets to replicate the success of this initiative in other local government units as well, it added.
A total of 12,500 tablets, 1,000 laptops and 1,000 pocket Wi-Fi were turned over to the city of San Juan.
According to the City Mayor, grades three to six students of Pinaglabanan Elementary School will receive laptops with pocket Wi-Fi as they have been selected as the pilot school for distance learning, while other Kinder to Grade 12 students from all the other San Juan public schools will receive tablets. All devices are pre-loaded with DICT and Department of Education (DepEd)-developed teaching and learning digital content. Quick links to the DepEd teaching and learning portals (DepEd Commons, LRMDS) are also installed on all devices.
The DICT also targets to increase students’ knowledge of cybersecurity. The DICT has partnered with the City of San Juan in producing CyberSafe Learning materials. The said materials provide tips on how users could maximise the use of ICT while minimising risks and threats online.
The said initiative is part of the Digital Teachers and Digital Learners Project under DICT’s Digital Education Programme, which aims to facilitate digital transformation in the education sector and help address challenges in the delivery of basic education in the K-6 during and beyond the pandemic.
Still part of its initiative to support the education sector in the new normal, the DICT has partnered with the Department of Education (DepEd) with the establishment of the Public Education Network aimed at providing digital connectivity to all public schools and DepEd offices nationwide.
