DepEd Taps Globe as Official Partner for Adopt-A-School Program

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Department of Education (DepEd) has tapped leading telecommunications company Globe Telecom as an official partner for the Adopt-A-School (AAS) Program which aims to provide quality and relevant education to the Filipino youth through private sector participation.

The AAS Program enjoins all private entities to assist public schools in areas such as infrastructure, health and nutrition, teaching skills development, computer and science lab equipment and learning support. To this, Globe responded with its Global Filipino School (GFS) program, a long-term education initiative designed to transform select public schools into centers of excellence in Information and Communications Technology and innovative teaching methods.

“We need all the help we can get from the private sector so that our public schools, especially the less privileged ones, may still receive assistance outside the mainstream funding and the national budget. Thus, we are glad to see a big company like Globe showing concern and desire to improve the status of education in the Philippines. We hope that this will further inspire other companies to join this undertaking,” said Tonisito M.C. Umali, Esq., DepEd Assistant Secretary for External Partnerships Service.

The AAS Program caters to less privileged schools with limited resources but have very large student population. Most of them experience classroom shortage, insufficient textbooks and instructional materials and overcrowding. Schools in low-income municipalities but have high performing students are also given consideration.

“It is Globe Telecom’s purpose to create opportunities that will allow people to overcome challenges and make their dreams come true. With this in mind, we continue to align our programs with the priority plans of DepEd to provide world class education to more public schools nationwide. We are grateful that our efforts are being recognized by DepEd and that our GFS program is now part of the national strategy to improve quality of education in the country,” said Fernando Esguerra, Globe Director for Citizenship.

Globe is targeting at least 221 public schools representing the 221 DepEd school divisions nationwide by end of the five-year expansion period. By the end of the year, Globe expects the GFS Program to be implemented in 60 untapped divisions in the National Capital Region, CALABARZON, Central Visayas, Northern Mindanao, and Davao regions representing 60 schools with combined student population of about 90,000.

The GFS Program was initially piloted by Globe and DepEd in Bilar National High School four years ago and is now present in 20 public schools nationwide. With the positive feedback received from its initial implementation, Globe decided to roll it out in all DepEd divisions within five years beginning 2016.

Based on the GFS impact assessment released by Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) Global Market Research Company early this year, it shows improved digital skills among teachers and students, particularly on the usage of mobile technology and computer software. Students also became more well-rounded due to increased engagements driven by various pillars under the 21st Century Learning Framework namely collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking. The notable increase in the presence of ICT equipment also resulted in more students and teachers now using ICT in their daily academic proceedings.

Under the program, schools are provided with unparalleled online connectivity to give homeroom teachers access to limitless teaching and learning engagements available on the internet that will help further improve their craft and make learning fun and interesting for the students.

The schools are also given a Globe Digital Laboratory package containing netbooks/tablets, mobile projectors, and WiFi dongles while teachers are trained on ICT education and project-based learning through the GFS Master Teachers Workshop and Online Coaching Course. All schools under GFS are intended to become teacher training hubs and training partners of the DepEd Division Offices in conducting teaching workshops for neighboring schools of each division.

To complement the GFS Program, Globe recently launched the GFS Library which offers over 1,000 educational e-books appropriate for K-12 learning to benefit over 15 million public elementary and high school students and some 500,000 public school teachers nationwide.

GFSLibrary.com is a web-based platform that provides free and quick access to digital story books for children and young adults as well as textbooks on core subjects such as Math, Science, English, Filipino, Music, Arts, among others. The ebooks may be opened via their desktop, laptop or mobile device using any basic ebook reader.

While developments in technology have made it easier for both students and teachers to access a vast library of information previously out of their reach, a significant number of public elementary and high schools nationwide still do not have internet access due to lack of adequate infrastructure. Thus, with the program’s nationwide implementation, Globe expects to address the concern and at the same time, improve the Philippines’ global ranking in education.

For TM and Globe prepaid and postpaid customers who want to help public school students achieve their dreams, cash donations may be sent by texting GFS to 21580437 (0GFS) and following the instructions in the text messages. The general public, on the other hand, may deposit any amount to BPI Habitat for Humanity Philippines, Inc., Account No. 2421-0037-45. For inquiries, please email bridgecom@globe.com.ph.

Photo caption:

Globe showcases the mobile digital laboratory package that each public school under the Global Filipino School Program receives for more interesting learning and teaching engagements. Present during the Globe-DepEd Adopt-A-School Program partnership activity and GFS launch are (from L-R):  Lemuel Dayo, Principal of Sico 1.0 NHS, San Juan, Batangas;  Marilou J. Cusi, Supervising Administrative Officer, DepEd NCR; Alain Del B. Pascua, DepEd Undersecretary for Information and Communications Technology Service; Atty. Tonisito M.C. Umali, DepEd Assistant Secretary for External Partnership Service; Yoly C. Crisanto, Globe SVP for Corporate Communications; Fernando Esguerra, Globe Director for Citizenship; Allan Farnazo, DepEd Regional Director for Northern Mindanao; and Miguel Bermundo, Globe Manager for Citizenship.

SilyaWikain: Binigkas, Binagtas, Binigkis Furniture Design Exhibit

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The BS Interior Design Furniture Design Class 2016 will be holding their Annual Furniture Design Exhibit on October 22 – November 4 at Il Centro – Sta. Lucia Mall, Cainta, Rizal, entitled:

“SilyaWikain: Binigkas, Binagtas, Binigkis”

Natatanging eksibit ng mga muebles na nagpupugay sa karangyaan ng ating kultura at ng lingguwaheng Filipino.

Binigkas ang mga salitang nakaligtaan na. Binagtas ang daan ng malikhaing proseso ng paggawa. At, binigkis ang bawat isa para sa iisang layunin- ang pagsasabuhay ng Wikang Pambansa sa pamamagitan ng muwebles at debuho.

Mula sa Kolehiyo ng Arkitektura at Pinong Sining – Politeknikong Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, binigyang sigla ng labing-siyam (29) na dibuhante ang ating lingguwahe sa pamamagitan ng haplos ng sining sa bawat disenyo ng sampung (10) tradisyunal na upuan.

ICT Development Critical in Creating Employment Opportunities

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Emphasizing that government support is essential in enhancing ICT development in the country to further boost economic growth and create employment opportunities, Globe Telecom reiterates call for closer collaboration with the government in developing key telecommunication infrastructure.

“Time and again, we continue to call on the government to help develop broadband access in the Philippines by investing in internet infrastructure in rural and far-flung areas of the country. There is no substitute for government support if we are to achieve social inclusion of all communities as we aspire for further economic growth,” Globe President & CEO Ernest Cu said, emphasizing that development of broadband infrastructure is particularly essential in communities where even basic infrastructure services such as roads and bridges are lacking.

“In recent years, the use of digital technology has extensively enhanced the delivery of important government services. We hope that development of broadband infrastructure will also redound to improved business competencies and capabilities and in turn create more employment opportunities for Filipinos,” he said.

Cu pointed out that in 2015, mobile technologies and services generated 5.4% of GDP in Asia Pacific, a contribution that amounted to around $1.3 trillion of economic value according to the 2016 GSMA Mobile Economy report on Asia Pacific. GSMA said it expects GDP contribution of the sector to increase to $1.7 trillion as countries benefit from the improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by increased take-up of mobile services and the adoption of new mobile technologies such as machine to machine (M2M). The report also said the sector generated 15 million jobs in 2015. Given the positive impact of 4G technology migration resulting in data traffic growth, economic stimulus and its impact on employment in the region are expected to climb in the years ahead, the GSMA added.

Despite the absence of public investments in enhancing broadband access and speed in the Philippines, the Southeast Asian economy scored high among Starters category of the Global Connectivity Index (GCI), published by Huawei Technologies, which measures how 50 nations are progressing with digital transformation using information and communications technology. Starters are countries in the early stage of ICT infrastructure build-out.

The Philippines garnered a score of 33, the highest score given among countries classified as Starters, which are economies with an average GDP of US$3,000 and have GCI range of 20-34. The country advanced two notches from its previous score in 2015 at 31. According to GCI, countries classified as Starters focus on increasing ICT supply to give more people access to the digital world. To fully benefit from the digital economy, Starter economies need faster broadband expansion to ensure most businesses and citizens have affordable broadband access.

Akamai’ State of the Internet Report for the second quarter also showed that mobile internet speed ranking of the Philippines is in the top 6 in Asia Pacific with an average speed of 8.5Mbps. The report also showed the Philippines has achieved 105.1 Mbps peak mobile speed which is the third highest in Asia Pacific next to Australia and Thailand.

The Philippines ranking in e-government development also moved up to 71st out of 193 countries based in a survey conducted by the United Nations this year. The United Nations Public Administration Country Studies survey, conducted among UN member-countries, uses E-Government Development Index as composite indicator of the willingness and capacity of national governments to utilize ICT in the delivery of public services. Such ranking is a significant improvement from its 95th rank during the initial survey done in 2014. The survey is based on three important dimensions of e-government, namely, scope and quality of online services, development status of telecommunication infrastructure index, and inherent human capital.

Still, business viability is a concern among telco operators in most countries that keep them from deploying infrastructure in rural and far-flung areas, said Cu. In addition to investments in “missionary routes”, telecommunication operators also need government support in minimizing, if not eliminating bureaucracy in relation to the permitting process for cell sites and right-of-way for fiber deployment, said Cu, noting that the company needs to secure around 25 permits, spanning around 8 months, to build a single cell site.

Cu emphasized that given public clamor for better internet speeds and access, rationalization of the permitting process for telco infrastructure should be addressed as soon as possible. “We need the government not just as a regulator but especially as an enabler of the telecommunications industry. Rationalization of permitting process would substantially enhance ICT development in the country,” he stressed.

Cu said Globe needs to continuously build cell sites especially in relation to the deployment of the previously warehoused 700 MHz spectrum, which is seen not only to deliver additional capacity but also enhanced indoor coverage. However, Globe is able to deploy only around 450 cell sites a year even as it targets to build roughly around a thousand towers annually due to permitting challenges.