As chair of this committee, he had a clear and detailed view of the Philippine education situation, as it is education that gets the biggest chunk of the nation’s budget. Crucial to this role is steering for the approval of the DepEd budget, and the only way to do the same is to fully understand the complexities and intricacies of our basic education system.
Secretary Sonny has also the genes for this role, his father, the late Senate President Edgardo Angara used to be UP president and a former Cabinet secretary himself.
It is a daunting task indeed, even for the likes of the Angara.
While lip service has been given countless times about the role of our youth in our country’s future, it has come to the point where the government must now rethink our educational system to bring it up to par with the rest of the world.
It must do so by focusing on technology and digitalization.
The world has gone digital. We are now in the midst of a digital revolution, and even talking about the digital economy.
Gone are the days when public schools need separate home economics buildings. Instead, science and computer labs should take their place. Our youth must be in the cusp on this Age of the Internet, and the country’s state of education must swing toward this new era.
Connectivity in the classrooms
We cannot talk about science and computer labs in public schools without internet on the premises. DepEd should allocate a budget for connectivity fees while internet service providers (ISPs) can give discounts in return. Better still if the government can give incentives to ISPs in exchange for offering the same for free to public schools.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has an ongoing program to provide free wifi in the countryside. Perhaps the DICT can give priority for the installation of wifi services in public schools.
Likewise, the private sector can help donating of laptops and desktops for the use of students.
My humble self has been espousing with the previous DepEd leaderships to allow telcos — and now including tower companies — to put up cell sites in the public school grounds to give coverage to the surrounding barangays.
The school will benefit with free internet service. On the other hand, telcos and tower companies, aside from the site, should be exempt from rent and other local taxes as the same are built on public grounds and with semi-public purpose.
IT grads as teachers
Teachers must be information technology (IT) grads or at least proficient in IT. Aside from the digital infrastructure, there must be focus on the human factor of this equation which is “training the trainors” who will teach the students the skills to muster and the knowledge that abounds the internet.
Our local IT schools are churning enough IT graduates who can be recruited as teachers. But the real challenge is the current legions of teachers who are only semi-literate in computer technology. Government investment and effort must be made to reeducate and train them.
Digital technology will accelerate learning
To be in the forefront in this digital age, we must be early adopters of technology. Our students must have easy access to knowledge via the web through a simplified and accelerated digital learning process.
“Education technology affects the student, teacher, administrator, and the entire school environment,” says Rambabu Dixit on eLearningindustry.com. “It simplifies and empowers the teaching/learning process. Educational technology proves helpful in the spread of education, and is a continuously developing subject."
Similarly, in Keys to Active Teaching, Asmaa Moawed says “students can conduct research, access online libraries, and find educational materials on various subjects, expanding their knowledge beyond traditional classroom resources.”
Proper internet use
As clear as now to everyone, not everything on the internet is good and beneficial. Aside from the wonders of digital technology, our students must be made aware of the ethics on the use of the internet.
Knowledge is harnessed not only for the good of one’s self but for the rest of humanity. Students should be taught not to turn the knowledge derived from the net in to something destructive. This even includes the use of the social media space.
As such, subject matter on the ethics on the internet must also be included in the school curriculum.
I am sure Sec. Angara has already these in mind. He is undoubtedly the most equipped DepEd Secretary to face these challenges, given his youth, brilliance and tech savvy.
President Marcos is also tech savvy and will have no problem addressing these concerns.
In short, education technology is what this country needs. And with all due respect to the proponents of CAT and ROTC in schools, the latter should be set aside and the former to be given more weight and credence.
Thus, student hours devoted to the proposed military training – and associated national budget for that matter – must be shifted to or at least be lessened in favor of digital education.
This opinion column represents the personal views of the author, and not necessarily those of his employer or InsiderPH News.
General Counsel of the Globe Group and president of the Philippine Chamber of Telecommunications Operators
