PLDT harvests 259 graduates for Infoteach digital literacy program

MANILA, Philippines - The Teachers at Bata National High School in Bacolod City used to compute students’ grades manually or mano-mano. Now, armed with Microsoft Excel, they are able to discover the wonders of the digital age as they save time and effort in tabulating grades.

Bata National High School Principal Gualberto Dajao thanks the eight-year old PLDT Infoteach Outreach Program for the Internet use and basic IT education that was given to their teachers. Through Infoteach, public school teachers and students are provided computer training courses for free in partnership with leading internet café chain Netopia and software giant Microsoft.

The 10 teachers from the Bacolod-based school were among the total 259 Infoteach graduates who were recognized at commencement exercises at the Asian Institute of Management recently. This brings to over 7,400 students and teachers who graduated from the Infoteach program.

“We are hopeful that all of you — both teachers and students — have learned well from your able Infoteach instructors and that you will use the skills and knowledge that you have gained when you go back to your respective schools. Unless you use these new skills, they will wither away,” said PLDT president Napoleon Nazareno in his message during the graduation ceremonies.

Nazareno said that an interesting aspect of the program is putting teachers and students together that allows for “reverse mentoring” where students, who are called digital natives, are able to help their teachers, who are called digital immigrants, navigate through the new technology.

“Together, you can transform what you have learned in this Infoteach program into life-changing skills that will open up for you so many possibilities and opportunities,” he stressed.

Aiming to make the program grow, PLDT partnered with the University of the Philippines Open University last year to grant their top graduates a scholarship for the prestigious institution’s online education program, which will be joined by some of this year’s outstanding graduates.

Called the Computer Wizards, the honor roll includes teachers and students from the National Capital Region, Luzon and Visayas.

“I am very proud of our teachers for having completed the PLDT Infoteach Outreach Program,” said Principal Dajao.

“I would like to thank PLDT for the very important opportunity and privilege that they have given us,” said John Isaac N. Campos, a 15-year-old Senior from Quezon National High School in Quezon Province who also received the Computer Wizard distinction. “May you continue this life-changing program and be a fine example to other companies.”

The Computer Wizards will move on to the second phase of the PLDT Infoteach Outreach Program, an inter-regional quiz called the PLDT myDSL Broadband Quiz, to crown the true computer genius among the graduates of 2012.