DepEd bids for P2B funds for CyberEd development

The Department of Education (DepEd) bids for additional budget allocation of P2 billion from the government, to fast track the development of Information Communication Technology (ICT) based education program in the Philippines.

This according to DepEd secretary Jesli A. Lapus yesterday during the opening of the 3rd National ICTs in Basic Education Congress held at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casinos.

"We have a lot of catching up to do," Lapus said stressing that the P2 billion proposed budget will be used for trainings, and technology infrastructure rollout to all 44,300 public schools all over the country in both elementary and secondary levels.

Lapus promised the over 800 delegates, composed mostly of teachers and education policy makers from all over the country, that he will personally proposed this additional budget at the Congressional hearing. "I know it will be a lot of 'selling' to do (to push the proposal)," the secretary said.

DepEd, the Foundation for Information Technology Education and Development (FIT-ED) and the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) hosted the 3rd biennial National ICTs in Basic Education Congress.

The two-day congress, which formally opened yesterday carries the theme "Teaching the Net Generation: Curriculum, Pedagogy, and the Challenge of 21st Century Learning," aims at dissecting local and international efforts in ICT for Education (ICT4E) so that congress participants can critically examine what methods can work and can be adopted in the Philippines.

Lapus said that DepEd will have to strongly push for the realization of the P2 billion budget next year for the development of ICT education alone, and to aid the implementation of the five-year ICT for Education Strategic Plan, an official blueprint for integrate ICT into the Philippines' educational curriculum.

He said there are a lot of changes that are going to be introduced from the traditional teaching method to technology-based learning styles, thus, teachers should be well oriented with the technology, "not just know-how on using the computer," but also how to apply technology in the classroom and teaching styles.

The ICT4E which is a five-year roadmap to push a dramatical growth and acceptance of ICT and technology in the entire educational system in the Philippines, specifically the public schools, will also have to require different amount of budget each year, Lapus said.

"Following the overall vision of DepEd, our ICT4E vision is 21st Century Education for All Filipinos, anytime, anywhere," he said adding that an ICT-enabled education system that transforms children into dynamic life-long learning and value-centered, responsible citizens.

In the next five years, ICT4E roadmap will completely integrate ICT into curriculum. – Ehda M. Dagooc