The Department of Education (DepEd) has provided e-learning gadgets to hundreds of teachers and learners in Northern Luzon as part of the continuous build-up of the Public Education Network (PEN).
Undersecretary for Administration Alain Del Pascua, in a statement issued Monday, May 10, said that these initiatives are part of DepEd’s preparation for the PEN where “we will connect all schools, all DepEd offices through various technologies.”
During the EduAksyon sa Norte virtual visit in April, DepEd turned over 2,972 smartphones and 82 laptops to selected learners and teachers from Regions 1, 2, 3, and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).
The said donation, DepEd said, was conducted to help the learners, especially the student-leaders, to facilitate and actualize academic and co-curricular activities and student-oriented projects and initiatives online.
The Information and Communications Technology Service (ICTS) also conducted a training workshop for the teachers and ICT coordinators on the e-book development using Kotobee and AppsGeyser.
DepEd-CAR received 1,218 smartphones and 34 laptops for 1,218 learners and 75 teachers, while DepEd-Ilocos accepted 394 smartphones and 13 laptops for their 394 learners and 27 teachers.
Cagayan Valley received 727 smartphones for learners and 18 laptops for 42 teachers, while the Central Luzon Regional Office accepted 633 smartphones and 17 laptops.
Leading the distribution of gadgets were the Director of the Bureau of Learner Support Services (BLSS) Lope B. Santos III and Chief of the Youth Formation Division (YFD) Adolf P. Aguilar.
PEN, Pascua said, is DepEd’s program to fast-track the digital connectivity of all public schools and DepEd offices nationwide and allows learners to have wider access to DepEd TV, DepEd Commons, and other learning platforms.
Last April 16, DepEd partnered with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to strengthen education delivery through broadcast, connectivity, and digital security via the PEN program.
This initiative and the PEN program is spearheaded by the Information and Communications Technology Service headed by Director Abram Y.C. Abanil, under the Administration Strand led by Pascua and Assistant Secretary Salvador Malana III.
It also is part of the Public Schools of the Future (PSOF) Framework of the Administration Strand under the leadership of Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones.