Amid the era of misinformation and disinformation, teachers who are sharing "fake news" and "historical distortion" is a big problem, according to an educator.
In a virtual forum titled UVote: Insights from the College Experience Survey and Pinoy Voter's Vibe hosted by the Ateneo School of Government (ASOG) and FEU TAMang Boto, Ateneo Policy Center Senior Fellow Imelda Deinla urged students to demand accountability from teachers sharing fake news and historical distortion.
"To our youth, it's really important na we exercise our critical thinking. Kailangan din talaga na magtanong tayo sa ating teachers dun sa sources nila. If the teachers actually requiring you to produce sources of information, dapat din i-require din natin sila (We also really need to ask our teachers about thei sources. If the teachers are actually requiring you to produce sources of information, we should also require them to provide the same)," Deinla said.
"We should not be afraid to engage with our teachers to ask them about their ideas or to also express your own opinions. It's really high time that students should be more assertive especially in this environment of fake news," she added.
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Deinla also called on the Department of Education (DepEd) to "screen and regulate" educational materials "spreading lies or historical distortion."
"Doon sa teachers, ibig sabihin napakalaki talaga ng problema natin if the teachers themselves actually engaged in spreading fake news and historical distortion," she reiterated.
"The leadership with the DepEd should be onboard on countering fake news and as we know, some of the educational materials are precisely revising this. So dapat magkaroon ng screening at i-regulate talaga itong educational materials na nagpapakita ng lies or nagpapakalat ng lies or distortion sa ating history (So there should be screening and regulation to these educational materials that show lies or spread lies or distortion in our history)."
In 2016, DepEd said curriculum guides from Grades 5 and 6 Araling Lipunan under the K to 12 program have been redesigned to allow more in-depth and enriched discussion on Philippine history, including the Martial Law period.