Last June 2, 2017, we were invited by Globe Telecoms in Pampanga to get a glimpse on how PRISM, their professional development program for educators, will improve the Philippine education system by enabling teachers with the knowledge of the new Media, Internet and how to deal with the new breed of techie students.
Prism is a three-week program that involves a two-day immersive bootcamp, blended project-based learning, and personalized coaching for a total of 1,000 educators all over the country who are teaching the new Media and Information Literacy (MIL) subject in Senior High School as well as English and Social Studies at both K-12 and higher education levels.
The educators will be part of various activities and projects in technology-enabled instruction and content development that can help them face the challenge of integrating technology in their lessons and making it an effective tool for learning anytime, anywhere.
A key component of the program is the Brightspace Integrated Learning Platform. The teachers will undergo distance learning for three weeks with access to the global Brightspace Community, multimedia resources to guide them through the learning process, and a seamless platform to collaborate with learning coaches and teachers in real time.
PRISM CENTRAL LUZON (PAMPANGA)
We visited Holy Angel University to witness the PRISM Expo which is the culmination activity of the fourth leg of the program. The Expo showcased the different digital literacy projects the teachers created as part of the workshop. It was joined by over 150 teachers from Pampanga, Laguna, Baguio, and Isabela.
The first three were held in Metro Manila (Mandaluyong), Bicol (Naga), Visayas (Cebu). The final workshop will be held in Cagayan de Oro, representing Mindanao.
Holy Angel University VP Academic Affairs Dr. Alma S. Espartinez said “In the past year and a half, we hired many senior high school teachers. We are committed to their professional development, so that they can build students of conscience, competence and compassion. Globe’s PRISM is a powerful set of learning tools that helps our teachers guide students in using electronic tools and online information responsibly. Our teachers’ training with PRISM not only improves their digital literacy, but also enhances their skills to engage their students.”
“Globe aims to empower every Filipino with world-class learning through technology so that they can achieve their dreams and be successful in life. We close the gap by providing teachers the relevant knowledge and skills that they need to help students succeed in the 21st century, starting with the digital literacy program. Students of today are digital natives who grew up in the era of Google, social media, and instant connectivity. The changing times mean that teachers need to continuously adapt to their evolving role. They will have to be able to facilitate learning through new methods of teaching and various media, some of which may not even exist yet. This is precisely why fostering creative and critical thinking in learners is paramount.” says Michelle Tapia, Advisor & Head of Globe’s Education Strategy & Innovation
SAMPLE PROJECT
One of the 7 teams, the Blue Team, created a project to help improve the teaching standards by developing an on-line feedback system about a teachers performance.
Using Youtube, the teacher’s teaching session is recorded and then incorporated to an on-line electronic survey and feedback system created by the Blue Team using G Suite (formerly Google Apps).
C0-educators and students are invited to the website to answer the questionnaire. Results are tabulated automatically.
It’s quite impressive how Prism equipped teachers with the new technologies that will enable not only to improve educating students but also to upgrade the skills of teachers as well.
Kudos to Globe Prism program and hopefully this pilot will be implemented throughout the Philippines.
