ONLINE youth platform Edukasyon.ph and tech firm ASUS have teamed up to provide educators with the right tools so they can continue to teach and guide students through the difficult and challenging online setup.
“There’s no telling how much tougher distance learning could get in the coming months. To help address this, we need to help the ecosystem and not only students/teachers” said Edukasyon.ph CEO Grace David.
The World Bank has raised the alarm on the crisis in Philippine education which started in 2019, pre Covid-19, and has worsened since the start of distance learning.
According to three different multi-country assessments spearheaded by the World Bank, one in every four Grade 5 students in the Philippines does not have the reading and mathematics skills for Grade 2 or 3, and four in every five 15-year-old students do not understand basic mathematical concepts such as fractions and decimals that should be mastered by fifth graders.
The Philippines participated in the Program for International Student Assessment (Pisa) for the first time in 2018, the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) in 2019 after a break of 16 years, and the first cycle of the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) in 2019.
Pisa assessed achievement and application of key knowledge and skills of 15-year-old students in reading, mathematics and science, while TIMSS measured proficiency in mathematics and science at the fourth and eighth grades. Meanwhile, SEA-PLM evaluated reading, writing and mathematical literacy, with an initial focus on Grade 5.
Poor learning results were observed among students in the Philippines, with more than 80 percent of them falling below minimum levels of proficiency expected for the respective grades.
The Philippines was last in reading and second to last in science and mathematics among 79 countries in Pisa. It ranked last in mathematics and science among 58 countries in the fourth-grade assessment and was among the bottom half of the six countries in reading, mathematics and writing literacy.
As the largest education tech platform in the country, Edukasyon.PH aims to tap into the IT departments of each school to assist in their skills-building and digital transformation efforts.
ASUS is a go-to brand for reliable and affordable gadgets for online learning over the past year, and has partnered with local movements to provide laptops and other devices to various public schools.
“ASUS believes that no aid is too small to make a difference. That’s why we recognize the value even just one quality device has in shaping a child’s future,” said George Su, country manager for ASUS Philippines.
Among the benefits under the ASUS Edukasyon School Partner Program is a Yearly School Development Fund to help boost their respective IT facilities and education programs. They also have offers for students and instructors, including tech learning seminars, internship opportunities, and exclusive discounts on ASUS products.
Through the program, ASUS will highlight their latest laptop for K-12 learning, the ASUS BR1100. It comes in two models—the ASUS BR1100C, a clamshell non-touch version; and the ASUS BR1100F, a premium flip version with touch-enabled display. Built for durable, all-around use, the ASUS BR1100 is an educational laptop with a military-standard design and features suited for online learning.
INDIE MUSICIAN RELEASES NEW SONG
MUSICIAN Enzo Brillantes, who is also known as ROBOTMODEACTIVATED, recently launched a new original single, called “Different Lies,” an emotive hip-hop/emo rap anthem.
“The song speaks about a love so beautiful yet in a way impossible to have. You could say it’s also about a lost man looking for love in the wrong places. On the side, it talks of a beautiful yet fundamentally broken story of two lovers torn apart by circumstances,” said the 23-year-old Brillantes.
“When I write a song, the first thing I do is make the beat for it. It takes about three hours to finally arrive at something I’m satisfied with. And then the rest follows. The thing is, I treat my music as an outlet for my emotions or the current situation I am in, so I have to be in a certain kind of mood when I create music, otherwise it doesn’t feel sincere.”
Brillantes is currently working on an EP, which would be composed of original tracks that he started sharing with the public last year. Apart from that, he has some good songs produced by big names such as NiNETY8 and RIAA, two-time Certified Gold Producer/Billboard Top 100 Producer Ant Chamberlain and many more.
“The plan is to release a song each month if circumstances permit. I released one last April, then there is the ‘Different Lies,’ and then there’s also one that I plan to launch next month or so,” he said.
ROBOTMODEACTIVATED, as Brillantes prefers to be called nowadays, is very much open to collaborations with other musicians and artists believing that will lend his voice and music a whole new perspective.
“Different Lies,” released on July 2 under Distrokid, is now available on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, YouTube, Deezer, Tidal, iHeartRadio and other online platforms. n