MANILA – ABS-CBN’s Knowledge Channel Foundation Inc. (KCFI) recently signed a new memorandum of agreement with the Department of Education (DepEd) as part of its continuing efforts to improve the learning process for Filipino children.

The MOA aims to implement the memorandum of understanding signed by both parties last April 2016.

Programs highlighted by the new agreement include Basa Bilang, which develops reading and math skills of Kindergarten to Grade 3 children through curriculum-based videos; PRIME or Program for Inclusive and Innovative Master Educations, a 10- to 12- month certificate course for teachers in the primary grades in challenged contexts; LEEP or Learning Effectively through Enhanced and Evidence-based Pedagogies, a three-day workshop for teachers and principals; a donation of Knowledge Channel’s education videos to DepEd’s 5,000 senior high schools and 1,000 public schools in calamity and conflict areas; and EduKalidad sa Kalamidad, an alternative learning intervention that aims to provide KnowledgeTV, conduct psychological first aid workshops, and train teachers with Knowledge Channel educational videos during emergencies.

“I applaud the Department of Education as it takes strides to improve the quality of education in the country. There are many hard facts to be faced and tough decisions to make, but I know that they are all made in the interest of our children. We are with you in this,” KCFI president Rina Lopez Bautista said.

“We are eager, excited, and hopeful to reach more, teach more, and help DepEd improve learning outcomes among our children, especially in reading comprehension, mathematics, and important soft skills like social and emotional learning,” she added.

Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones, for her part, said KCFI is “doing very, very important work,” adding that the challenge now is “to catch up with what is happening in knowledge.”

“Changes are happening on practically a daily basis, and our learners should be prepared to deal with this challenge to be able to differentiate between what is probably alarmist analysis vis-à-vis critical thinking,” she said.

“Our learners are learning just as fast as we (teachers) are, and they are not relying [solely] on formal sources,” she went on. “Between a 21-year-old and a 79-year-old, there are no gaps so far as learning is concerned, and that we have to accept. We don’t have a monopoly of wisdom these days.”

KCFI and DepEd have been partners since 1999. Dr. Fe Hidalgo, a former Education Secretary, is currently part of the foundation.

“We are very fortunate that Dr. Fe is with Knowledge Channel because she also comes from the department. She knows our culture and our mindset,” Briones said.

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