Global citizens of the 21st century are people who know how to adapt to the changing times, according to Roxas City Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Feliciano C. Buenafe. He quoted futurist and notable author Alvin Toffler who said, “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who can’t read and write but those who cannot learn, relearn, and unlearn.”
Buenafe was the guest speaker in the 3rd session of the series of webinars on digital literacy, led by PLDT in partnership with the University of Philippines Open University (UPOU).
“The online rollout training on digital literacy, initiated by PLDT in collaboration with the UPOU, opens limitless possibilities towards creating impact on the education sector and continuously address the demand and challenges of the 21st century teaching and learning in the new normal,” said Buenafe.
Resource speaker Jose Richard C. Lachica, Principal II of the President Manuel A. Roxas Integrated School – SPED in Roxas City, underscored the importance of enabling competencies through effective communication. “Competency is more than just knowledge or skill. It involves the ability to meet complex demands by drawing on and mobilizing psychosocial resources, including skills and attitudes, in a particular context.” He furthered that such competency may draw on an individual’s knowledge of language, practical IT skills, and attitudes towards those he is communicating with.
According to Lachica, a skill is seen as the ability to perform tasks and solve problems, while a competency is the ability to apply learning outcomes adequately in a defined context, such as in education, work, personal, or professional milieu. Life skills that are essential to one’s personal and professional growth include flexibility – which turns into resilience – leadership, initiative, productivity, social skills, information literacy, media literacy, and technology literacy.
"This session is for our students, as they need to see the importance of these skills in their current and future studies as well as in their future careers. These skills will help them keep up with the super-fast pace of almost everything around. We are living in the age of the Internet and information travels with lightning speed," said PLDT Community Relations Head Katherine Diaz De Rivera.
She added that, “This Phase 6 training rollout of the PLDT Infoteach Program is a very well-attended webinar. In the 3rd session, for instance, we had over 2,000 participants and more than 4,700 views from all platforms. The students are always very active in the comments section, they are eager to learn and participate in the discussion.”
The first two sessions were popular with students as well, with more than 3,500 combined live viewership. Resource speaker UPOU Assistant Professor Myra Almodiel talked about Digital Productivity Tools and Online Collaboration Tools.
A guest panelist during the 2nd session was former PLDT-Smart Public Affairs Head and now TV program host Ramon Isberto who advised students “to study how to use the online collaboration tools effectively... And while you use these tools more effectively, you also need to note the limits and how to manage your screentime.”
The PLDT Infoteach Outreach Phase 6 rollout training, carries on every Friday, 10–11:30am, from March 5 to May 21. The next sessions will cover the following topics: Effective Communication Skills; Digital Literacy; Responsible Use of Social Media; Global Digital Citizenship; Cyber Security; Lifelong Learning; and Introduction to Sustainable Development Goals.
