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April 22, 2021 – After an encouraging reception to its technological innovations, the Department of Education (DepEd) is eyeing to make the virtual In-Service Training (VINSET) and DepEd Commons more accessible to teachers and learners.

Undersecretary for Administration Alain Del Pascua has proposed to conduct the virtual INSET regularly after the initiative reached approximately five million participants nationwide during the previous week-long VINSET live sessions.

In the proposal, necessary training materials will still be uploaded to the DepEd Commons and the DepEd Learning Management System (DLMS) to encourage participants to engage at their own pace.

“The virtual INSET for public school teachers is DepEd’s biggest online user activity to date. Views from different streaming platforms were recorded at around 5 million on the first day alone, so we are proposing to make this on a regular basis to train our teachers remotely,” Usec. Pascua said.

Coincidentally, DepEd Commons also reached new heights during the INSET week as it tallied at least 10 million unique users grabbed the opportunity to enhance their Education Technology knowledge.

“The significant reach of DepEd Commons is a feat that should not be ignored nor brushed aside, but rather be built up to have wider acceptance and recognition,” Pascua emphasized.

Last year, the DepEd Commons quickly became fourth in the overall trending Google searches. It also ranked number 1 in the most searched topic under the education category in the Philippines.

The Office of the Undersecretary for Administration (OUA) is already planning to have an aggressive and strategic campaign to promote DepEd Commons in areas with internet and data connectivity.

In addition, a nationwide search is eyed to be conducted for the most promising Online Educational Resources (OERs) compliant to the requirements of the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELCs).

These OERs will be uploaded to the DepEd Commons platform, and can also be the basis of scripts for DepEd TV Episodes.

DepEd Commons and VINSET are part of the Public Schools of the Future (PSOF) Framework’s Digital Rise Program of the Administration Strand under the leadership of Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones.

Since 2019, the Department’s efforts on the use of educational technology were recognized by various organizations, including Mobile Education Alliance, Edutech Asia, Cambridge University Press, Wix, and Kotobee.

 

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