The DepEd International Cooperation Office, in partnership with the Literacy Coordinating Council, organized a regional workshop for the “Project iLearn: Supporting Media and Information Literacy through Education in ASEAN” on May 16-19, 2022 at Tagaytay Country Hotel, Tagaytay City.
Education program specialists and other representatives from various bureaus and services of the Department of Education Central Office participated in the first leg of the said workshop which aimed to develop school-based campaign on media and information literacy (MIL) to promote peace, education, values of moderation, and combat fake news. The regional workshop also aimed to become an avenue of learning for relevant stakeholders and inspire ideas on what could be the possible content of the MIL materials to be developed by the Department.
The conduct of Project iLearn enabled different Ministries of Education and relevant regional organizations within Southeast Asia to present their best practices in relation to school-based media and information literacy. One of the best practices shared by Thailand is their action research on learning management and developing model media to promote media literacy to solve violence and sexual problems among youth. Several best practices have been highlighted by Lao PDR including the use of newspaper, television, radio, as well as website in teaching media and information literacy across their institutions.
The next steps of this event would be the creation of a technical working group and setting of a working timeline for the discussion and exchange of knowledge on how to develop the school-based program centered on media and information literacy. A series of writeshops will be organized in the coming months to develop and finalize the workplan and other pertinent documents which will be consequently presented at the regional (ASEAN) level.
The Literacy Coordinating Council wishes to extend its appreciation to DepEd International Cooperation Office for involving us in their initiatives that will further equip and empower learners with the knowledge and understanding to enable them to become critical thinkers who are able to analyze, utilize, and disseminate information wisely. Through its partnership with ASEAN, the Department hopes to strengthen its advocacy in combatting misinformation and disinformation not only schools but also in the local communities.
Jonnabel D. Escartin
Technical Assistant II