The Department of Science and Technology – Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) entered into a partnership agreement with the Knowledge Channel Foundation Inc. (KCFI) towards making the Institute’s educational content more accessible to students and teachers throughout the Philippines via the Knowledge Channel’s on-air and online platforms.
On the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, the DOST-SEI set out to adapt its educational programs into distance learning initiatives in line with the Institute’s mandate to promote science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). These initiatives included novel video programs such as RadyoEskwela sa Siyensya and TuklaSiyensya, as well as beloved mainstays such as the Indie-Siyensya Filmmaking Competition, the imake.wemake Youth Innovation Prize Award, the #Push4Science Campaign, and the Climate Science Youth Camp—all of which have been revamped for online learning.
KCFI is a non-profit organization that develops, acquires, and distributes Department of Education K-12 curriculum-based multimedia learning resources on-air, online, and offline to supplement the effective and relevant delivery of basic education, improve the engagement and learning of public school children, and contribute to national development and progress. The company works towards educating and empowering poor and marginalized children through media, and is well-known for its educational shows such as Sineskwela and Math-Tinik.
Through the newly-signed Memorandum of Agreement, DOST-SEI and KCFI look to collaborate on bringing the Institute’s programs to a wider audience, leveraging the Knowledge Channel’s on-air and online platforms. The agreement was signed on behalf of the DOST-SEI by its Director, Josette T. Biyo, and its Chief Science Research Specialist, Ruby R. Cristobal. The KCFI was represented by its President and Executive Director, Elvira Lopez Bautista, and its Director of Operations, Edric C. Calma.
Bautista welcomed the agreement, pointing out that it is just the latest of many private-public partnerships between the TKCFI and the DOST. In particular, she noted that the DOST-SEI’s mathematics and science courseware have reached hundreds of schools nationwide thanks to the Knowledge Channel’s portable media libraries.
“We are thrilled to enter into yet another exciting collaboration. We’ve been on this adventure of introducing our young Filipino children to the world of STEM for many years,” she said.
“Through this partnership, we will be able to reach new horizons and bring STEM closer to our youth as the DOST-SEI and The Knowledge Channel collaborate to uphold the value of science, technology, and innovation in building up the next generation of Filipino youth,” Biyo concluded.