THE Department of Education (DepEd) and the United States Embassy culminated the six-week webinar training series that provided K-3 teachers and school heads with guidance, methodology, new techniques, ideas, instructional materials, and resources.
The “Integrated Language Learning in Early Childhood: Focus on Literacy and Numeracy,” which ended on April 27, assisted the educators in addressing needs and concerns of K-3 learners. About 3,000 K-3 teachers and school heads from Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao participated in the live Zoom sessions. The series had a Facebook reach of more than 700,000.
“With the aggressive capacity-building initiatives we have been undertaking, supported by partners like the US Embassy, I am confident that the very elusive quest for high-quality learning outcomes will become a reality, of course, starting with early-grades learners fully literate and numerate,” said Education Undersecretary for Curriculum and Instruction Diosdado San Antonio.
“The success of this webinar is a testament to the importance of early learning and to the great partnership between the US Embassy and DepEd,” Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Heather Variava said. “One of the most important things we do together as nations is expand opportunities for education, employment, and national development.”
The US Embassy’s team of three American English language specialists: Dr. Elaine Gallagher, Dr. Constance Dziombak and Prof. Ann Mayeda worked with the team from DepEd’s Teaching and Learning Division-Bureau of Learning Delivery in developing the course to meet specific needs of Filipino K-3 teachers and learners.
The virtual series launched on the week of March 21 was facilitated by the three American English language specialists who also developed an on-demand resource library which will be used by the teachers who participated in the series through the Learning Action Cells to their colleagues in their respective local areas. According to the embassy, its linkage with DepEd will ultimately benefit millions of local K-3 learners.
This was the third US Embassy-DepEd tie-up since the pandemic’s onset.