AS PART of the United States’ commitment to support learning amid the pandemic, the United States Agency for International Development turned over 25 laptops and 479 tablets to the Department of Education.

Dr. Thomas LeBlanc, USAID Philippines Office of Education director, handed the donation to DepEd Undersecretaries Nepomuceno Malaluan and Diosdado San Antonio in a ceremony held on September 6.

LeBlanc said that “despite the pandemic, we hope to promote learning among young children while at the same time support the innovative practices of teachers and schools in creating technology-aided learning experiences.”

The laptops and tablets will be distributed to select schools in Regions 5, 6 and in schools associated with the authors of the MTB-MLE interactive Primers developed using the Kotobee software purchased by USAID for DepEd last year.

The tablets will be loaded with eResources in an easy-to-use navigation system allowing for offline use.  USAID will also test a model of teacher-directed continuous assessment supported by targeted resources for early reading improvement to be implemented in 2021 to 2022 school year.

“This gesture is a product of partnership that we have on learning continuity and contains both substance and the building of the learning spaces of this time,” Malaluan said.

“We are very grateful to USAID for this support. This will definitely spell the difference between mediocrity and excellence in delivering basic education services,” San Antonio said.

This assistance is part of USAID’s All Children Reading, a four-year, P250-million project that supports DepEd in improving reading outcomes for early grade learners.