The Third Digital Magiting Conference (Magiting DigiCon) organized by the Ayala Foundation and the Department of Education (DepEd) highlighted the teaching of heroism in public schools of the Philippines.
DigiCon is part of the foundation’s Maging Magiting program which promotes the love of the country and encourages Filipinos to take pride in their rich history and culture.
The 2021 edition celebrated National Teachers’ Month with 200 Araling Panlipunan and Edukasyon sa Pagpapakatao teachers from DepEd Central Luzon participating in the Zoom conference that was viewed at least 36,000 times on Facebook Live streamed on October 1.
The Magiting DigiCon gathered experts from various fields, discussing the virtues of kagitingan and love of country could be exemplified in their respective professions, and how these could be applied in the classrooms.
Ana Pista, director for communications, content, and digital for the Asia Pacific, India, and Africa at the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, spoke about truth-telling in the digital age, which could be especially valuable to teachers of history and values. In her talk, she discussed the need to teach students the importance of critical thinking, especially in detecting disinformation online.
Meanwhile, Undersecretary Renato Solidum Jr. of the Department of Science and Technology and Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology spoke about the role teachers play in the classroom and their communities in disaster preparedness, response, and resilience.
Dr. Analyn Salvador-Amores, director of the Museo Kordilyera and associate professor at the University of the Philippines Baguio, highlighted the kagitingan of the indigenous communities in northern Philippines, while also providing a virtual tour of the Museo Kordilyera in Baguio City.
History researcher Reinere Policarpio of the NHCP provided a review of the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines, while Ingrid Beroña, chief risk officer of GCash, provided valuable advice on the use of technology in education.
An important output expected from the Magiting DigiCon participants is the development of modules in the teaching of important aspects of Philippine History and Culture. Ernani Jaime, supervising education specialist at DepEd, walked the participants through the process of developing the modules. He also gave an update on the modules developed by the participants of the first Magiting DigiCon in June 2020.
At the end of the presentations, a panel of reactors gave their feedback and shared insights on how the discussions could be integrated into the classroom settings. The panel was composed of Ae Iñosa of the Museo ng Muntinlupa, Dr. Randy Madrid of UP Visayas, Dr. Faina Abaya Ulindang of the Mindanao State University, Dr. Rebecca Sotto of DepEd Tarlac, and Mr. Fabie Pasilan of the Aplaya National High School in Laguna.
Aside from presentations, educational videos from Ayala Foundation’s “Magiting+” YouTube series were shown to the participants. And as part of the National Teachers’ Month celebrations, an inspirational video showing a public-school teacher who developed a phone app for his students during the pandemic was premiered.
In his message, Ayala Foundation President Ruel Maranan said: “The Third Magiting DigiCon is also one of Ayala Foundation’s offerings to the public as part of our 60th anniversary. For this year, we at Ayala Foundation affirm our continuing faith in the Filipino. Aside from the DigiCon, our faith in the Filipino has also taken the form of various initiatives, including Brigadang Ayala, which is the Ayala group’s way of serving various sectors in need, through interventions in education, health, disaster response, and others.”
Launched in 2018, the Maging Magiting program is implemented in partnership with DepEd, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), Chooks-to-Go, and GCash.
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