Manila public school students, teachers claim laptops, tablets

READY FOR SCHOOL Andy James dela Cruz tries out the brand-new tablet provided by the Manila City government as his mother, Annielyn, who claimed the gadget on Wednesday from Aurora A. Quezon Elementary School, guides him. The city government has spent over P1 billion for laptops, tablets and Wi-Fi devices. (Photo by LYN RILLON / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

MANILA, Philippines — The Manila City government distributed on Wednesday learning tools such as laptops, tablets, and Wi-Fi devices to teachers and the parents of students at Aurora A. Quezon Elementary School in Malate in preparation for the opening of online classes in October.

“Even if there are no face-to-face classes, education continues,” Education Secretary Leonor Briones said in a video message during the event.

The Department of Education will implement “blended distant learning” in schools this October as an alternative teaching method due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso said during the distribution of gadgets that challenging days were coming, but expressed confidence that teachers would be able to cope with the sudden changes.

The city has spent more than P1 billion for 136,950 tablets for public school students and 11,000 laptops for teachers. To help both students and teachers connect to the web when classes shift to online learning, the tablets come with sim cards containing a set amount of internet load while teachers will be given Wi-Fi devices.