From Mindanao to the world - with just one click

MANILA, Philippines - Tandong-clad students in Jolo, Sulu, huddle in front of a monitor, trawling online for the latest trends in website design. High school seniors in Pikit, North Cotabato hold a video conference with their counterparts in North America.

They are among approximately 700,000 students in more than 900 Mindanao schools who have been mining the incalculable wealth of the Internet, with the help of computers and online connections provided through a U.S. government development project.

This was made possible through a collaborative effort, beginning in 2003, between pro-active parent-teacher associations (PTAs), USAID’s Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) program, and private sector partners to provide Internet-connected computers – about 4,650 of them to date – to schools in Mindanao’s conflict-affected areas.

Through its Computer Literacy and Internet Connection (CLIC) project, the GEM program partnered with local PTAs and sought the support of leading information technology (IT) firms to connect these schools – many of them in rural barangays with limited communication infrastructure – to the cyber universe.

To ensure that all its CLIC partners could connect online, GEM has installed satellite dishes in 480 schools located in areas of Mindanao with zero or undependable Internet service providers.

The end goal: Help prepare Mindanao’s future workforce for a global economy in which information and communication technology skills are of paramount importance.

Trixie Mae Eruela, a graduate of Basilan National High School and CLIC beneficiary, with a friend at a festival in Germany.

Ken Caballero, now a bachelor of science student, says that CLIC was a factor in her decision to major in IT. She graduated from Bagumbayan National High School, the first school in her community in Sultan Kudarat province to have online access, thanks to CLIC, which provided the school with computers and Internet connection in 2009.

“Dahil sa computers at Internet, hindi na behind ang aming school (Because of computers and the Internet, our school was not left behind),” Caballero says.

IT giants IBM, CISCO, Intel, Microsoft, Smart and Globe, as well as We Are IT, collaborate with GEM to enable CLIC to better respond to the needs of students and teachers, and to expand its coverage to more areas in Mindanao.

Through CLIC, they provide schools with major discounts for computers and other peripherals, subsidies for Internet connections, training, seminars and technical support, among others.

To date, the CLIC project’s partnerships with these companies have an aggregate value of $2.5 million.

Eunice Bascar of Olutanga National High School in Zamboanga Sibugay was her class valedictorian, and later majored in medical laboratory science on scholarship at Central Philippine University.

She is grateful for the CLIC computers and the IT skills she learned from her teachers during her last year in school. “I can’t imagine how I could have coped if I’d still been computer illiterate when I entered college,” she says.

About the time that Olutanga became a CLIC partner, in 2005, more than 80 percent of public schools in the country, including those with computers, had no access to the Internet, according to a study by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

For Trixie Mae Eruela, an alumna of Basilan National High School, the CLIC resources were life-changing.

Trixie won a scholarship in Germany by sending her application via the Internet. She says the computer and Internet resources provided through CLIC enabled her to clinch the grant. The scholarship review panel was impressed by the complex PowerPoint presentation she submitted depicting Philippine culture. Her knowledge of German – which she learned on-line through determined self-study – also made her a prime candidate for the grant.

Jezreel Tabago, a high school senior from a rural community studying at Lutayan National High School in Isulan, Sultan Kudarat, used to feel uncomfortable interacting with students from schools in more urbanized areas. He knew that, in comparison with them, his knowledge of computers and the Internet was rudimentary.

Things turned around when Lutayan NHS became a CLIC partner school in 2006 and was provided with seven computers, high-speed Internet connection, a printer, and various reference materials on computers and information technology.

Students and teachers using Internet-connected CLIC computers at Lamitan National High School in Basilan.

With the help of CLIC, Jezreel soon found himself at ease chatting about the online world with students he met at inter-school activities or competitions. He plans to take up computer science in college and become part of the IT industry.

Jessibelle Enjambre, a science teacher at Lamitan National High School in Basilan, credits CLIC resources with aiding her students to better understand concepts discussed in the classroom.

“They got really interested because the audio-visual presentations available on the Internet are beautiful. This helped them internalize their lessons,” Enjambre explains.

Andreus Hansen, head of the computer laboratory at Don Pablo Lorenzo Memorial High School in Zamboanga City, says that CLIC not only benefited students but also teachers, more than 3,900 of whom have been provided IT training as part of the CLIC package.

“With CLIC, we were able to browse for new teaching strategies, prototype lesson plans, and interactive learning sites,” says Gay Tolentino, a teacher at Alabel National High School in Sarangani.

Nora Mendoza, a teacher at Notre Dame Village National High School in Cotabato City, recalls that, prior to CLIC, she had no IT skills. “I didn’t even know how to turn on a computer, much less use it,” she admits.

Mendoza overcame her fear of hardware with the help of fellow teachers trained through CLIC.

“Learning IT has become addictive. During the long vacation, teachers go to the computer lab everyday to build up their skills,” says Mendoza, who began teaching special education math classes with the help of CLIC.

The GEM Program also conducts training on basic PC repair and maintenance for students and teachers. If a CLIC computer breaks down, the school has personnel who can immediately troubleshoot the equipment.

Michael Langsdorf, GEM deputy program manager and workforce preparation advisor, points out that the CLIC project also demonstrates the pivotal role parents can play to help improve education services.

To ensure the sustainability of the computer and Internet resources, the school collects a minimal monthly fee through its PTA to cover the Internet subscription, power costs, and computer replacements parts.

“It is very important for all parents, regardless of their income, to be proactive in laying the foundations of their children’s future. This will help ensure the long-term benefit of the resources for the school and the community at large,” Langsdorf says.

Consortia Fabila, principal of the high school department of the Zamboanga State College of Marine Science and Technology, a CLIC partner since 2008, says: “PTA members are supportive of projects that will enhance the quality of education in the school. It’s not difficult at all to sell them a proposal as long as they know their children will improve as students.”

Ernesto Segura, a PTA member at Bagumbayan National High School, believes that improving their children’s access to computers and information technology would redound to the community’s economic development in the long run.

“We need these resources to catch up with the more progressive areas in the region,” says Segura.

He didn’t hesitate to donate part of his savings when informed that CLIC required PTAs to provide a 25-percent counterpart contribution to establish the school’s computer laboratory.

“These resources will help secure a brighter future for our children and help them get better jobs,” Segura says.

Ed-Louie Buisan and Mohammed Hussnam Pangadil, both alumni of Notre Dame Village High School, recall how the CLIC connection revolutionized learning for them.

“I became more informed and creative with the help of the Internet,” says Buisan, who later studied for a nursing degree, and competed in web design contests.

With the help of his CLIC background, Pangadil became a finalist in regional IT competitions held by technical schools, and hopes to start his own IT firm some day.

Evelyn Ogang, principal of Wa’an National High School in Davao City, points out that the CLIC project has not only helped Mindanao students upgrade their information technology skills but, more importantly, encouraged them to pursue their dreams.

“The computer resources motivated students to pursue higher education. Having been exposed to the unlimited resources available on the Internet, their outlook towards education and their future changed in a big way,” Ogang says.