Students in Puntalinao National High School in Davao Oriental participate in the iSchools Project’s Computer and Internet Literacy Course held early this year. (iSchools.ph)
(Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in this piece are mine alone and should not be construed as being shared and/or endorsed by any member of the iSchools Project staff.)
Save for its hundreds of employees and thousands of its beneficiaries—mainly kids from far-flung public high schools—very few know what the iSchools Project is all about.
It’s not surprising.
Most of the staff—including partners from state colleges and universities across the country—are hardly driven by fame, professional recognition, or, for that matter, money.
Many only seek the satisfaction of a job well done, a task which involves enabling a more wholistic approach to computer use and technology. [See: iSchools Project]
Besides ensuring the distribution of free, internet-enabled computers to public high schools, the iSchools Project also trains kids to use Open Source software—discouraging dependence on Microsoft—and helps parents and communities maintain and preserve their equipment as well as provide for their upkeep.
So far, the project has benefitted more than a thousand public high schools, according to iSchools Project Manager Antonette Torres said.
Twelve more schools are set to receive their computer packages, which include an airconditioner, an overhead projector, a server, and a laptop, she added. She also explained that these will be paid for by savings incurred by the project during the previous years.
In short, the iSchools Project is one of the coolest programs the Philippine government has ever undertaken.
Of course I’m biased.
I have been employed as one of the project’s consultants.
And as a result, I have encountered and heard about teachers and experts who have risked typhoons, braved natural disasters, and, most importantly, managed to comply with the death-defying rules of the Commission on Audit, just to proceed with the project.
This blog entry is dedicated to them, especially those who were able to do all three. Ma’ams and Sirs, I’m glad to know you all survived. Sa uulitin!
1) The iSchools Project is still alive.
But whether it’s still kicking is a separate matter altogether.
After all, when the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) was shut down in June, the possibility of extending the project (which is under the Commission) was scuttled as well.
Currently, employment contracts of vital personnel—excluding mine, for reasons apparent to others—have been extended.
Their duties include ensuring that computers in beneficiary schools are up and running and are ready to be turned over and/or fall under the management of the Department of Education.
Fortunately, for the iSchools Project staff, that’s not so difficult.
2) The iSchools Project staff remains committed to their work.
Last year, a computer professor from the Batangas State University got into a minor accident.
Upon arriving by boat late one evening in Batangas from Mindoro (where he helped attend to the needs of a beneficiary school), he boarded a tricycle home.
He was in a rush. He had to attend an urgent national iSchools Project meeting in Tacloban City the next day. And that meant leaving his place at two in the morning to get to the Manila airport two hours later so that he could catch the early flight to Tacloban.
Things didn’t go as planned.
A few minutes after climbing beside the tricycle driver, another tricycle rammed into his left leg. To cut the story short, he arrived in Tacloban with a wide grin on his face and a limp on his left leg. I’m not sure whether he was able to claim insurance from the project for that.
Why?
He didn’t even bother bringing that up while he and I were having supper with the others. That’s the kind of dedication these people had.
3) The iSchools Project staff bears with delayed salaries.
Late last year, our salaries got delayed for more than three months. It was the second such delay for me because my salary had already gotten delayed by 30 days a few months before.
Why weren’t salaries given on time? Three letters: DBM (Department of Budget and Management).
Budget officials reportedly temporarily withheld fund releases so that these would not benefit questionable projects, especially those implemented during the previous administration. But the iSchools Project wasn’t like that. Except that it suffered from the delayed fund release. As a result, it increased the staff member’s debts and cut off my beer money.
But that didn’t discourage the staff from working even though certain consultants whined and complained a lot more than the others.
4) The iSchools Project has beneficial affiliate programs.
As mentioned previously, the iSchools Project is not just about distributing free computers to far-flung public high schools. An affiliate project, the eSkwela Project teaches computer skills to out of school youth and interested adults.
Participants in Compostela Valley are all smiles after they resurrect a dead computer using Linux. (iSchools.ph)
Another project, a PC Recycling program, hosts a regional meetup that teaches participants to cobble together working parts of broken computers to build a completely new unit. The same initiative helps schools dispose of computer equipment in ways Greenpeace would approve. [See: eSkwela Project, PC Recycling]
Let’s not forget Camp Blog, handled by my ex-boss, Christian Placido Calma. [See: Camp Blog]
Camp Blog teaches students how to blog, take videos and photos, and even bring their school publications online.
5) The iSchools Project strengthens the skills and capabilities of other state universities and colleges.
Anytime anything needs to be studied or researched by the government, it looks to its own premier university, the University of the Philippines (UP), for assistance.
This has created an unfair advantage for UP over its fellow SUCs.
It has always received more than its fair share of grants and funding which, in turn, further broadens its capability.
But the iSchools Project has given other SUCs a chance to settle the score.
iSchools has chosen SUCs as its partners in implementing its projects, especially for schools within their proximity.
The project allows more funds for the SUCs which also increases the skills of its teachers and experts, which in turn will be beneficial for their students. Seriously, can you name any other government project that is as cool as the iSchools Project?
I myself can’t think of anything else at all.
But then again, as I said, I’m biased.
