The Department of Education (DepEd) on Monday urged public schools to maximize the use of digital tools as the agency advances learner-centric reforms.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara made the call as the DepEd joined the celebration of the International Day of Education at Gen. Pio del Pilar National High School.

In a statement, Angara said digital platforms allow students to thrive in engaging learning environments.

“So, by all means, let’s make use of the tools being made available to you by the Department to maximize our students’ learning. We really want to make things more fun, more engaging. Because we realize this is a system that we all co-create together. And it’s for the benefit of everyone,” he said.

These include instructional and interactive resources developed by Khan Academy Philippines, Canva, Google, and Microsoft.

Learners and teachers in public schools can freely access these tools as the DepEd and partner stakeholders continue to enhance teaching deliveries.

Angara also stressed how learner-centric the reform agenda is – up to the very foundational learner level.

This can be seen in the “historic” expansion of the School-Based Feeding program, he said.

“We will have universal feeding for all public schools in the Philippines for kindergarten and Grade 1, for 180 days for the full school cycle. For the first time in Philippine history, the budget is now almost 10 times more,” Angara said. (PNA)