Globe Telecom and Facebook have joined hands to promote digital literacy and online responsibility among students, teachers, and the general public through the Digital Thumbprint Program which advocates cyber wellness and judicious use of the Internet.
This was announced by Globe and Facebook at the Globe Media Excellence Awards – Visayas, an annual event which upholds press freedom and media excellence by recognizing outstanding traditional and digital media practitioners.
Inspired by Optus’ Digital Thumbprint in-school program in Australia, DTP was introduced by Globe in the Philippines early last year to educate as many Filipino youth on the importance of responsible digital citizenship through a series of workshops.
So far, the DTP has reached 17,510 public and private high school students while 1,842 public high school teachers have been empowered to teach the program to their students. Based on the latest impact assessment conducted by Karrikins Group, 94.4% of the participants found DTP relevant while 93.7% said it helped them build confidence in their online activities. Teachers also agreed that their students were highly engaged in the sessions.
Realizing the importance of DTP in lifting digital literacy in the Philippines, Facebook has committed to co-develop a module with Globe for DTP that will equip the public with skills to discern the authenticity and reliability of online information, and act with empathy online.
Facebook has also committed to further enrich the content of the first three DTP modules which deal with online security and safety, responsible online behavior and protection against cyberbullying, and empowerment through technology and innovation. Each module was designed to increase students’ knowledge of digital citizenship
Clair Deevy, Head of Community Affairs for APAC, said “At Facebook, helping build an informed community is critical to our mission of giving people the power to build community and bring the world closer together. We want to empower people to identify misleading news content when they encounter it — on any platform. To do this, we need to work together with tech companies, media companies, newsrooms and classrooms. Here in the Philippines, we are working with Globe and others to help create a more informed community.”
“We are glad to collaborate with Facebook in further strengthening DTP by educating the youth and communities about digital truth while promoting values that respect the dignity of each person online. In an age where there is easy access to all types of information via the internet, it is incumbent upon us to help educate the public especially the youth about proper online behavior. One of our sustainability focus areas is creating a digital nation. Globe as a technology company acknowledges the importance of having the right balance of empowerment that technology brings and the responsibility that goes with it,” said Yoly Crisanto, Globe SVP for Corporate Communications.
With over 58% of Filipinos using the Internet daily at an average of 4.17 hours, and over 60% of Filipinos now having access to data-capable phones, Globe sees it as an opportune time to advocate responsible use of the information highway and protect its customers against misinformation and online threats.
Schools and organizations that would like to avail and schedule facilitation of the free workshops can email bridgecom@globe.com.ph. Workshops also include a trainers program to equip aspiring facilitators to carry out the workshops independently.