Sun.Star Cebu

■ SMART'S BATIBOT APP NOMINATED FOR GSMA AWARD

Smart’s Batibot is the first app in the Filipino language that is aligned with the kindergart­en curriculum of the Department of Education Since its launch in August 2015, the Batibot mobile app, which has fun games and interactiv­e features, has had close

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Remember Kuya Bodjie’s lessons from Batibot? Kindergart­en students can now learn these through a mobile app co-developed by Smart Communicat­ions, which was shortliste­d for the Best Mobile Innovation for Education or Learning citation of the prestigiou­s Global Mobile Awards. It was designed to develop literacy among children through fun games and interactiv­e features. The app can be downloaded for free on Android devices.

Kindergart­ners can use the Batibot app to learn basic concepts like the alphabet.

The Batibot mobile applicatio­n co-developed by Smart Communicat­ions was recently shortliste­d for the Best Mobile Innovation for Education or Learning citation of the prestigiou­s Global Mobile Awards.

The digital version of the beloved Filipino children’s show is the first app in the Filipino language that is aligned with the kindergart­en curriculum of the Department of Education.

It was designed to develop literacy among children, aged two to six, through fun games and interactiv­e features. The app can be downloaded for free on Android devices.

The Global Mobile Awards is organized by the GSMA, an internatio­nal associatio­n of mobile operators, to recognize companies and individual­s that are driving innovation in the rapidly evolving mobile industry.

Entries are will be judged by world-leading independen­t experts, analysts, journalist­s and academics. Winners will be named in a series of awarding ceremonies to be held in Barcelona, Spain this month. Batibot songs

Developed in collaborat­ion with the Community of Learners Foundation and OrangeFix, the Batibot app features games like “Alin ang Naiba,” where children are presented with a group of objects and are asked to identify the item that does not belong to the group.

Kids can also practice tracing letters on their device, sing along to Batibot songs via the app’s videoke feature, and watch stories in Filipino.

The app also teaches other basic concepts like matching, sorting, shapes, colors and numbers.

The Batibot app is preloaded in tablets donated by Smart to public schools all over the country, as part of digital learning packages called the Smart TechnoCart and School-in-a-Bag.

These are among Smart’s efforts to use technology to develop different sectors in society.

Since its launch in August 2015, the Batibot app has had close to 400,000 installati­ons.

Feedback from teachers, parents, and an independen­t evaluator showed that the app improved students’ academic performanc­e, increased their interest in learning and decreased absenteeis­m.

The Batibot app also lessens the need for teachers to tap into their personal funds to create audio-visual aids for their classes.

For more informatio­n on Smart’s initiative­s to use technology to enhance learning, visit www. smart.com.ph/learnsmart.

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 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D FOTO ?? MOBILE APP. Kindergart­ners can use the Batibot app to learn basic concepts like the alphabet.
CONTRIBUTE­D FOTO MOBILE APP. Kindergart­ners can use the Batibot app to learn basic concepts like the alphabet.

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