CANON-SIKAP initiative:
Rethinking the future of schools in the digital age
The dramatic impact digital media is making on how we work, play and socialize, is motivating a growing number of learning institutions across the country to engage in serious efforts to transform the learning environment of the classroom.
As early as 2001, Andrea Mulrenin and Guntram Geser of Austria’s Salzburg Research have recognized this trend stating that the conversion of all sorts of cultural contents into bits and bytes opens up a completely new dimension of reaching traditional and new audiences by providing access to cultural heritage resources in ways unimaginable a decade ago.
Perhaps their opinion has inspired Canon Marketing ( Philippines), a global brand providing total imaging solution, partners MaryLindbert International, a multiawarded organization, and the Department of Education ( DepEd) to initiate last year, a comprehensive school program called “The CANON-School Immersion and Key Advancement Program (SIKAP)-Pages Beyond Words”.
The CANON-SIKAP-Pages Beyond Words focuses on the importance of effective archiving and history.
“The CANON-SIKAP-Pages Beyond Words advocacy seeks to help students to recognize and reinforce their knowledge and skills on both digital and physical archiving; providing students, teachers and even their parents a better perspective on how to take good care of pertinent and important documents that are relevant to their daily lives,” said Lim Kok Hin, Canon Marketing ( Philippines) president and CEO, during a stakeholders gathering held last Feb. 20 at DepEd National Capital Region in Quezon City.
History of imaging expertise
Also part of the advocacy is for the students, teachers and even parents to appreciate Canon brand’s history of imaging expertise, providing the consumers with high quality printing and scanning devices that would enable them to enrich their academic and creatives skills.
Lim KoK Hin explained: “Digital contents is no longer dependent upon spatial or temporal barriers as they can be stored and delivered in a variety of ways. As a result,
The CANON-SIKAP-Pages Beyond Words advocacy seeks to help students to recognize and reinforce their knowledge and skills on both digital and physical archiving LIM KOK HIN Canon Marketing (Philippines) president and CEO
digital content can now be conveniently browsed, be searched, or even collated. Most importantly, these information can be linked locally or globally—via the Internet—so they can be shared to more people.”
Through the stakeholders gathering, guests were able to witness the sealing of partnership, saw the clips of the workshops done for the past several months, demonstrations, as well as the awarding of an NCR wide scrapbook competition.
Teaching materials were also handed over to teachers and students during the stakeholders gathering.
“The digital revolution is transforming the way children and young students access information, communicate with each other and learn. But, so far, this revolution has not transformed most schools or most teaching and learning process in classrooms. We would like to consider CANON-SIKAP-Pages Beyond Words as an advocacy that will help schools, teachers, students and their parents how to take full advantage of cutting edge technologies that Canon could provide,” said Jose Abelardo Bolima, Canon Marketing ( Philippines) senior director.
Bolima reported that the current success of the advocacy has already gathered several supporters as numerous schools have already announced their intent to be included in the program.
The digital revolution is transforming the way children and young students access information, communicate with each other and learn.
Value of archiving
On his keynote speech DepEd Regional Director, Dr. Ponciano Menguito pointed the need to teach students the value of archiving as it complements the mission of DepEd to provide accessible and quality education for every learner. “This program, piloted in select schools in the National Capital Region, not only teaches archiving but also digital archiving and why it is crucial to efficiently get rid of the mountains of files piled up in offices.”
Digitalization can be understood better by breaking it down into three simpler components.
• Computerization, which is the process of taking activities or tasks not previously done on the computer and shifting them to being done on the computer.
• Electronization or the process of taking an item or process from paper-based form and electronically producing it.
• Digitization, which is the conversion of analogue information in any form to digital form with suitable electronic devices so that the information can be processed, stored and transmitted through digital circuits, equipment and networks.
For centuries, schools have always excelled in two of their fundamental missions: the creation of knowledge ( research and innovation) and the dissemination of knowledge (education and learning). However, a lot of schools have lagged out of their other mission, which is the preservation of knowledge.
The CANON-SIKAP-Pages Beyond Words intends to do something about this challenge.
“Technology have played a vital role in shaping the future for learning institutions. Forward-thinking education leaders realize that schools need to keep pace with a changing world. At the same time, these leaders also recognize the power of digital media to engage their teachers, students and even parents in learning that is relevant to them,” announced Bolima.