BDO Foundation teaches financial education to kids through storytelling

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Saving money is one of the most important aspects in our life. Teaching kids how to save money may seem like a tough task. How can you make your child’s understanding of money fun and accessible? It’s an investment in knowledge which truly pays the best interest.

There are ways to empower the next generation, and that starts by teaching children the importance of saving from a young age.

A boy who succeeds in getting his dream toy, an enterprising high school student who uses her creativity to earn income, and a modified version of a well-loved folk song—these are just some of the content used to teach youngsters the value of saving money and preparing for the future.

Gandang Girlie Video - “Ganda ni Girlie,” describes how a high school student’s resourcefulness and creativity help her earn income even in her youth. 

The materials, which come in the form of videos, are part of the training tools developed by BDO Foundation, the Department of Education (DepEd) and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to promote financial education among public school students from kindergarten all the way to senior high school,

Savings from her earnings 

“Young people are into watching videos. We thought it would be best to come up with financial literacy videos that would not just entice, but more importantly, educate them,” said BDO Foundation president Mario Deriquito.

He also said the strategy to leverage storytelling and music was meant to provide entertainment while educating children on the very important subject of personal finance.

“The beauty of stories and songs is that they are easy to remember. Kids appreciate the materials better because they can easily imagine being the characters in the stories. This makes the materials so powerful in teaching and inspiring,” Deriquito continued.

Finishing touches for her springless notebook business

Five financial education videos for students have been released to date. These aim to catch students’ attention and enable them to learn about the value of money at the same time.

The said tools, developed by BDO Foundation in partnership with DepEd and BSP, were deployed to public schools nationwide by virtue of DepEd Memo No. 32, series of 2019, signed by DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones.

Newspaper fund drive from her neighbors & sells it to nearby junkshops

The videos include “Walk Hard for the Money,” which tells of an elementary school boy who chooses to walk to school instead of commuting despite being given allowance. Along with other money-making efforts, these eventually pay off, allowing him to buy an electric scooter, which he later rides to school.

Another video, “Bente Bente,” conveys the same message to young school children to the tune of “Tong Tong Pakitong-kitong.”

Inspired by the Filipino folk song Magtanim ay Di Biro, “Umutang ay Di Biro” also uses music to tell older students to save their allowance, limit spending and pay debts on time.

Ice Candy business during weekends

“Ganda ni Girlie,” meanwhile, describes how a high school student’s resourcefulness and creativity help her earn income even in her youth. 

“Save to Have a Million: Junior Edition” discusses the right attitudes in handling money through a game show.

Other than the videos for the students, the financial literacy learning tools also include lesson plans, discussion guides, and financial education videos for teachers and non-teaching personnel.

“It is very important that the students start the habit of saving while they’re young,” Deriquito emphasized. 

“This is our strategy for greater financial inclusion among Filipinos in the long run.”

A survey conducted by global financial services firm Standard & Poor’s revealed that only 25% of Filipino adults are financially literate. This is lower than the global average of 33%.

Barbecue Outside her village area with the help of her relatives taking turns in grilling then selling it. 

“We hope that the videos encourage the students not just to live for the moment, but prepare for their future by saving and spending wisely now,” Deriquito added.

BDO Foundation will be developing more financial education materials together with DepEd and BSP in the future.

The foundation also has financial education programs for overseas Filipino workers and their families, army personnel and their families, and small farmers. Its programs will further be discussed in a web series on YouTube.

BDO Foundation is the corporate social responsibility arm of BDO Unibank.

Sharp Calculators launched the search for Ten Outstanding Young Mathematicians

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‪The Search for Ten Outstanding Young Mathematicians has been launched recently and is open to all public and private high school students in the National Capitol Region. The Sharp TOYM has been announced at the media launched held at the Makati Shangrila Hotel last Friday, September 12, 2014, hosted by Atom Araullo. 

The importance of mathematics has never been greater than now and for the foreseeable future and is crucial for a wide array of analytical, technological, scientific, and economic applications. 

The search for Ten Outstanding Young Mathematicians seeks to promote the development of science culture among young Filipinos by recognizing their accomplishment in the field of mathematics and inspire more students to be better at Math. 

Six years ago, Sharp Calculators through Collins International Trading Corporation launched the SHARP Minds Program to help uplift the standard of education in the Philippines particularly in teaching Math subjects.

Partnering with two of the biggest Mathematics organizations in the country, Mathematics Trainers Guild, Philippines (MTG) and Mathematics Teachers Association of the Philippines (MTAP), the SHARP Minds Program sponsored Mathematics activities and programs in member schools with the goal of recognizing the sharpest math minds and transforming the pedagogy of mathematics teaching in the Philippines.

This year, Sharp Calculators furthers its advocacy by partnering with more educational institutions such as the Department of Education-National Capital Region (DepEd-NCR), Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI), Mathematics Trainers’ Guild Philippines (MTG), Mathematical Society of the Philippines (MSP), Philippine Council of Mathematics Educators, Inc. (MathTEd) as it launches the very first search for the TEN OUSTANDING YOUNG MATHEMATICIANS (TOYM) from National Capital Region.

“With TOYM Awards, Sharp Calculators aims to foster the academic excellence of the Filipino Youth in Math as we recognize their extraordinary math skills to motivate them further in becoming the future think tanks of this country. We also hope to raise the status of mathematics in society -- to stimulate the interest of the students, the academic and the general public to the significance of Math in the development of the society,” said Collins International Trading Corporation’s Assistant Vice President Mr. Lucero Ong.

“Notable Filipino mathematicians such as Raymundo Favila, Casimiro del Rosario, Gregorio Y. Zara, Amador Muriel, Tito A. Mijares and Jose A. Marasigan have all been recognized for their contributions to diverse fields of physics, astronomy, biophysics and biotechnology. Who knows maybe the next great Mathematician would be among our TOYM awardees,” Mr. Ong added.

The search is open to all public and private high school students in the National Capital Region who have completed at least two years of high school. They must be Filipino citizens, either naturalized or born. The nominee must be among the Top 3 students in math as certified by the school principal and the award will be based primarily on the nominee’s performance on national and international competitions.

A recommendation from School principal / Mathematics head with supporting documents will be the basis of judging. For students who are chosen to the top 20, each involvement on activities included in the recommendation of the principal/math head or other recognized authority will be reviewed and assessed by judges/co-presenters. The said recommendations will be the basis of the judges’ questions for the panel interview. 

The Deliberation/ Final interview of finalist will be conducted by representatives from Department of Education NCR, DOST-SEI, MTG Philippines, MSP, MathTed

The TOYM awardees will be the first batch of Sharp Calculators’ Youth Ambassadors that will inspire and encourage the Filipino youth to strive and achieve academic excellence through school tours and mathematics symposiums. They will be receiving plaque of excellence, cash prizes and gifts from Sharp Calculators and sponsors.

The deadline for nominations will be on January 5, 2015, with the awarding ceremonies scheduled on February 2015.

Nomination kits are now available at selected National Book Store Branches in National Capital Region or can be downloaded through www.sharpminds.ph For more information please contact Sharp Calculators at 681-6161/646-2867 and look for Ms. Mary Rose Rocha or Ms. Clara Camille Ocampo.

NOMINATION MECHANICS:

1.     Open to all public and private high school students in the National Capital Region who have   completed at least two years of high school. They must be Filipino citizen either naturalized     or born.

2.      Nominee must be among the Top 3 students in math as certified by the school principal.

3.  The award will be based primarily on the nominee’s performance on national and     international competition. These competitions must be recognized by the Department of   Education or Department of Science and Technology.

4.     Presentations or publications of original work in mathematics are desirable.

5.   Students who contribute to the promotion of Mathematics and show leadership skills are desirable. Good moral character will be considered

CRITERIA FOR JUDGING:

CRITERIA	PERCENT
Performance in Mathematics Competition	75%
Research and Publications in Mathematics	10%
Leadership and Promotion of Mathematics	15%
TOTAL	100%

a.   Performance in Mathematics Competitions 75%

Nominee’s performance on international, national and regional mathematics competitions that are recognized by the Department of Education and Department of Science and Technology.

b.   Research and Publications in Mathematics 10%

c.   Leadership and Involvement in Promotion of Mathematics

A recommendation from School principal / Mathematics head with supporting documents will be the basis of judging. For students who are chosen to the top 20, each involvement on activities included in the recommendation of the principal/math head or other recognized authority will be reviewed and assessed by judges/co-presenters. The said recommendations will be one of the bases of the judges’ questions for the panel interview

SCREENING PROCEDURES

The screening procedure is summarized in the diagram below. All nominees will undergo a pre-screening process by pre-screening committee. On the basis of a nominee’s performance in mathematics competitions and their research and publications, 20 nominees will be selected for an interview by a panel of judges. Interview questions may be based on the nominee’s involvement in activities that promote mathematics, as indicated in (1) the recommendation from the school principal/mathematics head, (2) the nominee’s essay, and (3) other information submitted.  

Atom Araullo

·   In the latest World Economic Forum WEF Global Competitiveness Report for 2013-2014, the Philippines has been ranked 96^th out of 142 countries in perceived quality of Math and Science education. The survey questioned business executives around the world to rate the quality of education, among other things, in their respective countries.

·     

It is a considerable improvement from being ranked 115th(WEF 2011-1012), but still far behind our other Asian counterparts such Indonesia (35th), Japan (34th), Malaysia (27th), Taiwan (11th) Hongkong (10th). Singapore continues to be on top of the list.

Dr. Raymundo Favilais famous for advancing the knowledge and education of math throughout the Philippines contributing to many fields of mathematics including theoretical physics, geometry, algebra and trigonometry.

Casimiro del Rosario received the Presidential Award in 1965 in honor of his achievements in astronomy, meteorology and physics. He also researched soft X-rays, which helped bring him national acclaim.

Amador Murielfounded the Quantum Theory of Turbulence, contributed to theoretical physics, kinetic equations, stellar dynamics and self-gravitation.

The works of Tito A. Mijares have been internationally published in the Annals of Mathematical Statistics with his research into multivariety hypothesis and its analysis. He also serves as the executive director of the National Census and Statistics Office as well as deputy director-general of the National Economics Development Authority.

Jose A. Marasigan was among those who launched the Philippine Mathematical Olympiad and created the Program for Excellence in Mathematics. He has received a number of mathematical honors, including the Outstanding Young Scientist Award from the National Academy of Science and Technology.

*http://www.ask.com/question/list-of-filipino-mathematicians

Luistro encourages private schools to focus on the needs of their locality

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“Come up with relevant programs that will allow your graduates to work in the very city where they were born.”

Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Br. Armin Luistro FSC encourages private schools to focus on the needs of their locality.  He added that schools can help in its respective communities by providing job opportunities for its graduates; thereby, preventing them from being uprooted from where they were. He said that “it will be a challenge that is worth the while of institutions that truly wish to anchor their offerings to the needs of a locality.”

“You will notice that in the past, if you review programs, both high school and tertiary, of both public and private schools, we’ve had the phenomenon of graduates of various programs and careers moving to the big cities. And therefore cutting them off from the very schools and communities where they studied.”

During his keynote address for a two-day conference on the Senior High School (SHS) program organized by the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP), Luistro explained that revolutionizing education by creating programs that answer the needs of the community will open venues to sustainable jobs for the alumni.

“Come up with relevant programs that will allow your graduates to work in the very city where they were born,” said Luistro. He added that schools can help in its respective communities by providing job opportunities for its graduates; thereby, preventing them from being uprooted from where they were. He said that “it will be a challenge that is worth the while of institutions that truly wish to anchor their offerings to the needs of a locality.”

Towards reforms in education 

The education chief also encouraged the private schools to “engage the Department regarding the remaining areas in the SHS curriculum, the other tracks that may not yet be complete.” He added, “You do not have to wait for the final and official curriculum to be out. The Department is happy to be engaged by schools in this regard.”

Aside from this, he emphasized the importance of having educational reforms that would impact the learners. He said, “Like many Filipinos, part of our dreams and hopes is to institutionalize reforms that will really matter. It is easy to change things around. The most difficult thing to do is to ensure that those are the things of great priority.” He said that despite the transition that would take place in education, the learners were still the top priority.

He highlighted the milestones on the implementation of K to 12 program. One of the highlights he noted was the formal institutionalization of the program itself by the virtue of Republic Act 10533, also known as the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013, which was signed in 2013. 

“The Philippine now belongs to the community of nations with at least 12 years of pre-university with the passing of that law. For those of you who have international linkages, it has implications with regard to the mobility of the students and teachers as well as exchange programs between you and your international partners,” he addressed the private schools. In addition to this, he said that K to 12 program also “institutionalized Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE).” He said, “This main principle of MTB-MLE is to start the learner in a language that he or she is comfortable with.”

He added that the K to 12 curriculum and learning materials were available for download on the DepEd website. More than this, he stressed that the Department would “continue to reach out to private schools” to help in the alignment of their plans and programs for Senior High School.