Filipino wins Microsoft global excellence award

First posted 04:59pm (Mla time) Aug 21, 2005
INQ7.net

A FILIPINO’S initiative to improve the state of public school education in the Philippines has won for him a slot in the Circle of Excellence Awards of the world’s biggest software company.
Sam Jacoba is the only Filipino employee of Microsoft Corp. from among 16 in the Asia-Pacific region and 220 worldwide to be recognized for the Microsoft COE Awards 2005. He was recognized by Microsoft for his groundbreaking work in Partners in Learning (PiL), a global initiative by the software giant to invest 250 million dollars in five years to K12 education of countries worldwide. The program is already on its third year of implementation starting this July, marking a new fiscal year for Microsoft. Currently, 99 countries have ongoing PiL initiatives.

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO and President, describes the COE Awards as Microsoft’s highest award to its employees worldwide.

“It recognizes contributions to Microsoft’s success in achieving key objectives such as enhancing the Customer and Partner Experience, advancing competitive initiatives and improving financial results. The award represents Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to recognizing our finest contributors and top performers,” Ballmer stated in a letter sent to all COE 2005 winners during Microsoft’s Annual Global Summit in Atlanta.

Jacoba, a journalist before he joined Microsoft Philippines in 1997, said that the success of PiL hinges on partnerships, teamwork and service.

Some of the key partners of PiL include the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), learn.ph, Philippine Normal University (PNU), Cebu Normal University (CNU) and the Coalition for Better Education (CBE). Hundreds of universities and colleges also support the program nationwide for teacher training.

“This for me is a team award because PiL is essentially about partnerships. Without the guidance of the advisory council and our allies on the ground, we wouldn’t have been able to achieve this,” Jacoba said. “It validates that we are on the right track as far as PiL’s implementation in the Philippines is concerned.”

This includes a pioneering effort to provide an online Masteral Program on Instructional Design for qualified teachers of the Department of Education (DepEd). Dr. Ester Velasquez, CNU President, said that PiL was able to uniquely address the fundamental needs of public school teachers to integrate technology in teaching.

“The beauty of this masteral program is that it is action-research based, which means that the teachers do not have to stop teaching to gain a masteral degree,” Dr. Velasquez said. Dr. Velasquez is a member of the PiL Advisory Council. Currently, there are 45 PiL scholars making up the first batch of this online masteral program.

PiL in the Philippines was able to transcend boundaries. Dr. Eddie Alih, Chancellor of Mindanao State University and also a member of the PiL Advisory Council said that PiL is within the imperatives of Islamic teachings to fulfill the rationality of human faculty. Dr. Alih and the PiL team are working on Project Iqra for Tawi-Tawi. Iqra means seek knowledge.

“The search for knowledge is a major religious struggle,” Dr. Alih said. “It is for this reason that the Islamic world welcomes the wonders of today’s information technology. PiL is considered a part of the Muslim intellectual pursuit for a better quality of life such as scientific tools and processes could possible offer.”

Another key result that differentiated PiL in the Philippines is the creation of an online community for teachers. The PiL website (www.pil.ph) shows that there are already more than 3,100 members of the PiL teacher community. More than 200 of these teachers have online portfolios, according to Fr. Jomar Legaspi, president of learn.ph and chairman of the PiL Advisory Council.

Jacoba, who also received recognition from Microsoft in the year 2000 for his outstanding achievement in anti-piracy marketing, expects PiL to train around 50,000 public school teachers when the grant expires in 2008. By this time, he envisions that a nationwide education system will have been set up that will facilitate a sustainable ICT-education environment for teachers and students.

“Through PiL, I hope that we will be able to help the Philippines to produce a globally competitive workforce. Filipinos can be world-class across all fields. We just need to give them the right tools so that they may realize their full potential,” Jacoba said.

http://news.inq7.net/infotech/index.php?index=1&story_id=47608

Escape from Yesterworld

Last night at about 1:30am, I got a call from our client, made few negotiations and agreements, and finally, the web development project was awarded to us! Thanks to tere and joy for helping me with the proposal. Watch out for www.subicbay.com.ph!

Saturday, July 16, 2005 we had our student orientation and acquaintance party aka BLAZE. BLAZE were divided into two sets, the 1st set is the seminar and the other set is the party. We had the 1st set within the school premises while the other set at Willis' Concert Bar.

It was a very fun and worthwhile event teaching the students on how to Break the Limits Toward Academic Zeal And Excellence! That’s the meaning of BLAZE, btw.

Thanks to Hannibal for conceptualizing, planning and executing the entire program!

We had orientation, introduction of the Center’s staff, brief review of school policies and games. At the end of each game, lessons and stories were told.

The lessons were:
1. An ASTIG finds PLEASURE in being a WINNER.
     Where
        ASTIG means
                 Actively participate.
                 Sprightly think.
                 Time frame endeavors.
                 Inquire and Inform.
                 Give my best shot.
        PLEASURE
               Play, Laugh, Enjoy, Amaze, Sleep, Ü (smile), Relax, and Exhale and Inhale
               Note that pleasure without conscience distracts you, so it should always come with conscience.

2. Some lessons learned from Mr. Francis Kong of Business Matters were shared.
      Power of Perspective – Whatever You Are Looking For, You Will Find It
      Power of Focus - Wherever You are, Be There
      Power of Conficence – If You Think You Can, You Can. But if You Think You Can’t…You’re Right

Here are some pictures from the event.

Hannibal on his BLAZE presentation.


Here are the students w/ Joy as their group leader after the Adjective Circle Game.


michelle and trixie as hosts for the night event


students ronald, grace lene, arby and kayo performed that night


here's the real BLAZE, Bacardi Rum on Fire!
Our complimentary drinks that night from Willis' Concert Bar Management.

joe4th's 1st blog. yahoo!!!
http://www.thespoke.net/MyBlog/man_at_the_third_row/MyBlog.aspx

more pictures from zamboanga city
abong abong park...

the cross


the tree on the top of a hill, on a top of another hill.


Cottages. Love the morning sun!

pasonanca park

boy scout camp


Tree house @ pasonanca park.

city proper

This is the city boulevard. They locally call it as the “Boulevard of Broken Dreams.” I never asked why.


zamboanga port


zamboanga city hall

la vista del mar

Blogging from an internet café in my building…  this is the loneliest day of my life. I called almost everyone on my phonebook and no one is available for a lunch date with me…

what made me think that pushing the mouse button harder will make uploading faster??? :D

anyway, I asked a team member of the webbies to create our own version of IC 2005 Web Dev Brochure. Here it is…

below is our private version but I’ll let you view it as well. eNjoy!

Finally, the Web Development results were announced! And my favorite team, the webbies got the third place! You can view tere’s blog here.

Anyway, we just had our dinner at Gerry’s grill to celebrate their victory.

from left: hans, tere, joe4th, michelle, joy and trixie. i was the one holding the camera, btw. :D

You can see the webbies here at their "development center"...

 

Below are two pictures from zamboanga city.

la vista del mar. loved the vinta's layag!


aptech computer ducation zamboanga city team
aaron at the back, (from left) myself, ms juvy, fhae, jecca and louie.
the two girls in blue (from left) ms yolynne and weng.

ta escribi yo estaba ba na citio de flores (thanks to aaron tahir for the translation).

I arrived here last Sunday, may 29 and I’ll be staying till 11th of june. I was asked to train instructors of Aptech Computer Education Z.C. and their affiliate school, ZAEC (now University of Zamboanga).

Forgot how wonderful it is to teach VB6!

Anyway, I am staying at ZAEC staff house, which looked so small but amazingly, it has eight bedrooms!

I’ve been at the city proper and the boulevard. I haven’t really gone around yet… before my departure, hopefully. i admire the sky here, it looks alot milky! or maybe it's just the weather...

This is it for now. More to come (once I find time, of course) later. btw, down there is the only picture i can share as of the moment. hope to have more pictures next week.

Ajah to our Phil web dev.t team! :D

congratulations to everyone especially to tere, sir popet and ms. joy!
and to sir hans as well!!! go team! aja! hehe..
all the best!


http://www.thespoke.net/MessageBoard/MessageBoard_ViewThread.aspx?postid=2929

Garret Graff, the first blogger who was officially issued a White House press pass. Read more at time magazine online and even more at Garret Graff's blog.

Nothing much to blog about… :D

All I remember doing this day was eating!!! Haha! There’s this new place in Subic Bay CBD that we frequent… no, let us say… obsessing! yah, more like it. We are obsessing this place and trying every product they are pulling out of their huge oven!

Oh, I got a significant phone call, at least. The BIG BOSS called (for the nth time!) and he’d like us to design an all-in-one employee management system for them. I told him to show the money first! :P kidding. Seriously, I told him to have a budget approve for it first. It’s hard to plan and create an initial study and design for something, which will not push thru because of budget constraints…

It could’ve been a great day…

Last night, I was finally able to break my hectic work schedule by going out with my friends. We went to jax comedy bar and after that, we went to erika’s to belt out songs. we finished at about 4AM. Before going up my dorm, I picked up few items from a 24-hour grocery store nearby. When I was in my room, I immediately arranged the things I bought, as well as my bag. I segregated the receipts & brochures and put them in one holder, the coins which I put in a coin purse and all the paper bills which I put in a long white envelope since I don’t have my wallet with me (I almost lost my wallet last last week. Good thing my sister found it in my dad’s car). After arranging my things, I went to the bathroom and then get myself ready for bed. When I woke up at about 10am, I had myself ready to head to the office and I later found out that the envelope where I put all my paper bills were missing! Ouch! That’s more or less five thousand bucks! Whoever has it now, well…. What can I say? Enjoy my money! Huhuhuhu. I cried over it already and that's enough. I know i can never have it back.

or maybe i can have it back... maybe we will win the bidding set on march 31 and boss will give a a bonus ic cold cash! oh, i hope so...