What if every classroom became a stronghold of critical thinking and fact-checking?
Could empowering educators with anti-disinformation strategies pave the way for a more informed society? These questions are what prompted the creation of Pinas Forward’s Guro ng Makabagong Mundo: Responding to the Modern World of Technology & Disinformation program.
Amidst the spread of disinformation, Pinas Forward has recognized the crucial role of educators as agents of influence in shaping the minds of future generations. By equipping teachers with the necessary tools and knowledge to combat disinformation, we envision a powerful ripple effect that extends beyond classrooms. Each teacher trained becomes a catalyst for change as they integrate prebunking strategies into their teaching methodologies. Through teacher training, we aim to lay the groundwork for a more resilient and democratic society, one classroom at a time.
Pinas Forward's Furthering Mission
Pinas Forward, a non-partisan, non-profit organization committed to fostering democratic values and digital citizenship, has a rich history of engaging the youth in initiatives such as GenLit, Ideathon, e-Boto, and the Fake News Slayer program.
In 2021, GenLit offered nation-building and voter education workshops designed to cultivate a new generation of intelligent, digitally aware leaders dedicated to positive social change. In 2023, the e-Bayanihan Ideathon, with the support of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, empowered young Filipinos to transform their concerns into innovative solutions using Design Thinking. Meanwhile, e-Boto, a non-partisan advocacy site that initially focused on providing verified information about candidates for the 2022 Philippine National Elections, continues to foster meaningful civic engagement and offers the Fake News Slayer program, empowering individuals to join the fact-checking community. These initiatives draw inspiration from the 2018 study, Architects of Networked Disinformation–one of our primary references– emphasized the importance of prebunking, as demonstrated in our modules like GenLit’s #DapatChoosy: Information Consumption on Social Networks, which discussed how social media bubbles distort our reality.
These initiatives, reflecting our steadfast commitment to building resilient public spheres, gained notable recognition as seen in publications such as “From Disinformation to Influence Operations: The Evolution of Disinformation in Three Electoral Cycles.” This spurred us to seek more information and data so we could deliver more substantive content to our audience.
Recognizing the resonance between our missions and visions, coupled with the need to approach the sector that significantly influences our youth audience, Pinas Forward strategically aligned with the team behind the Parallel Public Spheres research study to combat disinformation through the “Guro ng Makabagong Mundo: Responding to the Modern World of Technology and Disinformation” program.
Empowering Teachers Through "Guro ng Makabagong Mundo"
We recognized the necessity of not only reaching the youth directly but also igniting a snowball effect by targeting their immediate influencers – the educators, who, in turn, shape the minds of the youth. The “Guro ng Makabagong Mundo” program aimed to equip teachers with tools to counter disinformation and prebunking by incorporating curiosity, critical thinking, and willingness towards social participation.
The training program, implemented both face-to-face and virtually, received positive responses from 60 teachers of Ilaya Barangka Integrated School in the pilot run and an additional 873 in the virtual run from Quezon City and Central Luzon.
Both runs consisted of a gamified Local Disinformation Simulation & Situationer, a talk on Civic Engagement to Counteract Disinformation, and a Prebunking Through Student Activities workshop. First, the teachers took part in a local disinformation simulation where participants took on the roles of either trolls or responsible teachers. By playing the character of a troll in the virtual role play, participants gained insights into the strategies employed to spread false information and manipulate public opinion. Conversely, assuming the role of a responsible citizen allowed participants to explore effective methods for discerning truth from falsehood and mitigating the spread of disinformation.
Meanwhile, a debate activity was conducted in the face-to-face run and was then transformed into a debate board activity in the virtual run. It underscored that democratic debate lies in conflict resolution, consensus building, and openness to diversity, leading to informed decision-making. The talk on civic engagement discussed these key points: awareness of societal issues is fundamental to fostering civic engagement, particularly among students; and social media, while initially promising as an avenue for civic engagement, has been compromised by trolls and undermines healthy discourse, highlighting the importance of public education and classroom discussions as robust alternatives. Lastly, in the Prebunking Through Student Activities workshop, attendees were introduced to various prebunking formats such as including logic-based prebunking focusing on critical thinking, debate, and argumentation, source-based prebunking emphasizing media consumption, and fact-based prebunking grounded in research. These provided practical insights and activities for implementation for the teachers.
In the virtual session, Pinas Forward replicated the talks from the initial face-to-face run. It covered similar sessions, supplementary videos featuring activities from the in-person training. Participants were also tasked with selecting a prebunking strategy to implement in their teaching and presenting how they will use it innovatively in their own classrooms. We also opened a lesson plan contest for the participants, which awarded academic plans that incorporate prebunking strategies, civic engagement, and deliberative discourse through fostering their students’ online critical thinking, curiosity, and social interest/involvement.
Our virtual run reached a larger audience in a single session compared to the face-to-face counterpart. However, it was less interactive, lacking the immediate feedback and genuine engagement facilitated by face-to-face interactions. Nevertheless, the core learning points were retained in both. This consistency ensures that educators are equipped to combat disinformation and promote civic engagement.
Teachers acknowledged that the program’s objectives were very much needed by their students but expressed a lack of knowledge on addressing these needs. “Guro ng Makabagong Mundo” provided concrete steps and ideas for integrating fresh perspectives into their teaching methods, promoting a more interactive and innovative educational experience.
Scaling and Improvements: Towards a Sustainable Tomorrow
Through this experience, we learned two important lessons: (1) adopting a non-partisan identity proved invaluable, as sessions that push for social transformation must never be alienating, especially to those we hope to reach; and (2) there is an ongoing challenge on producing a more sustainable learning journey capable of creating a ripple effect.
While our one-time “Guro ng Makabagong Mundo” events were well-received, we do embrace the challenge of redesigning the program for greater impact. The redesign aims to:
- Leave a greater recall, ensuring lasting impact;
- Be more rewarding for teacher-learners; and
- Encourage more outputs, fostering a sense of ownership on the mission to fight disinformation.
As a step forward, a nationwide Guro ng Makabagong Mundo Teachers’ Summit is envisioned. With this nationwide event, we will award Continuing Professional Development (CPD) units to participant teachers. The summit will also include lesson design as a mandatory output, with monitoring to increase their professional competence and expertise.
As we continue with our mission, the commitment to building a resilient, informed, and empowered society remains unwavering. In each event, we strive to create a lasting impact on digital literacy, civic engagement, and the fight against disinformation.
You may reach out to Pinas Forward via email to info@pinasforward.ph or send a message on our Facebook page.
