Thousands of Filipino Educators Upskilled Using Innovative Virtual Learning Platform, Buncee

March 2020- Microsoft recently partnered with Buncee, a global E-learning tool provider, to upskill 1,700 educators across the Philippines as part of Microsoft's Education Ambassadors (MEA) Program.

With the reopening of schools still on hold due to COVID-19, bolstering the digital skills of educators and enabling hybrid learning methods have never been more critical. The Microsoft Education Ambassadors Program aims to ensure that educators and students have the necessary tools and knowledge to adapt to this challenging situation.

Used in over 188 countries around the world, Buncee is an all-in-one digital multimedia solution designed to help educators give personalized learning and help their students achieve learning goals with ease. Buncee fosters creativity, engagement, and is integrated with Microsoft Teams, OneNote, Microsoft Word, and Immersive Reader, making it a seamless experience for both teachers and students. 

 

"Our partnership with Microsoft Education covers so many different capacities in the Philippines with the ambition to provide solutions to empower educators everywhere they need," said Eda Gimenez, Lead Trainer, and Strategy and Business Affairs Manager of Buncee. "Teachers will find that Buncee has been very successful in empowering them to make learning fun, especially for students with learning differences."

 

Microsoft’s Education Ambassadors Program for the Philippines seeks to empower schools, educators, and students to be future-ready through the proper use of technology. So far, the initiative has a footprint in all 17 regions in the country, enabling over 400,000 (and counting) educators and 50,000 schools. 

 

"Buncee shares our common goal of enabling remote learning for students all over the Philippines and the world. Their solution allows us to build future-ready skills in educators and students alike through an innovative platform that is accessible and easy to use” said Clarissa Segismundo, Microsoft Philippines Education Programs Lead. 

 

Huge acceptance from upskilling of Microsoft Education Ambassadors in the Philippines

 

Participants from the education sector, non-government organizations, and private companies were trained in Buncee’s dynamic and easy-to-use multimedia interface, allowing them to create more engaging and enriching learning experiences—whether online or in-person.

Topics such as Artificial Intelligence, Microsoft Power Platform, Diversity & Inclusion, and Accessibility was covered in the training to encourage a deeper use of technology and make it relevant to today's various demands.

"The partnership between Microsoft and Buncee will help us teach more effectively and even encourage our students to see the fun in learning" said one of the Microsoft Education Ambassadors who attended the session.

During a specific session called "Build MEA Up," Microsoft Education Ambassadors were taught how to maximize Buncee’s easy to use creation functionalities as well as classroom-ready template activities for more fun and creative learning.

"I'd love to collaborate more and more to engage our teachers and students on the power of Buncee and Microsoft, whether that's by collaboratively hosting virtual training or provisioning resources for classrooms, etc. We're eager for the collaborations we have lined up with the Microsoft Education team. Together, we can help push the boundaries of learning and make learning more inclusive for learners of all ages and capabilities” said Gimenez.

 

Moving forward, Gimenez said they want to replicate their success in other countries with remote and hybrid instruction in the Philippines. She added that Buncee is enthusiastic for more opportunities with Microsoft to support the educators in the country and make technology-driven learning more inclusive.