School-In-A-Bag Reaches Far-Flung Schools in Southern Leyte

Students in remote schools in the province of Southern Leyte learn how to read and solve mathematical equations using interactive tech-powered educational tools found inside School-in-a-Bag (SIAB) packages. The latest deployment, sponsored by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in collaboration with PLDT Inc. (PLDT) and Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart), the Department of Education Region 8, and the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), marks the global agency’s fourth and largest deployment of SIAB kits to date.

“Our mandate is to ensure that every child has equal access to quality education, especially those who are in the most marginalized communities. We hope this support will help drive meaningful changes in classrooms. These devices are not meant to add to teachers’ burden, but to help ease their workload and improve the overall teaching and learning experience for both teachers and students,” said Jieun Yoon, Education Specialist from UNICEF Philippines.

The recent turnover benefits 97 multigrade schools in hard-to-reach areas across the province. It underscores the long-standing collaboration between the UNICEF and the PLDT Group in making education more accessible and inclusive for Filipino learners. Since 2019, the partners have deployed more than 300 SIAB kits to last-mile schools across the country—bringing learning opportunities closer to children in remote and underserved communities. The initiative reflects a shared vision that every child, regardless of location or circumstance, deserves equal access to quality basic education.

“With the School-in-a-Bag, we aim to ensure that high-quality digital tools are within children’s reach. We are grateful to have worked with UNICEF in reaching more remote schools in the region and bringing these portable digital classrooms directly to our learners,” said Roby A. Alampay, FVP and head of the Public Engagement and Corporate Communications Group at PLDT and Smart.

Benit Elementary School (Benit ES) in Malitbog, Southern Leyte, located about 38 kilometers from Maasin City, is among the beneficiaries of this year’s SIAB rollout. The support is expected to ease the burden of teachers due to personnel shortages.

“We are truly thankful to receive the SIAB funded by UNICEF. This is a big blessing for our learners, especially in multigrade classes where one teacher supports many students at once. With or without internet connectivity, teaching and learning can continue seamlessly because the kit also works offline. Our heartfelt thanks to UNICEF, PLDT, and Smart for helping us deliver accessible and continuous learning for our children,” said Merry Ann B. Tagon, teacher-in-charge at Benit ES.

The School-in-a-Bag is PLDT and Smart’s portable digital classroom that carries a laptop, a Smart Bro LTE Pocket WiFi with load allocation, ten tablets, a comprehensive teacher’s guide, and a collection of digital learning resources. These include contextualized Learning Activity Sheets (LAS) and #LearnSmart educational applications designed to build literacy and numeracy skills in the learners’ Mother Tongue.

Under its #KonektedForLearning pillar, the PLDT Group, together with institutions like UNICEF, continue to bridge the digital divide and champion inclusive education. The SIAB project also supports the country’s efforts to achieve UNSDG 4 on Quality Education by utilizing the power of technology to uplift communities and help create a future where no learner is left behind.