COMMUNITY | PLDT, Smart train Siena College teachers on disability inclusion
The session covered different types of disabilities, reasonable support and accommodations, unconscious bias, misconceptions and appropriate language when interacting with persons with disabilities.
Teachers and support personnel at Siena College of Taytay in Rizal underwent disability sensitivity training as part of efforts to make the school more inclusive for learners with disabilities.
PLDT and Smart, in partnership with Adaptive Technology for Rehabilitation, Integration, and Empowerment of the Visually Impaired (ATRIEV), conducted the workshop for faculty and support personnel of the college.
The session covered different types of disabilities, reasonable support and accommodations, unconscious bias, misconceptions and appropriate language when interacting with persons with disabilities.
“Inclusivity is part of our agenda,” said Sr. Rosalea Busilac, O.P., president of Siena College of Taytay. “The training is especially helpful for our teachers because it gives them the opportunity to really deepen their understanding of learners with disabilities.”
Busilac said the workshop also provided an opportunity for the college to identify improvements to its facilities to better serve students with disabilities.
ATRIEV facilitators, who are persons with disabilities themselves, led discussions and role-playing activities designed to help participants understand the challenges faced by persons with disabilities and how to provide appropriate assistance.
“The seminar made us realize that we have to be more understanding and considerate of everyone’s situation,” said Ann Dolores, secretary to the College Dean of the Service Education Department. “Instead of expecting students with disabilities to adjust to us, we also need to learn how to adjust and provide the support they need.”
Marilu L. Sablayan of the Registrar’s Office and president of the Auxiliary Support Personnel Association said the training also covered communicating with neurodivergent learners.
“Walking in their shoes, the workshop taught us how to help students with different disabilities,” Sablayan said. “I also learned how to communicate and relate with neurodivergent learners, what to do when they’re under stress.”
Jerome Mauricio of the Office of the Prefect of Student Formation and Activities and a lecturer at the College of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Management said the experiences shared by persons with disabilities prompted educators to reconsider how they teach.
“Training like this opens our minds to the reality of learners with disabilities,” Mauricio said. “The experiences shared by people with disabilities show us what is possible and help us rethink how we teach. We are now looking at how we can redesign our curriculum to make our classes more inclusive.”
Stephanie V. Orlino, AVP and Head of Stakeholder Engagement at PLDT and Smart, said the initiative forms part of the companies’ efforts to expand educational opportunities for underrepresented groups.
“We believe that no learner should be left behind,” Orlino said. “Our #KonektedforInclusion program aims to create opportunities for underrepresented sectors of society, such as persons with disabilities, through capacity building and digital skills training. These initiatives empower target beneficiaries to gain access to inclusive quality education or sustainable livelihood.”
Siena College of Taytay is a longtime member of the Smart Wireless Engineering Education Program (SWEEP) and renewed its participation in the initiative in 2025.
The disability sensitivity workshop is part of the PLDT Group’s #KonektedforInclusion program, which the companies said supports inclusive education and opportunities for Filipinos of all abilities. The initiative also contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 4 on Quality Education and SDG 10 on Reduced Inequalities.
Full disclosure: All news articles published on the TechSabado website are written by human journalists, unless otherwise specified. Final text editing is also performed by human editors, with artificial intelligence (AI) used only to assist with additional grammar and style guide corrections..
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Full disclosure: All news articles published on the TechSabado website are written by human journalists, unless otherwise specified. Final text editing is also performed by human editors, with artificial intelligence (AI) used only to assist with additional grammar and style guide corrections..
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