Over 250,000 students in far-flung areas untouched by advances in media technology nationwide now have access to the curriculum-based learning materials of Knowledge Channel Foundation Inc. (KCFI), with its partnership with SKYdirect, SKY’s direct-to-home satellite TV service. 

Utilizing satellite television technology, SKY brings Knowledge Channel to homes via SKYdirect, which requires no heavy transport of equipment and can reach remote where satellite television signals are available. KCFI, meanwhile, aims to establish a solid educational foundation via curriculum-based multimedia learning resources. These materials are aired over the foundation's on-air counterpart, Knowledge Channel, and are used by teachers to make learning more attractive to young students, most of whom have never seen television screens before.

"Through our partnership with KCFI we are able to deliver quality education across the country and stories of hope for these children," SKY Corporation president and chief operating officer Antonio Ventosa said.

Formerly called Sky Foundation Inc. in 1999, KCFI pioneered educational television in the country to help bring quality education to serviceable areas in the country.  And in 2016 through the SKYdirect Gift of Knowledge kits, more marginalized populations around the country were served, particularly the remote areas, including the farthest upland, inland, and island municipalities of Batanes, Palawan, Negros Oriental, and Compostela Valley. 

“Through the SKYdirect connections which households everywhere could subscribe to, KCFI found an ally to "reach more" and "teach more" learners of all ages and socio-economic brackets,” Rina Lopez-Bautista, Knowledge Channel Foundation Inc. co-founder, president, and executive director said.

Moreover, “every single day, with SKYdirect, we are able to "reach" and "teach" those who most need to be reached and taught. These are the students enrolled in schools in the farthest corners of the Philippines, including children in day-care centers and those under the Alternative Learning System (ALS), and the general public especially in areas where SKYdirect is the only available platform that can receive and transmit Knowledge Channel,” Lopez-Bautista said.

The effectiveness of the media-based instruction has been proven in earlier studies. Over ten years ago, Knowledge Channel helped increase the average score of students from the Valugan Elementary School, Basco Central Elementary School and Basco Science High School in the National Achievement Test to more than 20%.  

“The observed higher level of performance among students is enough reason for us to keep on working with Knowledge Channel,” Ventosa added.   

SKY plans to donate more SKYdirect kits to several schools nationwide through a continuing partnership with KCFI.

Founded in 1999, Knowledge Channel Foundation, Inc. is the only non-profit organization in the Philippines that offers curriculum-based, multimedia educational resources and professional teacher training that improve teaching skills; thereby making  learners learn better through technology.

It has established a solid reputation as a channel that has brought public schools nationwide access to innovative and fun multimedia learning for 16 years. Through its availability on SKYdirect, more Filipino students can gain a better learning experience. SKY Cable Corporation is a unit of leading media and entertainment organization of ABS-CBN Corporation.