A lawmaker said on Thursday that media and information literacy (MIL) can help protect students against online threats allegedly linked to incidents of serious school violence.
“The nihilistic violent extremism (NVE) that emerges in the investigations into incidents of serious violence really shows that a big factor there is the abuse of some malign actors of safe spaces,” Senator Ana Theresia “Risa” N. Hontiveros-Baraquel told reporters on the sidelines of the Philippine Media and Information Literacy Conference (MILCon) 2026.
“Part of protecting our youth against NVE is this proactive media literacy,” she added.
Ms. Hontiveros-Baraquel noted that by equipping students with proper digital literacy, children can protect themselves against threat actors and navigate the online realm safely.
Three school shootings between June and September this year have taken the lives of at least eight students and injured over 20 others.
Authorities are currently looking at the possibility of online “groomers” who may lurk on social media platforms and games and contribute to students’ violent actions.
“It’s very important in our education to teach this to our students,” she said. “We want to teach our youth to navigate the digital world safely, especially for their needs in the community, in civic and political awareness and participation.”
She added that the Batang Ligtas Act, which consolidates Senate Bill 1819 and House Bill 9461, can also help safeguard children in the digital space.
“It’s important because it will expand the protection against online sexual abuse and exploitation of children, and it will also provide the tools to protect the children from NVE.”
The Department of Education (DepEd) previously transformed MIL from a core subject taught in senior high school (SHS) into a topic discussed across core subjects.
The shift, mandated under the strengthened SHS curriculum, has reduced core subjects from 15 to only five.
“The foundation of basic to higher education is always important in the humanistic liberal arts orientation, and it’s very timely because our world is increasingly digitized,” the senator said.
The Philippines will host the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Global MIL Week 2027, following the country’s push to boost digital critical competencies.
The global event will commence from Oct. 24 to 31, 2027, in Quezon City. — Almira Louise S. Martinez
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