Bill proposed to allow textbook scanning & digitization

Camarines Sur 2nd district Representative Luis Raymund Villafuerte is proposing a bill for textbook publishers to allow the scanning and digitization of books for educational purposes, as long as it complies with the Philippines' Intellectual Property Code.

House Bill 8020 or "An Act amending R.A. 8047, otherwise known as the 'Book Publishing Industry Development Act,' providing for the scanning and conversion of public school textbooks into eBooks and other digital formats"  was filed last November 17, 2020. It has been forwarded for review by the Committee on Basic Education and Culture.

This proposed act mandates the digitization of eBooks by publishers under the government's Public School Textbook Program. The digital copies of these textbooks shall be available in 'any manner deemed appropriate and reasonable by the DepEd' for access by public school students in the country.

According to Rep. Villafuerte, "It is no secret that textbooks in public elementary and high schools are limited in number and, as (a) result, our students are forced to share or borrow from one another. This difficulty is even more evident in the time of Covid-19 when there is a shift to blended or distance learning.

The digital reproduction of textbooks will allow students to have a copy or access to the contents of these learning materials in electronic format without the need for them to borrow from, or share resource materials with, their classmates."

Read full text of the Act on the Congress website

Sen. Sonny Angara also recently proposed Senate Bill 1879 to strengthen the public library system in the Philippines and update the law on public libraries, RA 7743. Read more: Sen. Angara proposes Senate Bill 1879 to strengthen public libraries, upgrade RA 7743

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Source:
Cervantes, F.M. (2020 December 22). Solon wants textbooks converted into digital formats. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1125476