CATARMAN, Camiguin (PIA)--Around 1,500 students and teachers from Camiguin National High School and Sto. Niño Integrated School is expected to benefit from the collaboration of the Department of Science and Technology and LGU Catarman to acquire STARBOOKS, the country’s first digitized library. 

Catarman Mayor Kiterio Antonio U. Palarca II has expressed his thanks to DOST during the fund turnover for providing a reliable source of S&T information. The Mayor received the project fund allocated to acquire sets of computers to be used solely for the purpose of STARBOOKS.
 
These computers will be installed with software containing hundreds of thousands of digitized books, livelihood videos, instructional materials for teachers, interactive games, and math and science quizzes. It also contains theses, dissertations, DRRM materials, and K–12 materials for both students and teachers. 

"Thank you, DOST, for giving a project that will help our young generation more equipped in science and technology," he said. Palarca also mentioned that he wants the Municipality of Catarman to be well represented in research events in the future.
 
"I want that our municipality will have students from different schools in Catarman who have a passion for research and can take up courses related to Math and Science in the future." 

Among the highlights of the turnover is the brief discussion of the stipulations of the Memorandum of Agreement and Orientation of STARBOOKS.

The local government says the two school-beneficiaries are in need of books, references, and other reading materials for both students and teachers, especially materials for science, math, and engineering.
 
Emma B. Bacuahon from Camiguin National High School expressed her thanks to DOST. "We are very grateful that DOST really supports our students in realizing their eagerness in the field of Science and Mathematics through the learning materials that we can get from the STARBOOKS", she said. 

STARBOOKS, or the Science and Technology Academic and Research-Based Openly Operated Kiosks, is an interactive kiosk system developed by the Science and Technology Information Institute of the Department of Science and Technology of the Philippine government. 

Among STARBOOKS’ unique features are the following: It is a stand-alone kiosk,which means it does not require an Internet connection; Multiple users can access STI resources simultaneously when STARBOOKS is connected via local wifi or a local area network (LAN); it is transferable; and most importantly, system installation, content updates, system support, and training for all users are free. 

STARBOOKS is also available via a mobile app. Last year, two mobile applications were launched: the STARBOOKS Quiz Mobile App and the STARBOOKS Online App. It also produced four informational videos to provide additional information on STARBOOKS. 

Currently, this is the second STARBOOKS project in Camiguin for the year. During the turnover, Science Research Specialist II of DOST Camiguin, Christine S. Jardin, encouraged the teachers and students to fully maximize the benefits of the innovations in STARBOOKS.
 
"The STARBOOKS project of Camiguin National High School and Sto. Niño Integrated School will stand as a beacon of access to vast knowledge resources for learners and educators. I encourage the teachers to encourage themselves and students to use this digital library to help them learn and improve," she said. (DOST-10/PIA-10/Camiguin)