Microsoft Philippines has entered a partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to train and accredit 2,000 public school teachers across the country. The joint initiative will roll out new artificial intelligence (AI) literacy and cybersecurity toolkits, building on an earlier agreement that granted 1 million educators access to Microsoft's AI chatbot Copilot.

Under the partnership, Microsoft will introduce three core resources: Microsoft Elevate for Educators, the AI Classroom Toolkit, and the Behind the Chat module. The Elevate program enables teachers to develop AI competencies, earn credentials, and join a global network of more than 100,000 educators, while the toolkits focus on digital privacy, critical thinking, and establishing digital boundaries.

"At Microsoft, we believe that countries that benefit most from AI will not be the ones that simply build the most technology or the ones that use AI first," Microsoft Philippines Country Manager Caroline Foo said during a media briefing on Thursday. "They will be the ones that help more people use it confidently, responsibly, and wisely."

Ms. Foo stressed that digital literacy must go hand in hand with online protection for students.

Expanding Copilot Access

The current training program expands a commitment forged in August between Microsoft and DepEd, which provided 1 million public school teachers nationwide with access to Microsoft Copilot. Where the August agreement covered tool access at nationwide scale, the current program concentrates on structured training and accreditation for a much smaller group of 2,000 teachers.

While access to digital infrastructure is critical, Microsoft emphasized that technological tools alone cannot substitute for the guidance of educators.

"Access to technology matters. But access alone is not enough," Ms. Foo noted. "Our students can have the most powerful AI tools in the world. They will still need someone to teach them when to question an answer, when to think critically, how to use the technology responsibly, and sometimes, when to put it aside."

Citing internal research, Microsoft highlighted that about nine out of 10 educators have already used AI tools for school tasks, with two in three teachers requesting regular training every few months. The company's findings also indicated that teenagers are increasingly turning to AI for personal advice and companionship, underscoring the role of teachers as mentors in preventing over-reliance on technology.

Multi-Sectoral Support

The initiative is being implemented alongside DepEd's National Educators Academy of the Philippines, the DICT, child advocacy group ChildFund Philippines, and IT training provider Authentic Technologies.

Following the initial launch, online training modules will run through November and December 2026, as well as February 2027. The cadence lines up with the regular, every-few-months training that two in three teachers requested in Microsoft's research. The report did not specify how the 2,000 participating teachers will be selected, or whether additional cohorts will follow the February 2027 modules.

"Teaching has never been easy, and technology will continue to change around us," Ms. Foo said. "You are not just preparing your students for the next generation or next exam. You are helping them prepare for a world that none of us today can fully predict yet."

This report was originally published by BusinessWorld on November 5, 2026, with reporting by Juliana Chloe A. Gonzales: Microsoft taps DepEd, DICT for AI literacy and safety rollout