DepEd equips teachers with new laptops

First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos joined President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in distributing new laptops to 72 teachers of Dagupan City National High School in Pangasinan as part of the administration’s effort to upgrade classroom technology and improve teaching resources.

The First Lady also witnessed a demonstration on the use of the Apple MacBook Neo units, which the Department of Education (DepEd) procured for approximately P43,000 each, or P6,900 below their regular retail price.

Aside from the Apple laptops, the government also acquired Acer Swift Air 14 units for teachers and school personnel.

“This consists of around 169,000 Apple MacBook Neo units and more than 62,000 Acer Swift Air 14 units. In addition, we also procured around 3,600 MacBook Neo laptops for the administrative staff so they can process the necessary paperwork faster and help keep our schools running efficiently,” the President said during the ceremonial turnover.

He said the equipment would help teachers prepare lesson plans, use digital tools in instruction, and do their work more efficiently.

“We make sure every day that your needs are addressed. We will continue to provide whatever resources you need, and ensure that every peso entrusted to the government for our children’s education is spent wisely and properly. In return, I ask you to do your best: teach, guide and inspire our young people to become the best they can be,” Marcos said.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the distribution would prioritize teachers who had never received a government or school-issued laptop.

“We want to ensure these laptops go to teachers who can maximize them for teaching and learning, while keeping equity at the center by prioritizing teachers who have never received a government or school-issued laptop. These guidelines set clear rules so schools can select recipients fairly and transparently,” Angara said.

The DepEd said a competitive public bidding allowed it to save at least P1.4 billion compared to standard retail prices. The procurement packages included built-in productivity tools, professional training, a five-year extended warranty, and nationwide delivery.

Distribution guidelines

The department allocated the laptops based on the number of teachers in each region, division and school using a structured formula.

Distribution will begin in schools that had not previously received units under the Laptops for Teachers (L4T) component of the DepEd Computerization Program.

Teachers may qualify if they have not received a laptop through other government programs, local government units, or school donations.

The selection will prioritize teachers based on their access to functional devices, teaching responsibilities, and digital readiness.

To qualify, teachers must have an active teaching assignment and DepEd email account with multi-factor authentication enabled. They must also not have received a working government or school-issued laptop between 1 January 2023 and 6 November 2026.

Personally owned laptops and shared equipment will not disqualify teachers from receiving a new unit. When eligible teachers exceed the available units, school heads must follow a strict three-tier priority order.

Priority goes to teachers without a government laptop who actively lead educational technology efforts, such as ICT coordinators, EdTech champions, or Khan Academy teachers, though titles alone without active contributions do not count.

The second priority covers all other eligible teachers without an individual laptop, while the third priority accommodates eligible previous recipients whose older units were ruined in calamities, were declared unserviceable, or were lost to theft or robbery.

Seniority and non-teaching duties do not grant priority. If a priority group exceeds the remaining units, schools must conduct a drawing of lots or through the Teacher Assignment for Laptop Allocation (TALA) system.

School heads and property custodians must finalize recipient lists on the TALA platform (tala.deped.gov.ph) by 15 November 2026, establishing clear accountability over the selection process and creating, for the first time, a unified and systematic inventory and property management system for school-issued devices.