Vibal Publishing House, Inc., the Philippines’ leading provider of educational tools and resources for basic education, bridges the gap between traditional print and digital content, harnessing technology to transform the way teachers teach and the way students learn.

Vibal Publishing believes that every student is unique and that every teacher has different needs. Its products and services are crafted to tailor-fit the divergent needs of teachers and students, helping provide today’s Internet-generation with the competitive edge with which to realize their full potential and achieve their goals.

While printed textbook publishing remains the bedrock of its operations, Vibal Publishing believes that technology-aided education contributes to more effective teaching and learning. It also believes that the key to reach today’s self-directed learner is through accessibility and engagement.

Anchored on these beliefs, Vibal has—in the past decade—diversified its product line, pioneering in the development and production of curriculum-based rich media and interactive content to supplement and complement its textbooks.

Diversifying, innovating, moving ahead

Vibal jumpstarted its attempts at digitizing its operations in the '80s when its Book Development Department received its first batch of Apple Macintosh computers. At present, the company poses a significant headway among other players within the educational publishing industry with its advanced computer technologies and state-of-the-art production facilities.

In 2000, the company initiated moves to diversify its product line to include innovative multimedia educational materials in VHS and CD formats. Four years later, Vibal made history when it published the first full-color textbook in the country, the Science & Technology Modular Approach I-IV. Thereafter the company highlighted its thrust for a more interactive and enriching learning and teaching experience by complementing its Civics and Culture textbooks with Filipinism Interactive CD-ROM.

With the advent of modern technology and in keeping with the changing lifestyle of the Filipino youth, Vibal has been leading the way in the creation of educational content on multiple digital platforms, including its pioneering line of e-textbooks, CD-ROMs, web-based modules, social networking apps, games, and other curriculum support materials, all while boosting its existing portfolio of pedagogical and instructional materials in the traditional print format.

Textbooks as crux of the business

Over half a decade since its founding in 1953 by the late veteran newspaperman Hilarion Vibal, and his wife, Esther Asuncion-Vibal (see history here), the company has produced more than 5,000 titles, with 1,000 titles currently in use in over 3,000 private schools across the country.Textbooks produced by Vibal are products of a rigorous editorial process, which is precisely the reason why a handful of Vibal titles have been acknowledged both by public and private institutions as the best in their subject area.

In 2007, Vibal bagged the first National Book Development Board (NBDB) Quality Seal Award for its Experiencing Mathematics – Advanced Algebra, Trigonometry and Statistics. Two years later, the same board handed yet again the Quality Seal Award for two of Vibal's textbooks: Rainbows in English Grade 5 and Excelling in Mathematics Grade 3. This was to be followed a year hence when another title, Language in Literature IV, was accorded the same seal.

Supplementary to Vibal's portfolio of textbook titles are releases from Chikiting Books, the company's popular and well-loved line of children's storybooks published by Vibal affiliate LG&M Corporation.

Knowledge-sharing initiatives

Its philantrophic arm, Vibal Foundation, has been at the forefront of disseminating Philippine content on the Internet. Over the years, the foundation has spearheaded various initiatives meant to make open knowledge and web-sharing an integral part of the learning experience for students and educators alike.

Foremost among these initiatives is WikiPilipinas—an online, free content encyclopedia on the Philippines featuring comprehensive and informative entries on history, culture, sports, politics, entertainment, and other knowledge areas.

Other online projects include e-Turo, a free e-learning portal where Filipino teachers and learners can interact for effective teaching and learning; Filipiniana.net, a digital library and institutional repository that now contains one of the widest and most comprehensive collections of Philippine books and documents spanning a range of subjects like history, science, politics, culture, government, and literature; and the Philippine Online Chronicles, a media network and news aggregator.

Over the years, Vibal has indeed been at the forefront of innovation and change, guided in large measure by its enduring mission to bolster the state of local pedagogy. In the middle of sweeping changes in both the technological and social milieus, Vibal Publishing remains committed in revolutionizing the state of education in the country today.