The National Book Development Board (NBDB) awarded the 2008 NBDB Quality Seal to XL Excelling in Mathematics 3 and Rainbows in English 5, both by Vibal Publishing House last May 29 at Discovery Suites, Pasig City.

Aside from serving as a badge of excellence to guide private schools in selecting quality textbooks for students, the evaluation procedure of the Quality Seal also helps publishers of nominated textbooks in improving the content of the books, which undergo a rigorous evaluation process by experts from different reputable learning institutions.

“Publishing textbooks in a developing country is a tremendous responsibility. This is more so for the public school system where the textbook is the only source of knowledge, though it is no less important for textbooks intended for the private schools,” says NBDB Executive Director Atty. Andrea Pasion-Flores. “The NBDB has been helping publishers by making available more avenues to upgrade the quality of textbooks. It is hoped publishers take advantage of these to improve the quality of their textbooks.”

The NBDB started conferring the Quality Seal last year starting with textbooks in Mathematics. The NBDB Quality Seal is one of the NBDB’s initiatives to improve the quality of textbooks in the country.

For 2009, the NBDB will be accepting nominations for English and Science. Schools and publishers are encouraged to submit their nominations. For the complete nomination procedure, interested parties may call the NBDB at 920-9853.