To give opportunities and better foster students from the Southeast Asian region to holistically develop their higher institution education, heads of higher educational institutions (HEIs) and partnered nationwide organisations participated in the 2023 Regional Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Month Celebration at Eastern Visayas State University (EVSU), August 14, Monday.

The celebration program, attended by regional delegates from local universities in Region 8 and by national representatives from partner regions, touched on the subjects of ‘Trans-National Education’ and ‘Flexible Learning Ecosystems.’

University President Dr. Dennis C. De Paz, in his Welcome Message as the host HEI, has expressed that the gathering which other HEIs and representatives have partaken in is a testament to the region’s collective eagerness to develop education.

“We gather to partake in a significant ASEAN activity that not only celebrates our cultural diversity, but also underscores our commitment to advancing education, research, and innovation in our respective institutions,” the University President said.

Moreover, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Regional Office Director Dr. Maximum C. Aljibe has emphasised that the government agency remains steadfast in its mission to developing education locally and internationally, together with ASEAN participating states, to develop the nation’s youth building.

“CHED stands firm in its commitment to advancing higher education in our region and fostering ties with our ASEAN neighbours. We believe that by promoting quality education and international cooperation, we can nurture a generation of competent, globally aware individuals who will drive progress and innovation, not only in our borders, but across the ASEAN region and beyond,” the CHED Director said.

Opportunities in trans-national education

Mr. Adam Folleás, Officer for Higher Education & Linguistics, French Embassy to the Philippines & Micronesia and one of the national representatives who graced the event as a guest speaker, endorsed France as an academic itinerary for students as part of the celebration’s ‘trans-national education’ agenda.

“France, as of today, is the 6th most country for international students in the world. In 2021 to 2022, we hosted more than 400,000 students registered in the French higher education (HE) system as opposed to 2020 to 2021, over 13% of our HE students are foreign, and among them were 529 Filipino citizens,” the Higher Education & Linguistic Officer said.

Moreover, on top presenting France as a statistically-accommodating country for foreign students, Follelas also emphasised on the benefits of integrating in the French academic system which includes footholds in the job markets and internships.

“You do not just study in France and come back, you are connected with a big family of people who have succeeded and can help you integrate better to the job markets and access to offers of employment and internships, and toward networking events in France and wherever you are in the world,” said the Ambassador.

Establishing flexible learning ecosystems

C&E Adaptive Learning Solutions (ALS) Associate Vice President for Sales Rene Mupas gave a discussion on establishing flexible learning ecosystems in the Philippines to conform to the learning modes students are comfortable with now as opposed to the past years.

“The world is changing, the kind of students we have have changed a lot 10 years ago, and we need to embrace the reality that we really have to be innovative in the way we teach our students,” said the Associate Vice President.

Furthermore, Mupas states that modern technologies, like artificial intelligence (AI), have been in use since 2010 in establishing personalised learning, and are utilised in the assessment of a student’s understanding of the lesson or program.

“In 2010, there is already an educational platform that is AI-based wherein students are made to take a pretest to assess the comprehension of the degree program they have chosen. The system will now generate a study guide based on the comprehension score,” he said.

Meanwhile, according to 2023 ASEAN Celebration Focal Person Mr. Emmanuel Lim, more activities are to be expected in line with the celebration which includes Essay Writing, Spoken Poetry, Poster Making, and the ASEAN Festival of Talents all which will be held in local HEIs in Tacloban City.

Article by Ton Sierolf Cairo