The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) Faculty of Information and Communication Studies (FICS), in collaboration with the UPOU Alumni Foundation, Inc. (UPOUAFI) and the UP Los Baños (UPLB) College of Development Communication (CDC), held a Master Class on Immersive Technologies for Sustainability Science Teaching and Learning: The Potentials of Virtual Tours as Interpretive Experience on 30 August 2018 at the Oblation Hall, UPOU Headquarters, Los Baños Laguna. Assistant Professor Roberto Figueroa Jr. served as the resource speaker.
The lecture was held as part of FICS’ Masterclass: A Lecture Series from Thought Leaders, a quarterly initiative that aims to facilitate knowledge transfer by stimulating and encouraging insightful discussions between experts and non-experts in a certain field. For this particular masterclass, an intergenerational component was incorporated. As articulated by FICS Dean, Dr. Alexander Flor, the masterclass should serve as an avenue for intergenerational knowledge sharing. He also cited UPOU’s initiative to be an age-friendly institution as an impetus for the change. “We have to look at our programs – our academic activities, even our research and teaching, from an age-friendly lens. Thought leaders do not come only from the older generations.”
While Asst. Prof. Figueroa – a member of Gen X, presented the potentials of immersive technology for teaching and learning by providing examples and presenting use cases, Dr. Juan M. Pulhin and Mr. Jabez M. Flores drew from their own experiences and shared their perspectives as representatives of the baby boomer and millennial generation, respectively.
With his extensive knowledge and broad experience in natural resources and environmental education, Dr. Pulhin contextualized his perspective by describing how the approaches to teaching and learning have changed throughout the years – from teacher-centered to student-centered. He expressed appreciation for emerging technologies such as virtual reality (VR), as it is very promising particularly in terms of exploring remote areas.
As an environmental science PhD student, Mr. Flores echoed Dr. Pulhin’s thoughts. He focused on the potential uses of VR in his particular field of study, verbalizing his belief that different disciplines, such as technology and the environmental studies, are interconnected. Studies that incorporate the two elements have been part of his research interests for a long time.
Majority of the participants were development communication graduate students. As such, Asst. Prof. Figueroa made sure to emphasize immersive technology’s potential for innovative and effective storytelling. He had an engaging exchange of ideas, where emerging technology’s implications in sustainability science, as well as its impact on community interaction was discussed. (Patricia Calora, FICS)
