Chancellor Bandalaria (seated 2nd from left) with the representatives from HOU, OUM, STOU, and UT. (Source Chancellor Bandalaria’s FB Page)
The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) participated in the Open University 5 (OU5) Meeting held on 29-30 November 2022, in Nonthaburi, Thailand.
The two-day event was conducted at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU) and attended by delegates from the five open universities in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, namely, UPOU, STOU, Open University Malaysia (OUM), Universitas Terbuka (UT), and Hanoi Open University (HOU).
Dr. Melinda dela Peña Bandalaria, UPOU Chancellor and Professor, headed the UPOU delegation. Dr. Jean A. Saludadez, UPOU Vice President for Finance and Administration, and Ms. Margaret J. Suarez, Program Development Associate for Institutional Linkages, participated in the Presidents’ Session and the Parallel Session with the discussion topic “University of the Future.”
Dr. Roberto Figueroa, Program Chair of the Master of Information Systems program and faculty member of the Faculty of Information and Communication Studies (FICS), joined in on the research meeting concerning “Innovative Pedagogy in the 4IR Era.” Dr. Joane Serrano, Dean of the Faculty of Management and Development Studies (FMDS), took part in the research meeting that focused on “Sustainability Development and Open Universities in ASEAN or The Role of Open Universities in ASEAN in Sustainability Development.”
Dr. Ria Mae Borromeo, Director of the Office of Student Affairs and faculty member of FICS, joined the research meeting on “Metaverse in promoting effective learning design for practical sessions at Open Universities in ASEAN.” Asst. Prof. Mark Vincent J. Nogra, Lecturer of FMDS, was the leader in the research meeting on “Indigenous People in ASEAN.” Ms. Lorena Jean D. Saludadez, lecturer at the University of the Philippines Visayas, instructor at Southwestern University, and student of the Master of ASEAN Studies at UPOU, participated in the research meeting on “Disaster Risk and Reduction Management in ASEAN.”
The first day of the conference featured the online presentation of research projects for 2022 and the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) Signing Ceremony. A parallel session with the discussion topic “University of the Future” was conducted. The Presidents’ Session was also held, and it tackled the benchmarking of the curriculum-based course, MOA ASEAN Studies (ASEAN Studies MOOCs), and Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU) and International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE) initiatives (AAOU QA Taskforce and ICDE GAC Asia).
The OU5 Coordinator Meeting and presentations on the report of the Presidents’ Session by the President of OUM, reports of five research topics by research leaders, and the announcement of the next OU5 Meeting were conducted during the second day of the event.
The attendees had the opportunity to enjoy the conference venue through the Royal Princess Dinner Cruise on the first day and the sightseeing activity and dinner at the Great Harbour International Buffet on the second day.
The members of OU5 at its meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, November 2022. (Source: Chancellor Bandalaria’s FB Page)
The OU5 is a research group of five open universities in the ASEAN region: UPOU, STOU, OUM, UT, and HOU. UPOU is an active member of the OU5. The university participated in a series of OU5 meetings held in July 2022 and March 2018 and hosted the OU5 Virtual Forum in December 2020 and the OU5 Meeting in October 2016, among others.
Written by Jaime P. Guimbao
Edited by Myra C. Almodiel and Anna Cañas-Llamas
Photos from Chancellor Bandalaria’s FB Page
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