A Framework for 21st Century Teaching and Research in Public Higher Education Fiorello ! Abenes" Ph!#! Faculty and $nstitutional #e%elo&ment 'anager" ()A$# )tride
Abstract Developing a comprehensive framework for 21st century learning requires more than just identifying specic skills, content knowledge, expertise and literacies. he ! to 12 program, implemented "y the #hilippine Department of $ducation starting in 2%1&, seeks to achieve mastery of key su"jects and themes including world lang langua uage ges, s, arts arts,, mathe athem matic atics, s, econ econom omic ics, s, sc scie ienc nce, e, geog geogra raph phy, y, hist histor ory, y, gove goverrnmen nmentt and and civi civics cs.. 'u 'utt what what and and how how a"ou a"outt high higher er educ educat atio ion( n( )hat )hat st adjustments should higher education make to "ecome purveyors of 21 century teac teachi hing ng and lear learni ning ng and and acco accomm mmod odat ate e thes these e mor more matur mature, e, mor more highl highly y educat educated ed high high school school studen students ts enter entering ing their their *niver *niversit sities ies starti starting ng in 2%1+( 2%1+( n addition to revamping 'accalaureate and -raduate level curricula, what systems must "e created to help students and faculty master the multi dimensional requirements of 21st /entury learning and teaching( *0D 0D$ o3ers o3ers innova innovativ tive e progr programs ams,, includ including ing direct direct indust industry ry engage engagemen ment, t, manpow manpower er development, and university governance that can capacitate *niversities tackle the challenges of 21st /entury teaching and learning. 4owever, one often wonders if these these progr programs ams would would "e more more e3ect e3ective ive if it is delive delivere red d under under a di3er di3erent ent str struct ucture ure of pu"l pu"liic high higher er educa ducati tion on in the #hili hilipp ppiines. nes. hr hree concr oncret ete e recommendations are discussed in this paper.
Fiorello ! Abenes" Ph# 5aculty and nstitutional Development 6anager, *0D 0D$ #rofessor $meritus, /al#oly #omona *niversity, / 718&+ 5ormer *0 5ul"right 5ellow and D90 'alik0cientist Dr. Dr. 5iorello "enes is a professional animal scientist, teacher, scholar, consultant and entre entrepr pren eneur eur with with over over :% years years of divers diversie ied d work work experi experienc ence e in privat private e indus industry try,, agricultural extension, university teaching, and research in the *nited 0tates, /anada and the #hilippines. 4e trained in the areas of nimal ndustries, nimal 'reeding, ;utrition and #hysiology at the *niversity of /onnecticut. n the #hilippines, he worked for the *; 59 Dairy raining and esearch nstitute at the *niversity of the #hilippines <=os 'anos>. n /anada, he worked for /argill -rain as eproductive eproductive #hysiologist, l"erta griculture as egional 0wine 0pecialist, and 9lds /ollege as nimal 0cience #rofessor. 4e joined the
faculty of /alifornia 0tate #olytechnic *niversity #omona in 17+8 and was awarded early tenure and jump promotion to full professor in 1771. 4e was a 2%%+, 2%1% and 2%1? D90 'alik0cientist awardee, attached to the #hilippine /ara"ao /enter as @isiting 0cientist, at the /entral =uAon 0tate *niversity as @isiting #rofessor and at 6ariano 6arcos 0tate *niversity as djunct #rofessor and esearch 0cientist. n 2%%7, despite the fact that he is not an $ngineer, he was appointed $ngineering esearch and Development for echnology <$D> 5ellow at the *niversity of the #hilippines. 4e was granted *.0. 5ul"right 5ellowships in 2%%+ and 2%1:. 4is research at 660* and /=0* focused on the production of ethanol from "iomass. Dr. "enes joined *0D 0D$ as 5aculty and nstitutional Development 6anager in Bune, 2%1C.
#hilippine 5ramework for 21st /entury eaching and esearch in #u"lic 4igher $ducation 5iorello '. "enes, #h.D.
welcome this opportunity to speak at this conference "ecause the -9= of the 0D$ program 0cience echnology esearch and nnovation for Development is to strengthen the science, technology, research and innovation capacity in #hilippine higher education. )ith the focus of this conference on developing esearch /apa"ilities in #hilippine *niversities, do not think can nd a "etter pulpit to expound some ideas on how the #hilippines can stand shoulder to shoulder with other 0$; neigh"ors ndonesia, 6alaysia, 0ingapore, and hailand. 'runei, /am"odia, =aos, 6yanmar <'urma>, and @ietnam in the eld of education and research. )e at 0D$ had the audacity to think we can spur economic growth in the #hilippines. )e think we can do this "y <1> ssisting *niversities in developing supportive administrative, nancial and managerial climate such that 0cience, echnology and nnovation will prosper and thrive. <2> /apacitating #hilippine *niversities to "ecome adept at 0cience, echnology and nnovation, and $ngaging ndustry and *niversities to work together in "oth research and teaching. )e work with *niversities in developing mechanisms where"y *niversities can nurture talent within their "orders. )e support research colla"orations "etween local *niversities and local industries. )e also fund research that entails colla"oration "etween *0 *niversities and #hilippine *niversities. )e o3er various scholarships to *0 *niversities in "oth the 6asteral #rogram as well as #hD dissertation and #ostdoctoral 0cholarships. he specics of these programs are all on our we"siteE stride.org.ph and urge you to please visit it and avail of all that we o3er. think we do all that we do relatively wellF however, as a lifelong teacherscholar, often wonder if we could deliver our programs more e3ectively if there is a di3erent framework of #u"lic #hilippine 4igher $ducation system that we can work with. 0o for the purpose of this
paper, let me speak to the su"ject at handE )hat should "e the 5ramework for the 21 /entury eaching, esearch and =earning in the #hilippines.
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he ! to12 #rogram will "egin implementation in less than a year. his is a sunamilike, lifechanger to all 5ilipinosE students who now have to devote 2 more years of high school "efore entering collegeF parents who have to spend more money for their childrenGs educationF high school teachers who must now prepare for more advanced instructionF college and university instructors and professors who will "e on forced leave for the next 2 to : years F they will "e the same *niversity professionals who will have to deal with, at least theoretically, "etter prepared students starting 2%1+. t this point we can all look at this scenario as a pro"lem of incalcula"le magnitudeE we can join protests, le for restraining orders to stop its implementation 9 we can look at it as an 9##9*;H. t is an opportunity for 4igher $ducation to take a more serious look at what *niversity $ducation should "e post ! to 12. o say that the e3ect of the ! to 12 is simply to reduce the num"er of -eneral $ducation units required to complete a college degree and *niversities need only to add more units to supplant them, would "e a great disservice to all that have "een a3ected "y the ! to 12 program. *niversities and /4$D specially, should instead use this 2 to : year window as the opportunity for serious discernment and make an equally signicant life, and careerchanging decisions to reform higher education in the #hilippines.
*nfortunately, within the higher educational system of the #hilippines today, we can "arely count in one hand those schools that are truly world class. 9ne of my friends in the academe, descri"es the higher educational system of the #hilippines as #rivate colleges and universities num"ering in the thousands that are owned "y "ig "usiness for prot, and 0*/Is <0tate *niversities and /olleges> num"ering in the hundreds that are controlled "y politicians for what else( o advance their own #olitical agenda. dou"t if there is a single #resident of a #u"lic *niversity today that had not "een anointed "y the -overnor of the #rovince where the *niversity is located. #lease note, said ;;9;$D, not appointed. $ven so, this is not the "est scenario for developing worldclass #u"lic *niversities, if may say so. 5or 4igher $ducation nstitutions, there needs to "e a 5ramework, a 6aster #lan that transcends the challenges of glo"aliAation in education and meet the needs of 21 st century teaching, research and learning. )hat we need, is a 5ramework for 4igher $ducation, especially for 0tate *niversities and /olleges that transcends the challenges of glo"aliAation in education, one that can make us truly competitive with our 0$; neigh"ors. =et me now share with you specic recommendations on how we can do this.
)E*'E+TAT$,+ ,F P(-$C H$*HER E#(CAT$,+ 5irst, we need a segmentation of #u"lic 4igher $ducationE segmentation in 5*;/9;0, =9/9;0, and 0*D$; uptake.
)e need 5unction 0egmentationE *niversities that would, "ut only if they could, o3erE 'accalaureate to #hDF 'accalaureate to 6astersF echnical $ducation and ssociate Degrees. )e also need =ocation 0egmentationE egional, #rovincial and =ocal. =astly, we also need 0egmentation in student *ptake. here must "e a *niversity of the #hilippines 0ystem that will have Dilimantype campuses in all egions of the #hilippines. here are currently 18 egions in the #hilippines so there will "e 18 *niversity of the #hilippine campuses o3ering a comprehensive ! to #hD programs. he ! to 12 are la"oratory schools including magnet high schools for the arts and sciences. 0ince there are really only two *# campuses that are truly comprehensive, some of the "est performing 0tate *niversities will "e converted to "ecome part of the *# 0ystem. 5or example, 60* can "ecome he *# ;orthern 6indanao <egion J>. here must "e a #hilippine 0tate *niversity 0ystem, where universities under this system are located at each and every province. here are +1 #rovinces hence there will "e +1 #hilippine 0tate *niversities. #hilippine 0tate *niversity loiloF #hilippine 0tate *niversity ;ueva $cijaF #hilippine 0tate *niversity loilo with main campus in loilo /ity, or #hilippine 0tate *niversity /apiA with the main campus in oxas /ity, etc. he #hilippine 0tate *niversities will o3er ! to 6asteral degrees only. he ! to 12 "eing. schools with specialiAed programs also in arts and sciences. nd then there will "e a #hilippine /ommunity /olleges 0ystem located in every one of the 1:: /ities in the #hilippines. 0o there can "e an loilo /ommunity /ollegeF /a"anatuan /ommunity /ollege, 6akati /ommunity /ollege. hese community colleges will host $0D and o3er vocational courses that are geared towards employment in local industries. here can "e as many /ommunity /olleges as the -overnment and politicians can "ear. heir clientele is any"ody who has a desire to learn from literacy, to citiAenship, to cooking classes, massage therapy, etc. $xcept for the college courses, there should not "e any prior educational qualications required. 5or *niversity"ound students, /ommunity /olleges will also serve as the "ridge for underprepared students to the :year universities and colleges. )e need 2:2 #u"lic *niversities and /ommunity colleges to do thisF according to the /4$D we"site, there are 0ix hundred fty six <&C&> pu"lic 4$s. )e already have more than we needK he 0tudent 0egmentation #lan would place all college"ound high school graduates into three categories, and to make it possi"le for a student to move from the "ottom category to the top. •
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he top 12.CL of high school graduates could attend the *niversity of the #hilippines 0ystem he top ??.?L could attend one of the #hilippine 0tate *niversities, and
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$veryone else could go to one of the #hilippine /ommunity /olleges.
5or mo"ility, community college graduates will have the opportunity to transfer to one of the *#s or #0*s to nish their "achelorGs degree, if their grades are good enough, 2.C or "etter. Hou might ask at this point. 4mmm, this is goodE s this original thinking( he answer is ;9. his is the same model of the /alifornia 6aster #lan for 4igher $ducation that has "een in place since 17&%, CC years ago and still in place today. t is the most widely praised educational system in the worldK f we could just get this structure right in the #hilippines, the reforms needed in the "est )H teaching, research and learning could take place will fall into place.
RE)TR(CT(R$+* P(-$C (+$.ER)$T/ CAREER TRAC0) mong the 0$; countries, sadly, the #hilippines lag in research outputs and is in the lower rungs of the ladder. here is also a x to this if we institutionaliAe university professional career tracks. 9ne of the most common comments hear why the #hilippines lag in research outputs is the lack of manpower of esearchers. Muestions have "een raised a"out whether the lack of a strong research culture in #hilippine *niversities, leaves students ill prepared for the most demanding aspects of science and technology innovation. 5aculty who can do research complain, they do not have enough time when saddled with course loads and cannot "e NdownloadedO even when they do funded research. heir course loads are the same as those who just teach. his pro"lem can "e solved "y creating two tracks of faculty employmentE 9ne, a $;*$ /! 0H0$6 wherein faculty are given & years to prove themselves capa"le of scholarly work while teaching. t the end of & years, they will "e awarded enure or permanent appointment. rack 2, is =$/*$04#0. his track is for those who only wish to teachF they will "e on contract and will never achieve tenure. 'ecause all they will "e doing is each, they can a"sor" the deloaded teaching units of those in a tenure track position they can "e made to teach as many as 2: units a semester or more. )hy, "ecause they canK f they only have one or two preparations one for 6)5 classes and another for 4 classes, it is not so onerous.
RE)TR(CT(R$+* F$+A+C$A- A$# A+# )CH,-AR)H$P) $+ *RA#(ATE E#(CAT$,+ he lack of researchers can also "e addressed "y eliminating scholarships in graduate school and converting them to -raduate ssistantships. n the *0, scholarships are rare. 6ost graduate students are working halftime, : hours a day, as -raduate ssistants. D90 awards graduate scholarships under the ccelerated 0cience and echnology 4uman esource Development #rogram <04D#> and $ngineering esearch and Development for echnology <$D> #rogram. n 2%1:, the program supported a total of 1,17+ 60 and 2?C #hD scholars monitored "y 0$ through the ;ational 0cience /onsortium <;0/> and
D90 /ouncils such as #/D, #/4D and #/$$D. he $D program supported a total of &C8 60 and 127 #hD scholars. hat is a total of 2,217 researchers that can "e tapped for esearch. *nfortunately, they are not expected to work, just take classes until they are ready to conduct their thesis or dissertations. f each one can "e assigned to the most unproductive professors at the *niversity, we can easily have an additional :,:2+ researchers. his will happen "ecause what else would an unproductive professor do with a research employee around( 4e will have to do research along with his or her studentK f am the #resident of the *# system will just tell D90, sorry, we will no longer accept scholars, "ut you can give us money for graduate assistantships and we will produce "etter graduates who are well trained in "oth theory and practice of their disciplinesK
)(''AR/ )hat would it take to make these happen( clearly segmented 4igher $ducational 0ystem coupled with a segmented student admission system. wo tracks of academic careers a enure track and a =ecturership track. new paradigm in training graduate students as -raduate ssistants instead of 0cholars. he /ommission for 4igher $ducation, #residents of 0tate *niversities, #oliticians and even students have the luxury of mulling these ideas for the next two years. t is an unprecedented opportunity to discern and to change. hope that we can muster the courage to make a seismic change that is as great and meaningful as the change we did for the ! to 12 program. have faith that we can do this. have faith in the indomita"le spirit of 5ilipinos to survive, and survive we must in the face of -lo"aliAation and the 0$; integration. 6y experience working with fellow 5ilipinos in the *0 is completely opposite to what am witness among my colleagues in the academia. "road, we are some of the most productive, most intelligent, most am"itious. )hen we return to our own country, we seem to die in the vine. #erhaps "ecause, as one once told me =iving is hard in the #hilippines "ut =5$ itself is $asy. $ven our paupers look "etter than the paupers in other countries. hank you, 6araming 0alamat #oK
