Over the years, the University of Batangas (UB) takes a progressive and technology-driven approach to teaching and it’s proving to be effective. Beginning 2017, the University initiated the use of UBian Learning Management System (LMS), “an online education hub” powered by NEO, that offers a large and essential set of features to upkeep efficient teaching and learning. NEO, a product of Cypher Learning, which headquarters are in San Francisco, California in United States, specializes in providing learning platforms for organizations around the world.
The year 2020 is a difficult and trying year as people suffered a natural calamity, the Taal Volcanic Eruption, and now still enduring a pandemic. UB was one of the few institutions that was able to manage an abrupt and a successful transition to distance learning in the early days of the lockdown.
The University ensures to continue providing quality education for its students. “Through the Learning Management System, learning in the new normal was brought into reality. It is a convenient platform where the teachers and students interact like in a normal classroom setting. Capabilities were widely embraced and it brought us a broad learning environment”, Ross Albert Delgado, Bachelor of Physical Education student shared. Online learning through UBian LMS was used with considerations and adjustments as regards to compliance with learning outcomes and competencies. “It was a bit challenging at first but at the same time, it was worth trying. With constant trainings and with the preparations and seminars we have attended spearheaded by the University, we have been equipped with knowledge and with the necessary skills and competencies we could apply to students so they could learn more effectively and efficiently. We are making the students knowledgeable with the use of technology and making them learn something like the competencies and skills we are targeting them to acquire. As a teacher, as an educator, as a catalyst of positive change, the change we are expecting or we want to see to our students must also prevail among us”, stated Mr. Michael Justin de Mesa, English 4/Journalism Teacher from Junior High School Department. The faculty members were reminded of leniency when it comes to workload and deadlines in consideration of students’ different situations.
UB’s program for continuous learning is the result of both the experience that the school has in using technology combined with the methodology of teaching that is targeted to give the same results that University has enjoyed in the past years. Another important aspect that determines the quality of a study experience is the level of support that students receive. Many students worry that when it is online, they will not be able to receive the support that they need. This concern is increasingly being recognized by UB, and all are working hard to ensure that students’ needs are met in all areas. “We have Student Help Desk that students can access through UBian LMS. We have offered three (3) channels of communication where students can address concerns – UBian Help Center, [email protected] and [email protected]. Students are also provided with Student Study Guide (Video Tutorials) in accessing the platform and how can they use the features of LMS. We also do training for teachers”, shared Mrs. Famela Q. Barairo, the Head Coordinator for UB Center of Heritage, Advancement, Mentoring and Pedagogy (UB CHAMP).
UB’s efforts to be flexible learning delivery ready have not gone unnoticed throughout this pandemic. The University has been called upon by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to provide training to faculty members from other educational institutions in CALABARZON to qualify them to teach in a flexible online environment this academic year 2020-2021. This trust and confidence given to UB by CHED is a testament of the university’s capabilities and capacity as an educational institution.
“We choose to see the silver lining, so instead of seeing difficulties, we see opportunities. Our plan is to be more aggressive and offer purely online education initially and later, blended education in accordance with the pronouncement of the government”, shared Dr. Hernando B. Perez, the University President, during the Annual Report. As our utilization of the UBian LMS increases over the next few years, more students locally and all over the world can access the UBian quality education.