OUR Staff Joins the International Conference on Open and Distance Learning in Taiwan

Staff members from the Office of the University Registrar of the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) presented research papers and practices during the International Conference of Open and Distance eLearning (ICODeL) held on 26-27 November 2018 at Garden Villa Hotel in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

In a panel dedicated to Accessibility in Open and Distance e-Learning, Mr. Nikko Brian Caraan presented the paper entitled “Towards Enhanced Accessibility and Inclusivity: Difficulties and Considerations for AIMS 2.0 “ His co-authors are Ms. Marie Karen Enrile, Mr. Benedict Reforma, and Mr. Joshua David Manalo.

Prof. Aurora Lacaste, the University Registrar, during the Learner Support in a Technology-Assisted Education panel presentation, presented the paper entitled “Responding to Admission and Enrollment Needs of New Students in the University of the Philippines Open University.” Her co-authors are Ms. Marie Karen Enrile, Ms. Percia Secreto, and Ms. Phoebe Grace Dungo. While Ms. Victoria Belegal tackled the Records Management in an ODEL Institution – Experiences, Practices, and Lessons Learned: The UP Open University Case.

Mr. Benedict Reforma and Ms. Enrile, on the other hand, discussed the importance of innovation in their paper “Users’ Acceptance of the Virtual File Archive (VFA) for the Office of the University Registrar in UP Open University.” The paper presented by Ms. Secreto, which she co-authored with Dr. Ricardo Bagarinao, highlighted student persistence in the three generations of ODL in UPOU entitled “Learner Persistence in a Changing Teaching-Learning Modality in an ODeL Environment: What the Graduates Profile Reveals?. And lastly, Mr. Manalo presented the paper which he co-authored with Prof. Joyce Manalo entitled “A decision Support Algorithm for Enhanced Plans of Study and Student Program Advising.”

ICODeL 2018 is a two-day conference which gathered more than 200 academics, researchers, administrators and policymakers from various higher education institutions to discuss the growing importance of technology in enhancing the quality of their academic programs through increased interactivity, accessibility, ubiquity, and inclusivity. ICODeL 2018 was organized by the National University of Kaohsiung, Open University of Kaohsiung and the UP Open University.