By Jo. Florendo B. Lontoc, UP Forum Online, September-October 2005

Open learning today rides on cyberspace and communications technology. One of the main features of the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) is a virtual classroom, where classes are held without the instructor and students having to leave their computer terminals, wherever these may be. The advantages of the virtual classroom are numerous, and appreciated even by those based in the “real” campuses of the University of the Philippines. In fact, students in UP Diliman (UPD) now enjoy their own version of the “virtual learning environment,” which complements their physical classroom experience. Although we have yet to see the day when computers and internet access are available and accessible to most, if not all, Filipinos, it is undeniable that, as Diliman Interactive Learning Center director and UPOU pioneer Dr. Celia T. Adriano says, “the future of education is in the internet.”

Noblesse UVLe!
Prof. Nestor Michael Tiglao, the director of the UP Computer Center (UPCC), recalls that UPD’s University Virtual Learning Environment or UVLe (pronounced like Oblé) came about simply because the opportunity presented itself. During the term of UP President Francisco Nemenzo, the decision was made to maximize the fiber optic cables that were laid to interconnect the buildings of the campus. Even then, faculty members, mostly from the College of Engineering, already preferred to have their handouts downloaded online rather than photocopied in the old cumbersome way. Students, on the other hand, were eager to explore high technology as part of their studies at the University.

To develop UVLe, funding was provided by the Office of the Director of Initiatives and then Chancellor Emerlinda Roman. In 2000, within a year of its launch, 39 files were uploaded and 34 students from four sections were able to utilize UVLe. Over the years, more and more faculty members have come to use UVLe, so that in 2004, there were already 6,500 students enrolled in 350 virtual sections moderated by 258 faculty members. A website (uvle.up.edu.ph) can be visited to view these classes. Users log in by keying in their UP Webmail user name and password.

How does a virtual class work? While UVLe operates like the usual Yahoo! Group, its functions are far more sophisticated. The moderator, in this case the instructor, requests a virtual classroom for his/her subject from UPCC. He or she then requires students to enroll in the virtual classroom so that they can all avail of its range of services, including discussion boards, course materials, and lecture archives. The notes and materials, which can be uploaded to the site by both the teacher and the students, may be accessed by members of the class anytime and anywhere, making it so much easier to review lessons and prepare for classes. Having the course materials online also reduces, if not eliminates, the hassle and expense of photocopying. The files are not limited to text and can be multimedia and graphic files and even digital video archives of class lectures.

Through the virtual classroom, discussions no longer need to begin and end during regular class hours. While not all students may get the chance to share their thoughts within the span of time spent in the regular classroom, everyone may easily post and respond to ideas on the subject matter online. There are submission bins in the virtual classroom where students can submit required essays, a convenient substitute to slipping hard copies under the instructor’s office door at the Faculty Center. Additional features have been added to enhance the interactivity of UVLe, such as instant messenger and related links.

The UVLe is a fresh and exciting supplement to—and certainly not a replacement for—the physical classroom or laboratory experience of students. Also, though UVLe is called a virtual classroom, it is not just another class to attend. It is up to the teacher and students to decide how to maximize the technology available to them based on the needs of the class. Furthermore, UVLe does not preclude the class from initiating measures to ensure intellectual honesty in online transactions.

The UP Computer Center, which is continuously developing features for UVLe, is aware of the limited internet resources available to a UP student. Thus, in 2001, it installed internet kiosks called Public eTerminals (PeT) in the lobbies of UPD buildings and dormitories. Though some are out of commission at times, these may be used for free twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. There are currently twenty-four internet kiosks around the UPD campus. There are also around sixty computers at the UPCC for rental at affordable rates. These PCs are connected to the main internet server of UPD, ensuring fast access to the university’s online services.

OpenU and the Quality Question
The UPOU employs its own virtual learning environment, called IVLE or Integrated Virtual Learning Environment, of which UVLe, developed by UPD’s own computer team, is an open-source counterpart. IVLE, a commercial technology, acts as the communication backbone of UPOU’s online course delivery.

The UPOU does not differ from regular higher educational institutions in its application requirements for its certificate, diploma, degree, and non-formal courses. The PhD, Master of Public Management, and the Associate in Arts programs require an admission examination, which can be taken at any of around twenty UPOU learning centers spread all over the country. Applicants can also take only a course or two from the degree programs; they will be classified as non-degree students. Registration can be accomplished completely online, with the required documents sent by mail and payments made at authorized banks or by credit card.

A student enrolled at the UPOU may take classes face-to-face, online, or via a combination of the two. In the face-to-face scheme, learners are encouraged to attend sessions at designated UPOU learning centers (which are located at certain state colleges or universities, Department of Education branches, private educational institutions, and all UP campuses). In the online mode, learners apply for a user ID and password to access their respective course sites at the IVLE. They usually render at least one hour of online presence per week to receive announcements and updates, chat, and submit requirements.

It is clear, therefore, that the IVLE, like UVLe, is just one means of transmitting information. Dealing with distant students, UPOU had to do more than fine-tune its virtual classroom. UPOU has achieved enough in ten years in tackling not only technological aspects of DE delivery mechanism, but the broader concerns for course programs, learner support systems, and curriculum development and its processes. This according to UPOU Chancellor Felix Librero.

Prior to the UPOU, institutions offering distance education (DE) were “either units of a college, or departments conducting extension classes in another place close to where students are located,” adds Dr. Adriano, who also heads the Office of the Director of Instruction. “Others, like the correspondence schools, used course materials imported from abroad and gave these to students to study on their own. The credibility of some schools was questioned as many were perceived to be mere diploma mills.”

When UP came into the picture, UPOU became the best alternative to conventional schooling in the Philippines, Dr. Librero says. “This much has been acknowledged by CHED (Commission on Higher Education), which designated UPOU as the National Center of Excellence for Open and Distance Learning, and by the Commission of Information and Communications Technology, which designated UPOU as the e-Learning Competency Center of the Philippines.

“We have an extensive system,” Librero adds, “of curriculum deve-lopment, module writing techniques, systematic student support services, and elaborate use of ICT in support of the learning process, as well as a developed faculty with high levels of skills in planning, designing, developing, delivering, and evaluating learning services under an open and distance system. None of the other institutions claiming to offer DE courses even come close to UPOU on these significant assessment points.”

Instructional lighthouse
According to Chancellor Librero, “where the paradigm is learner-centered, instructional materials and modules play significant roles. High quality instructional materials must be used to maintain high quality instruction and academic standards.”

He reports that UPOU is now beginning to achieve its goal of being what UKOU is to Britain; that is, to be the main source of high quality learning packages and materials in the country. “In Britain, students and professors even of the traditionally conservative universities such as Oxford obtain their books and other learning materials from the UKOU simply because they are excellent materials.”

While UP is known to produce new knowledge as a result of its research, the UPOU takes this a step further by producing “self-help” instructional materials. These materials are prepared by teams of experts from the entire UP System, experts and specialists in different disciplines, instructional designers, illustrators, editors, and in the case of multimedia materials, graphic and multimedia designers. The UPOU modules, which can be described as “pre-packaged lesson plans,” are prepared by teams called quality circles. These teams ensure that the best knowledge is conveyed in the best possible manner to an audience of learners who may not set foot on any UP campus.

The UPOU has developed over 200 print course manuals, 18 printed learning modules, a number of video and audio course materials, and several course materials in CD-ROM format. All materials are reviewed, pre-tested and revised, if need be, before they are mass-produced. According to Dr. Adriano, the well-designed materials can stand alone as learning tools, and would definitely enhance face-to-face instruction. In fact, Chancellor Librero reports that “today, there is an increasing number of academics and institutions purchasing the books published by UPOU because they have found these to be excellent learning materials.”

Open learning, learning open
Recognizing that the UVLe and IVLE are not yet substitutes for the real classroom, the Open University has been catering primarily to students who are already self-directed and independent. DE is not for those who still require socialization and much personal interaction.

Currently, the UPOU is addressing the demand for continuing education by offering mostly postgraduate courses. Using the various modes of DE, it has post-baccalaureate diploma and master’s programs in education, management (R&D, environmental and natural resources, public), computer science and information systems, agriculture, social work, hospital administration, public health, nursing degree, and pro-fessional studies in development communication. Its PhD program is in education, and includes four majors.

Its sole undergraduate program, the Associate in Arts, available to high school graduates and taken in three years, qualifies the student to enroll in a bachelor’s program, in much the same way as a college student takes his or her major subjects after having completed his or her general education course work. Dr. Adriano describes the students as much older than the traditional freshmen, which, she says, “makes a difference in terms of their responsibility in learning via the DE mode.”

Nevertheless, support services exist to complement the basic virtual classroom. Learning centers of the UPOU spread throughout the country provide a venue for students to meet study tutors and counselors, avail of learning resources, and take supervised examinations. The last is a requirement for passing, whether the student is under the face-to-face or online mode. The UPOU has established an online library and is also considering channeling its learning materials through cable television. By next year, through a partnership with the Knowledge Channel, it should be able to air some of its learning materials, which would then be available not just to students of the UPOU, but to anyone willing to view the program series on TV.

Reaching out
Open learning, whatever the medium, lends itself well to the evolving demands of an increasingly knowledge-based society. It can be used to meet practical, educational needs of an increasing number of multi-tasking people. Its audience is not limited to college-educated people such as Jejomar Binay, mayor of Makati City, or Dr. Emery Graham, deve-lopment planner of a city in Delaware, who are now applying what they have learned from UPOU. It includes the multi-tasking domestic helper in Hong Kong, the barangay captain, the college student who dropped out in junior year to look for a job, and the sari-sari storekeeper. For them, the UPOU offers non-formal courses such as E-commerce, Entrepreneurship, New Enterprise Planning, Caring for the Older Person, and Caring for the Special Child.

Another innovative learning program launched by the UPOU is m-learning. It employs the mobile phone’s SMS technology, and short lessons are delivered through the mobile unit. Topics include proper diet and nutrition, health risk factor assessment, calculating large numbers without using a calculator, and spelling commonly misspelled words.

As part of this program, subscribers take a pre-test or diagnostic test on their chosen topic to determine whether they need further instruction. If they do, they are encouraged to buy m-learning modules—short lessons presented in small handy booklets. Where applicable, there are interactive activities using SMS consisting of multiple choice questions, reflective questionnaires, and games. Results are interpreted and relayed to the subscriber. The tutor and the student exchange short messages. Learners who want to earn a certificate can apply to take a proctored examination upon completion of a set of related modules.

Soon, UPOU will directly help other higher education institutions (HEIs) enhance their programs through its Graduate Education Enrichment Program (GEEP). HEIs can require their students to cross-enroll at UPOU for their elective courses. De La Salle University, according to Chancellor Librero, has already made such an inquiry as regard the graduate program in management. “We are expecting cross enrollees from De La Salle in due time,” Librero says. “Additionally, graduate students from other state universities and colleges are expected to cross-register in UPOU courses as a means of strengthening their programs of study. At least four presidents of state universities have made verbal inquiries from the UPOU Chancellor regarding the GEEP program.”

Dr. Alexander G. Flor of the UPOU sees UPOU as “UP’s Global Campus.” In fact, from academic year 2003-2004 to 2004-2005, out-of-country enrollment doubled. Among the enrollees are “staff and dependents of development assistance agencies, public servants from developed countries, Filipino managers, engineers, and registered nurses, not to mention dependents of American servicemen,” says Dr. Flor. “The profile has drastically changed from Filipina domestic workers in Hong Kong who enrolled in UPOU in the nineties.”

DE, the UP way
The experience of distance education in UP shows that technology has not only made it possible to address educational needs that have always been there, but has also made its own demands on those who avail of it. Those who are not yet prepared to handle the responsibilities that come with DE need not apply.

It is a distinct possibility that in the future, DE in its full mode will be applicable to undergraduate instruction. After all, as Dr. Adriano points out, institutions of higher learning seek to “graduate students who require less supervision in their studies, find their own resources and work on their requirements without being monitored every so often; who can manage their own time and produce results, and who are responsible for their own learning. Without a doubt, these are traits strongly cultivated by DE. This means that it is bound to become mainstream.

In fact Chancellor Librero confidantly declares: “In all honesty and without bias, the UPOU is the only legitimate open university in the country given the standards set by CHED.”

UPOU is not just concerned with accessibility. It considers quality and relevance indispensable.