The successful collaborative teaching and faculty development program between Biliran Province State University and Adamson University (AdU) is generating buzz in the region, with Eastern Visayas State University (EVSU) Ormoc Campus visiting BiPSU for a benchmarking activity.

EVSU Ormoc visited BiPSU on April 8 to learn more about the successful collaboration between BiPSU and AdU, particularly the implementation of the team teaching approach and faculty development program for BiPSU's engineering programs.

The delegation from EVSU Ormoc Campus, composed of 11 members, includes Engr. Joel Capala, head of EVSU Ormoc's Engineering Department; Engr. Antonio Naboya, Civil Engineering coordinator; Engr. Jomar Navarro, Electrical Engineering coordinator; Engr. Michael Mendoza, Mechanical Engineering coordinator; Engr. Phoebe Lanzaderas, head of the Institutional Planning and Development Office (IPDO), and faculty members Engr. Robert Navarro, Engr. Edrinald Estobañez, Engr. John Albert Laboga, Engr. Rechel Caliwan, Engr. Ruderico Endriano, and Engr. Jerico Agapito

In his message, Engr. Vivencio Pelesco, dean of the School of Engineering (SOE) and vice president for Administration and Finance, mentioned that the visit is a collaborative undertaking between BiPSU and EVSU Ormoc.  He highlighted the value of mutual learning and shared best practices between the two institutions.

"This activity is an opportunity for you to know our best practices here at the School of Engineering," Engr. Pelesco said. "And of course, it is also a great chance for us to know the best practices of EVSU Ormoc which we can learn from." 

Engr. Pelesco led the discussion and provided a comprehensive explanation of the process, organizational structure, operational guidelines, and specific requirements involved in establishing and sustaining a collaborative team teaching and faculty development program with a partner university.

He detailed the stages of partnership formation, including initial engagement and alignment of objectives, delineation of roles and responsibilities between institutions, curriculum mapping, faculty qualification standards, scheduling and coordination of team-taught courses, evaluation mechanisms to monitor teaching effectiveness, and strategies for continuous professional development of faculty members to ensure academic excellence and industry relevance in the engineering programs.

Moreover, the benchmarking activity was also attended by heads and faculty from BiPSU's SOE including Engr. Jude Banico, Electrical Engineering department chair; Engr. Jean Paul Logronio, Civil Engineering department chair; Engr. Ramon Pitao, Jr., Mechanical Engineering department chair; Engr. Bryan Bernil, SOE research chair and EE faculty member; Engr. Carmel Sigrid Docallos, CE faculty member and director of the Sports and Development Office; and Engr. Roosevelt Mendoza, EE faculty member.

The collaborative team teaching is a program where selected faculty from BiPSU and AdU worked together to teach courses in BiPSU’s engineering programs, including Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (BSCE), Computer Engineering (BSCpE), Electrical Engineering (BSEE), and Mechanical Engineering (BSME). The team teaching was delivered through online or blended learning platforms and in-person classes at BiPSU.

Meanwhile, another provision of the collaboration between the two institutions is the offering of graduate programs of the Adamson University at BiPSU. These include Master of Engineering majors in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering; and the Master of Science in Civil Engineering.

Both these initiatives are products of the collaboration of BiPSU and AdU, made official with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and Memorandum of Agreement (MOA).

[This aligns with SDG 4: Quality Education and SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.]