A PROFESSOR from the College of Education was honored by the Government of Canada and the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) last March 18 during the 43rd SEAMEO Council Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Prof. Allan de Guzman received the SEAMEO-Jasper Research Award for his study titled “Creating Space for Legitimate Participation of Youth in Education for Sustainability (ES) through Service Learning: Toward a ‘Liberatory Praxis’ for Pedagogy of Sustainability (PS)”.
The SEAMEO-Jasper Research Award is annually given to researchers from Southeast Asian countries like Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam, who have conducted outstanding studies on social change, good governance, civic consciousness, health, environmentally responsible lifestyles, and innovative approaches to teaching and research.
“To set high expectation is an indication of good research practice. However, I never thought of winning the prestigious award when I was doing my paper,” De Guzman told the Varsitarian.
De Guzman’s study, participated by 223 students from Western Visayas, discussed how a student can be not just an “agent of change”, but also as an “active player in sustainable development through service learning”.
Believing that education is closely connected to the community, De Guzman stressed that learning should not be detached from understanding and addressing the concerns of community life.
He also revealed that in a developing country like the Philippines, there is a clear link between teaching and research.
“With the effects of globalization, consumerism, poverty, environmental degradation and other social problems, service learning and education, should be given a space in the curriculum programming,” said De Guzman, adding that sustainability should be the “core of the academic platform” which can lead to an equilibrium of “academic excellence and genuine service” to the students. A.M.P. Dagcutan
