ANGARA: WE SHOULD "INTERNATIONALIZE" RP HIGHER ED

During the Senate Finance Committee hearing yesterday to discuss the 2011 budget of State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), Senator Edgardo J. Angara called for the "internationalization" of Philippine higher education.

"Our goal now is to 'internationalize' these SUCs in terms of faculty, students and curriculum. To accomplish this, we should seek foreign partners with similar areas of expertise. For example, we could send our professors to the leading technological schools in Korea or Japan, who are very eager to take part in these types of programs," he said.

Angara, Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, Culture and the Arts, addressed the 16 heads of SUCs who presented their budgets for the coming year. He emphasized the importance of exposing the academe-both students and professors-to higher standards of education through various exchange programs with other nations.

"We must develop wider international links with countries that are more technologically advanced so that our own graduates become more globally competitive," he said.

Angara also lauded the technological schools with good Research and Development (R&D) programs, having seen the innovative devices they were able to produce. Upon learning that they were indeed commercially viable, however, he questioned why they weren't being mass-produced yet.

"These inventions are very, very good-one can immediately see how valuable they can be especially in the countryside. However, if these devices are to be commercially produced, you should be able to market your product properly. Having the skill to sell the fruits of your R&D is another matter which we must attend to.

"This is another reason why we must strive for a broader outlook for our students and professors. We should give them the chance to see the intensely competitive global market so that they in turn would learn to be more more worldly and market-savvy," he stressed.