CLSU DOT-Uni Marks 26 Years of Distance Education Excellence in the Philippines and Worldwide

August 29, 2023 - The Central Luzon State University, Distance, Open, and Transnational University (CLSU DOT-Uni) modestly commemorates 26 years of delivering high-quality distance education to learners in the Philippines and around the globe. This significant milestone was marked with events and initiatives leading to the anniversary celebration. CLSU DOT-Uni organized several activities to engage and support its community of learners and educators. These activities included the DOT-Uni Webinar Series, which covered diverse topics essential to students' academic growth and educators' professional development. The series had a "Meet & Greet" session as a kick-off, a webinar on "Supporting Graduate Students in Writing for Thesis and Dissertation," and a webinar on "Managing References and Citations." These events aimed to enhance student's educational experience and provide valuable insights to faculty members. Furthermore, the institution hosted a two-part training and workshop series focused on revisiting and updating the CLSU Curriculum’s Program Educational Objectives (PEO) and Program Outcomes (PO), demonstrating its commitment to academic excellence and continuous improvement. One of CLSU DOT-Uni's enduring commitments is to uphold academic integrity and ensure a fair and transparent learning environment. To achieve this, the institution has continued its subscription to Turnitin, a leading plagiarism detection and prevention tool. Turnitin not only aids in maintaining the university's commitment to academic integrity and streamlines grading and feedback processes but ultimately raises the bar for student outputs. In a simple yet significant development for its 26th year, the University President approved CLSU DOT-Uni’s subscription to the world's leading Learning Management System (LMS) for educational institutions: Canvas LMS. This decision underscores the university's dedication to providing cutting-edge technology and seamless learning experiences for its students, faculty, and staff. Canvas LMS is known for its user-friendly interface, extensive customization options, and robust features that empower educators and learners alike. In line with its vision to become "The Digital University and the future of higher education in the Philippines and Beyond," CLSU DOT-Uni has taken a significant step in applying as an associate member of the Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU). This prestigious non-profit organization is dedicated to advancing open and distance education in Asia and improving member institutions' educational management, teaching, and research efforts. This effort reflects CLSU DOT-Uni's commitment to expanding educational opportunities and raising the bar for quality distance education. Additionally, CLSU DOT-Uni remains an active member of the Consortium of Open Distance Education Providers in the Philippines, further solidifying its position as a critical player in the country's open and distance education landscape. As CLSU DOT-Uni celebrates 26 years of excellence in distance education, it acknowledges the invaluable contributions of its students, faculty, staff, alums, stakeholders, and local and international partners. These collaborative efforts have been instrumental in the institution's continuous success and mission to improve education. The journey of CLSU DOT-Uni continues as it looks forward to a future marked by innovation, inclusivity, and a commitment to providing accessible and quality education to learners across the Philippines and beyond.

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Benchmarking, A Semantic birthing Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) Network Building

From the words of the wise, freedom from ignorance begins from one’s recognition of his own. The growing recognition of every Higher Education Institution’s own limitation was originally the driving force behind the concept of benchmarking and for sometimes will remain its staple. However, as the practice is continuously proving to earn rewarding returns, both to the host and the visiting party, it semantically transcends into the higher and noble plane of camaraderie until such time that majority of the HEIs in the country has been bridged, interconnected, co-existing and healthily learning from one another. The dual gains of benchmarking are undeniably manifested in the cordial exchanges of ideas aimed at raising the bar of excellence but more than that, the implied gestures that both the host and the hosted mutually receive the “you got my back” assurance is certainly the winning point of the practice. From the vantage point of a visiting HEI, benchmarking is on the narrative of measuring the quality of its own construct/s by comparing it with other else’s possessing accepted standard/s. It equates that the criterion of the hosting institution is the visiting party’s point of reference in setting its own. On the other hand, it inspires the host to out-best no one but themselves. Raising the bar of excellence becomes a mutual objective minus the intention of outshining one another. Voicing out admiration for specific feats found worth-heralding from each other is gradually becoming the norm and pleasure of both. The benchmarking experience once actualized yield more than the anticipated gains. It is a practice that weave the knit among HEIs towards a stronger and unified national HEI congregation that celebrates differences yet respects boundaries. The recent visit of the delegation from Bulacan State University (BulSU) headed by Dr. Ruben E. Borja II, Professor, together with seven BulSu faculty members to the Central Luzon State University particulary at the Distance, Open and Transnational University (DOT-Uni) on February 16 2023 is an affirmation of the winning formula of benchmarking. The exchange of ideas, comparing of notes and getting to know each team member are part and parcel of the benchmarking activity. In between giggles and contagious laughter, the learnings were well-noted but the promise and the anticipation of fruitful linkages sealed with new bonds of friendship and camaraderie brought about by having similar institutional functions lighted up each other’s ardor for excellence. ERFiegalan, MCMFernando.