The College of Education gathered over 400 educators and students in the 5th installment of the “PSALM (Passion for Scholarship and Love for Mission) International Conference for Teacher Education and Formation” last February 7 to 8, 2025, at the Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati Auditorium. The annual conference examined how decolonization is practiced in curriculum and pedagogy, teacher identity and praxis, policy, leadership, and school cultures within the Asian region.
Participants also explored strategies and means of decolonizing teacher education that are responsive to the diverse cultural, historical, and social contexts in Asia.
Pre-conference workshops were held onsite, with Mr. Shane Alexander Laong’s “Decolonizing Educational Technology,” and Dr. Katrina Ninfa Topacio’s “Unobtrusive Research,” and online, with Dr. Setiono Sugiharto’s “Decolonizing Higher Education: A Perspective from the Epistemologies of the South.” Laong is Team Leader for ICT-based Educational Training of the (UST) Educational Technology Center, while Topacio is the Assistant Director of UST Research Center for Social Sciences and Education. Sugiharto is a Professor at the Atma Jaya Catholic University Indonesia (Atma Jaya).
Delivering her Welcome Remarks, College of Education Dean Assoc. Prof. Pilar Romero, LPT, Ph.D., expressed that the PSALM Conference is “a testament to the University’s commitment to continuous improvement within the field of education.” Meanwhile, Vice Rector for Research and Innovation Rev. Fr. Jannel Abogado, O.P., DThPatSc, stated that the conference serves as an avenue to rekindle dedication and hope of young people, especially those who are aspiring to become teachers.
In her keynote speech, National Research Council of the Philippines (DOST-NRCP) President Dr. Aimee Lynn A. Barrion-Dupo underscored that what counts as powerful knowledge in the curriculum is how we relate what we do as teachers with our way of life.
The first day of the conference consisted of three plenary lectures, with the first being “Postcolonial Education and National Identity: Implications to Teacher Education” by University of Hong Kong Faculty of Education Assistant Dean of Research Dr. Liz Jackson. Jackson’s lecture was followed by “Mediating Forces to Teacher Curriculum Contextualization” by University of the Philippines College of Music Secretary and Associate Professor Dr. Jocelyn Timbol-Guadalupe.
Lastly, Dr. Chuckie Calzado of Philippine Science High School Main Campus delivered his lecture titled, “Critical Pedagogy in Action: Empowering Students and Teachers.” Calsado explained that decolonization is a violent process and that critical pedagogy can be used as a tool for liberation.
Opening the second day was Dr. Bill Atweh’s plenary lecture, “Decolonization of Education through/of Research.” Atweh, a retired faculty member of Curtin University of Technology Australia and International Education Consultant of OneWorldRipples, explained that action research is a reflective and reflexive tool, when used properly.
After the lecture, Dean Romero, College of Education Secretary Asst. Prof. Alvin Ringgo C. Reyes, M.A., and College of Education Assistant Dean Asst. Prof. Louie B. Dasas, LPT, Ph.D., joined Atweh in the opening of poster exhibits by student researchers from around the country.
Parallel paper presentations were then conducted by academics and students from universities in Metro Manila and other provinces, including Leyte Normal University, Angeles University Foundation, Baras High School of Tarlac, University of Rizal System, Notre Dame of Marbel University, Bulacan State University, Cavite State University, City College of Tagaytay, and Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology.
Online breakout sessions were held after the presentations, led by members of the Faculty of Education and Languages of Atma Jaya. Shortly after the sessions, a special online lecture, “Teachers’ Attempts to Optimize Engagement on Digital Learning Platforms through Assemblages of Alignment and Materiality,” was conducted by Dr. Kasih Elisabet Roostini, M.Hum, a Professor of Atma Jaya.
University of Leeds, United Kingdom School of Education Impact Lead and M.A. Education Programme Lead Dr. Syafiq Mat Noor and University of the Philippines Diliman College of Education Philosophy and Values Education Program Head Dr. Maricris Acido-Muega concluded the conference with their plenary lectures titled, “Decolonizing Climate Change Curriculum through Traditional Ecological Knowledge,” and, “Decolonizing Educational Policies: A Critical Analysis and a Call to Action,” respectively.
Mat Noor expounded on participatory curriculum development as an emancipatory practice, while Acido-Muega pointed out that curriculum is a powerful tool to colonize and decolonize.
In his synthesis, Dasas revealed that the 6th PSALM Conference will be held in 2027 instead of its yearly conduct as it paves the way for the preparations of PSALM’s first peer reviewed journal.
