The Deputy Director of the Office of QS/THE Rankings, Engr. Nestor R. Ong, MSIE, PIE, ASEAN Eng and his Office Assistant, Mr. Vien Vic G. Flores, MS, AFP attended the 5-day Virtual QS Reimagine Education Conference 2021 based on the ASIA and Europe/US program agenda.
The conference allowed Ong and Flores to participate in several pocket webinars that covered topics such as Challenging Traditional Quality Metrics in Higher Education, Proven Approaches to Online Leadership and Teacher Development, The Age of Online Learning – Working towards an evaluative framework, Lessons Learnt from Reimagine Education, Developing and Implementing a Winning Product Roadmap, and Gamification and Game Design Theory in the Classroom.
They also attended challenging, timely and relevant panel discussions about Embedding SDGs in Universities’ DNA, Measuring Impact – Tech for SDGs, Learning and Thriving in the New Normal, Pioneering Educational Models, AI For Personalized Student Success, The Entrepreneurial University, Designing Education for Collective Intelligence, and Virtual Projects as New Internships – Future 17 Sustainable Development Goals Challenge Program. Some of the more valuable conversations centered around questioning the status quo and discussing the balance of technology in the classroom and learning skills along with knowledge.
Ong said, “To our pleasant surprise, this Reimagine Education Conference provides us with a great way for all of us to share and exchange ideas with other professionals from different countries and from different background as well as discovering new collaborations with some of the brilliant or talented educators and innovators who attended the conference.” He also added, ”It was inspiring to hear many different perspectives on education and technology associated with the various innovations in the educational environment which was a great opportunity to also appreciate each other’s work as we all strive for common goals in a new normal setting.”
Ong and Flores’ efforts in attending almost every conference program agenda and active participation in each session were recognized when the University recently received an invitation from the 9th edition of Wharton- QS Reimagine Education Awards (2022 Global Education Award and Global EdTech Award) to submit an entry focusing on innovative projects on enhancing student learning outcomes and employability.
This call for applications is being coordinated with Prof. Cheryl R. Peralta, DrPH, Vice Rector for Academic Affairs and Asst. Prof. Anna Cherylle M. Ramos, Director of the Educational Technology Center, for our potential participation in their global awards category where the submission deadline is 16th September 2022. Judges will announce the shortlisted projects on 15th October 2022.
All shortlisted projects’ teams will be invited to present their innovation at the Wharton-QS Reimagine Education Conference, where, after a pitch competition for the 10 top-scoring projects, the winners will be selected by the Grand Jury, and awarded on the final day of the conference.
The Reimagine Education Conference brought together a community of people, especially leaders working to enhance education in a variety of ways. Reimagine Education is a global conference and competition, open to educational innovators from all around the globe. The conference brings together edtech startups, academic faculty from top institutions, chief innovation officers, university leadership, teachers, and other stakeholders in the future of higher education teaching and learning.
The Reimagine Education Awards – the ‘Oscars’ of Education – reward innovative approaches that enhance student learning outcomes and employability, offering $50,000 in funding to the overall winners.
The Reimagine Education Competition & Conference has continued to grow every year, attracting record numbers of applicants and delegates. Delegate feedback has been broadly positive, recognizing the need for a forum that brings to the forefront the most pressing questions facing contemporary educators.
