ASEAN virtual school eyed to advance region's S&T workforce

By Framelia V. Anonas
MediaCore, PCASTRD

Science and technology workers and professionals could update their knowledge and skills without interrupting work loads and right in the workplaces through the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Virtual Institute of Science and Technology.

AVIST is collaborative project of the ASEAN Committee on Science and Technology through the Sub-committee on S&T infrastructure and Resource Development.  It offers courses relevant to the needs of the South East Asian region through distance and open or virtual mode.

This means that student-professor interaction will mainly but not exclusively be in an online environment through the use of information and communication technologies such as satellite TV and web-based courses.

“Aside from offering distance learning, AVIST also gives opportunities for students to undergo real practice experience at participating universities,” says Dr. Ida Dalmacio, focal person of ASEAN-SCIRD.

The project aims “to complement and add value, rather than duplicate S&T human resource development interventions already available in various ASEAN countries,” Dalmacio stresses.

 AVIST can be accessed through participating universities and institutes that serve as its physical sites.  In the country, AVIST courses can be availed through the University of the Philippines Open University in Los Baños, Laguna.

Its S&T-focused, short-term three-month courses that meet internationally acceptable quality benchmarks set AVIST apart from all other virtual learning institutions in the region. 

The institute now offers pilot courses on Sustainable Ecotourism Development, Hypercourse on Bioinformatics, and Introduction to Technology and Innovation Management.

AVIST courses are held in virtual classrooms that bring together students and professors who may be at home, in internet cafés, or in workplaces through the use of computers.

Students can also access classes in learning resource centers provided in participating universities.  Specially designed computer software electronically links students to their professors and classmates so that they are able to attend lectures, take tests, receive feedback from professors, participate in discussions, and undertake team projects with fellow students using ICT resources.

According to Dalmacio, AVIST courses are designed to be delivered online using two methods such as “virtual classroom learning” and “virtual class on demand”.  The former requires students and professors to be on-line at the same time, while the latter provides a more flexible option where a student can access his or her virtual class at his own convenience.

Tutors are trained to function in an online and distance learning environment. Help desks are also available to provide technical and academic assistance.

ASEAN-COST conceptualized and endorsed AVIST during the 1999 ASEAN Summit as part of its strategy on continuing professional education.  Pilot site was set up by the National Science and Technology Development Agency, and the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand, and later joined into a set of mirror sites by other ASEAN organizations.

It is a strategy responding to the ASEAN Vision 2020, particularly on ASEAN-COST's flagship project on S&T human resources development that includes creating an environment for life-long learning and updating the qualifications of S&T professionals and practitioners, among others.

AVIST in the Philippines is supported by the Philippine Council for Advanced Science and Technology Research and Development, Advanced Science and Technology Institute, and UPOU which provide management, technical, and academic support, respectively.

AVIST complements DOST and PCASTRD efforts in developing the S&T human resource capabilities of the country. 

[For more information on AVIST, please contact PCASTRD at tel. numbers 837-7156 and 837-7522, fax number 837-3168, or email pcastrd@dost.gov.ph or log on to http://www.avist.org]