UP CEDEV holds GE panel discussion

02 Jun 2026

Originally posted on the University of the Philippines website.
Written by Jo. Florendo B. Lontoc, photos by Kevin Roque, UPS-MCO.

UPD National Institute of Physics Professor Giovanni Tapang talks about the value of general education courses in UP while UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Lorraine Pe Symaco listens intently.

The University of the Philippines Center for Education and Development, a recently-established unit under the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs, organized a panel discussion on general education, May 22 at the Institute of Biology, UP Diliman.

The discussion featured Emeritus Professor of Higher Education Martin Hayden of the Southern Cross University School of Education; Professor Lee Yew Jin of the Nanyang Technological University National Institute of Education; National Teachers College Vice President for Academic Affairs Edizon Fermin, who chairs the Commission on Higher Education Technical Panel for General Education; Professor Giovanni Tapang of the UPD National Institute of Physics; and Professor Ruth Lusterio-Rico of the UPD College of Social Sciences and Philosophy.

Lorraine Pe Symaco, VP for Academic Affairs and moderator of the General Education Panel Discussion, delivers the opening introduction to the panel discussion and presents the panelists at the Institute of Biology Auditorium on May 22, 2026.

UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Lorraine Pe Symaco was the panel moderator and started the discussion with a question on the kind of graduates universities must produce in a fast-changing world. An open forum followed, where questions came from the live audience and those participating through the livestream.

Symaco revealed that the event was just the first in a series of GE-centered activities to be led by CEDEV, which was prompted by a proposal to reduce GE units in Philippine higher education. According to program host, UP Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs (Faculty Development) Ian Kendrich Fontanilla, CEDEV is a platform for critical engagement on issues related to education and development.

Watch the Recorded Livestream

National Teachers College Vice President for Academic Affairs Edizon Fermin, who chairs the Commission on Higher Education Technical Panel for General Education, says a Filipino graduate should only have two major attributes: agency and urgency.

UPD College of Social Sciences and Philosophy Professor Ruth Lusterio-Rico, who teaches Social Sciences 2 under the UP System GE framework, reiterates the kind of graduates envisioned: critical thinkers, problem-solvers, good communicators, and people who act and behave ethically.

Nanyang Technological University Professor Lee Yew Jin (left) and Southern Cross University Emeritus Professor Martin Hayden provide international perspectives on general education in the UP-organized panel discussion on GE, May 22.

Hayden mentions the Australian system of holding institutions accountable to their mission and what they set out to develop in their graduates. Yew Jin, meanwhile, speaks of putting higher education in the context of a human being’s learning all throughout their life.

Giovanni Tapang shares his insights as a panelist during the General Education Panel Discussion held at the Institute of Biology Auditorium on May 22, 2026.

UP CEDEV holds GE panel discussion

Originally posted on the University of the Philippines website.
Written by Jo. Florendo B. Lontoc, photos by Kevin Roque, UPS-MCO.

UPD National Institute of Physics Professor Giovanni Tapang talks about the value of general education courses in UP while UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Lorraine Pe Symaco listens intently.

The University of the Philippines Center for Education and Development, a recently-established unit under the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs, organized a panel discussion on general education, May 22 at the Institute of Biology, UP Diliman.

The discussion featured Emeritus Professor of Higher Education Martin Hayden of the Southern Cross University School of Education; Professor Lee Yew Jin of the Nanyang Technological University National Institute of Education; National Teachers College Vice President for Academic Affairs Edizon Fermin, who chairs the Commission on Higher Education Technical Panel for General Education; Professor Giovanni Tapang of the UPD National Institute of Physics; and Professor Ruth Lusterio-Rico of the UPD College of Social Sciences and Philosophy.

Lorraine Pe Symaco, VP for Academic Affairs and moderator of the General Education Panel Discussion, delivers the opening introduction to the panel discussion and presents the panelists at the Institute of Biology Auditorium on May 22, 2026.

UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Lorraine Pe Symaco was the panel moderator and started the discussion with a question on the kind of graduates universities must produce in a fast-changing world. An open forum followed, where questions came from the live audience and those participating through the livestream.

Symaco revealed that the event was just the first in a series of GE-centered activities to be led by CEDEV, which was prompted by a proposal to reduce GE units in Philippine higher education. According to program host, UP Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs (Faculty Development) Ian Kendrich Fontanilla, CEDEV is a platform for critical engagement on issues related to education and development.

Watch the Recorded Livestream

National Teachers College Vice President for Academic Affairs Edizon Fermin, who chairs the Commission on Higher Education Technical Panel for General Education, says a Filipino graduate should only have two major attributes: agency and urgency.

UPD College of Social Sciences and Philosophy Professor Ruth Lusterio-Rico, who teaches Social Sciences 2 under the UP System GE framework, reiterates the kind of graduates envisioned: critical thinkers, problem-solvers, good communicators, and people who act and behave ethically.

Nanyang Technological University Professor Lee Yew Jin (left) and Southern Cross University Emeritus Professor Martin Hayden provide international perspectives on general education in the UP-organized panel discussion on GE, May 22.

Hayden mentions the Australian system of holding institutions accountable to their mission and what they set out to develop in their graduates. Yew Jin, meanwhile, speaks of putting higher education in the context of a human being’s learning all throughout their life.

Giovanni Tapang shares his insights as a panelist during the General Education Panel Discussion held at the Institute of Biology Auditorium on May 22, 2026.