Miriam College joined nine other higher education institutions at the launch of the transnational education (TNE) program held at Shangri-La in Makati on February 16, 2018.

The TNE program, developed by the British Council and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), offers disciplines that are currently not available in the country. Miriam is the only college among a roster of top Philippine universities selected for this UK-CHED linkage.

Under the TNE program, Miriam College has partnered with Goldsmiths University of London for the first transnational dual award graduate degree program called Master of Arts in Designing Education or MADE. It has a requisite Philippine-based Post-graduate Certificate in Designing Education or PGCDE that will be taken up at Miriam College.

MADE is the Philippines’ first teacher education program that focuses on the interaction of design and education. The venture is anchored on Goldsmiths expertise in fusing design and education and on Miriam College’s 91 years of expertise in the area of education as well as on its recognition as a CHED-designated Center of Excellence in Teacher Education.

“While recent education reforms rally innovation as a crucial dimension of educational change, school owners, educational leaders, classroom teachers, and other stakeholders remain underequipped. Thus the premise of MADE is to cultivate a culture of design thinking among teacher education institutions (TEIs) that will directly influence the culture of thinking and doing in schools and, ultimately, in Philippine society,” Miriam College President, Dr. Rosario O. Lapus, elaborates on the rationale behind the course offering. She adds that MADE is unique internationally as it enables students to explore the relationship between design thinking and critical pedagogy in order to uncover new areas for learning and teaching practice. “It is the field of education that stands to benefit from the intention and logic of design thinking,” she said.

Part of the unique learning context of MADE is a three-month interaction with innovators in education, 14 days of London-based field study and expert mentoring, 60 credits of recognition towards a full British master’s degree, and 600 flexible hours of practice based, blended learning.

“Miriam College has chosen to partner with Goldsmiths because of a shared culture of teacher education. In particular, we both specialize in child development and education and in emerging fields in education such as e-learning and advocacy-driven teaching,” said Dr. Lapus.

Miriam College President Dr. Rosario O. Lapus joined the presidents of Philippine universities and representatives from UK partner schools.  Miriam College set up its own booth at the event managed by the Henry Sy, Sr. Innovation team composed of Dr. Edizon Fermin, Dr. Trixie Sison, and Indo Ibañez and supported by the Institutional Partnerships and Programs Office (IPPO), Marketing and Communications Office, and CBEA faculty, Mr. Allan Tang.

Hosting the launch was IPPO head Dr. Gail Galang.