Tokyo, Japan — In a significant contribution to the International Conference for Media in Education (ICOMe) 2024, held from August 21-23, the Director of Immersive Open Pedagogies at the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) recently served as a distinguished panelist in a plenary presentation focused on the Performative Approach in Education. The discussion explored how the principles of performative learning, as articulated by Dr. Lois Holzman, are being innovatively applied in educational contexts worldwide.
The plenary session, which was part of the highly anticipated conference theme “Performative Approach to Media Studies in Education ,” was a response to the keynote of Dr. Lois Holzman, a leading advocate of cultural approaches to learning, development, and psychotherapy, and the Director of the East Side Institute, set the stage with her keynote on the Performative Approach, emphasizing the role of performance in learning and development.
Building on Dr. Holzman’s foundational ideas, Dr. Figueroa presented a compelling case study on the application of these principles within the Metaverse at UPOU. He illustrated how performative learning activities are being enhanced through immersive technologies, allowing students to engage in collaborative, creative, and reflective practices within a virtual space. This approach, the director argued, not only deepens learning but also fosters a sense of community and shared purpose among students in an open university setting.
Other panelists in the session included Ken Hagiwara, professor at the School of Global Japanese Studies, Meiji University in Tokyo and former research associate of the Tsubouchi Memorial Theatre Museum, Waseda University in Tokyo, Keiju Suzuki,a teacher at Seto SOLAN Primary School in Japan, and Dr. Jeeheon Ryu, a professor in Department of Education at Chonnam National University, South Korea.
In a lively Q&A session, discussants Makiko Kishi, Ph.D. in Informatics and a Professor at the School of Global Japanese Studies, Meiji University, and Yuko Kawashima, an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Informatics in Kansai University, engaged the panelists on critical issues such as the scalability of performative approaches in large educational systems and the ethical considerations of immersive technologies in education.
The panel concluded with a consensus on the transformative potential of combining performative approaches with emerging technologies like the Metaverse. The plenary session has sparked considerable interest among educators and researchers, promising further exploration and collaboration in this rapidly evolving field.
Written by John Alain Orbe
Edited by Roberto Figueroa Jr.
