EDECOLEPMENTALISM – A Personal Philosophy in Higher Education

This article briefly introduces Edecolepmentalism – a personal philosophy in higher education based on the interaction between education, economics and development.

Read more to find out how today’s knowledge-based economy steer the development of a nation, and even the whole world.

The Background

Year 2001. I was a part-time lecturer at the Department of English and Applied Linguistics at Dela Salle University, Manila and at the same time a CHED scholar for a master’s degree, Master of Arts in Teaching English Language when I met a colleague in the Economics Department. He was a newly hired faculty then but he’d been working as a bank manager for 20 years.

After a short introduction, we talked about the future of education and the money one can get if he/she invests in education business. He said, “There is money in education.” And that is his main reason for leaving his job in the banking business.

After 8 years, Dr. Elnora Loriega, my professor in Philosophy of Education at West Visayas State University required us to have our own educational philosophy. And I came up with my very own. I call it edecolepmentalism.

What is Edecolepmentalism?

“Edecolepmentalism” is my personal philosophy in higher education. It is derived from the words education, economics and development. Ed – is for education; eco- is for economics; and lepmentalism – is for development.

This philosophy is anchored on how the UNESCO defined and perceived education in general as “education – a key to get rid of poverty.” I philosophize that in higher education, we can develop a nation, and the world in general, through transnational education (blended or purely digital learning).

A well-developed country or world, as can be seen in its economy (knowledge-based economy), is a byproduct of a quality transnational education through blended or digital learning curriculum. This is the trend in the 21st century.

definition of edecolepmentalism
Conceptual framework of edecolepmentalism.

I already thought about edecolepmentalism before but I hesitated to submit it. I knew for a fact that my readings about curriculum development and the observations and immersions that I did were not enough to capture this phenomenon. So, the philosophy that I submitted to Dr. Loriega was not about it.

Illustration of Edecolepmentalism

It was towards the end of 2010-2011 when I learned that more business tycoons in the Philippines are investing huge amount of money in education following the university-industry model. In this model, the university provides the human capital or graduates that the industry needs such as the the E2E system (enrollment-to-employment) of the Systems Technological Institute or (STI) and the John B. Lacson Maritime University.

I believe that the best indicator of program effectiveness is when all the students who are enrolled in a course can finish it during the prescribed period of time and able to land a job after graduation. This kind of indicator is based on the principle of economics – the return on investment.

The bottom line is that students and their parents will choose a course or a program in which they can easily get their investments back. And the E2E system assures them that there are jobs waiting for their children after graduation.

In conclusion, this personal philosophy in higher education arose as a result of the knowledge I gained while taking up a doctorate degree in curriculum development and personal immersion in the business community.

© 2014 June 9 M. G. Alvior

19 Comments

  1. lala veloso February 15, 2020
  2. Sharon May 4, 2018
  3. sahar October 24, 2017
  4. Francis Mubanga August 4, 2017
  5. Alvior, Mary G. April 10, 2017
  6. Ibrahim ondu March 27, 2017
    • Alvior, Mary G. March 30, 2017
  7. swiftiena January 25, 2017
    • Alvior, Mary G. February 27, 2017
  8. Merlina G. Rago August 26, 2016
    • Alvior, Mary G. September 7, 2016
  9. aliyu musa babikkoi July 22, 2016
    • Alvior, Mary G. September 6, 2016
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  10. Alvior, Mary G. November 5, 2015
  11. Cecilio E. Rahon Jr. November 1, 2015
    • Alvior, Mary G. November 5, 2015
  12. Mary Alvior June 9, 2014