Associate Professor Lea C. Garcia, a UPOU PhD student, won the Best Paper Award during the 2nd Lumina Foundation International Research Congress 2018 with the theme “Breakthroughs in Teaching and Learning” held on 3-5 February 2018 at the Fu Jen Catholic University, Taipei, Taiwan.

Associate Professor Garcia presented her research paper titled “Inquiry-based approaches in Science Teaching: How to teach Photosynthesis Creatively” which aims to evaluate the usefulness of two teaching strategies namely, game and role playing, as important inquiry-based approaches in teaching photosynthesis to high school students.

Participated by 54 representatives from various educational institutions, the research congress served as an avenue in discussing innovative and comprehensive overview of the latest research in teaching and learning as well as exploring the influences of teaching and learning in shaping the lives of educators and learners.

The conference was organized by Lumina Foundation for Integral Human Development in cooperation with the Network of Professional Researchers and Educators, Inc. and Fu Jen Catholic University College of Education and Graduate Institute of Educational Leadership and Development.

Associate Professor Garcia is currently enrolled at the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU) taking up PhD in Education with major in Biology Education. The program is offered by the Faculty of Education. She works as a faculty member at the UP Rural High School, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Los Baños.

When asked of her experience at UPOU, she said that being a UPOU student allowed her to learn and experience many new things. It helped her to widen her knowledge in various fields especially in the field of biology education.

“UPOU is a very welcoming place, and from the first day, I felt at home here. UPOU can offer the quality distance education for all through innovative methods of teaching and learning. It is the best option for further/higher education ,” she remarked.

(CVMina)