MARINA Taps UPOU for Capacity-Building Training on Quality Assurance in Maritime Distance Learning

The University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU), through its Center for Open and Digital Teaching and Learning (CODTL), brought together 43 personnel from the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) for the culminating two-day workshop of the Blended Training on ODeL Course Design, Delivery, and Management, held on October 26–27, 2026, at the WCMPB Training Room in UPOU, Los Baños, Laguna. The workshop focused on developing and refining the Integrated MARINA Evaluator Toolkit, a practical resource designed to support the evaluation of open and distance e-learning (ODeL) programs and courses in maritime education and training.

During the workshop, participants applied quality assurance frameworks to sample cases, identified evaluation indicators and supporting evidence, and formulated evaluation findings and recommendations using the Integrated MARINA Evaluator Toolkit. The toolkit covers four key domains of ODeL quality assurance.

The CODTL training team, led by Director Dr. Juvy Lizette M. Gervacio and Deputy Directors Dr. Joseph De Mesa and Dr. Benigno Agapito Jr., facilitated the workshop discussions and guided participants through the evaluation activities. OSA Director Roda Tajon also attended the workshop.

As part of the culminating activity, Dr. Primo Garcia delivered a session on Strategic Planning for Blended, Online, and Open Learning (BOL). The session guided participants in examining institutional directions, assessing existing capacities, and identifying strategies to strengthen their blended and online learning initiatives.
In her closing remarks, Dr. Myra Oruga, Assistant to the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, speaking on behalf of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Dr. Aurora V. Lacaste, congratulated the participants on completing the program. She highlighted the knowledge and skills they had acquired to support their roles in evaluating and regulating ODeL programs and expressed hope for continued collaboration between UPOU and MARINA.

Meanwhile, Ms. Mags Marielle Ruiz, representing MARINA, thanked UPOU for facilitating the capacity-building program. She recalled the institutions’ 2020 collaboration, which contributed to the development of MARINA’s distance learning policies and guidelines. She expressed hope that the recent engagement would further strengthen these policies and pave the way for future collaboration.

The culminating workshop marked the completion of the four-week capacity-building program, which commenced on October 1, 2026, with an online onboarding session, followed by asynchronous learning activities through UPOU’s EXTEND platform. The program brought together MARINA personnel involved in evaluating, monitoring, and regulating maritime education and training programs to strengthen their competencies in assessing ODeL programs against relevant quality standards.

Through this engagement, UPOU, through CODTL, reaffirmed its commitment to sharing its expertise in open and distance e-learning to help institutions strengthen their quality assurance practices and develop evaluation tools responsive to their respective sectors. The partnership also highlights opportunities for similar capacity-building initiatives with other government agencies and institutions.