March 28, 2023 (Penang) – SEAMEO RECSAM (Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization – Regional Centre for Education in Science and Mathematics) successfully convened the SEAMEO Centre Policy Research Network (CPRN) 2023 Summit from 6 – 9 March 2023. The consecutive events served as a platform for SEAMEO Centres/Network to update trends on policy research, share on-going activities with other Centres and revisit activities plan agreed in last SEAMEO CPRN Summit (Hybrid) held in 2022. 

The SEAMEO CPRN Summit was attended by more than 45 delegates and participants comprising of officials from the 21 SEAMEO Regional Centres/Network across the SEAMEO member countries.

Guided by the theme, “Embracing Inclusivity in Education, Science and Culture towards a Future-Ready Southeast Asia”, the Summit highlighted the commitment of SEAMEO to prioritise a “Future-Ready” education process and mechanism that is able to face and survive the challenging reality with the advancement of technology.

Dr. Ahmad Rafee bin Che Kassim, Deputy Director-General of Education Malaysia (Policy and Curriculum Sector) on behalf of the Minister of Education Malaysia, Her Excellency Fadhlina Sidek, Minister of Education Malaysia graced the Opening Ceremony of the Summit on 7 March 2023. He commended the initiatives taken by SEAMEO and recognizes the needs of policy research to support this changing scenario today.

Dr Ahmad Rafee bin Che Kassim
Deputy Director-General of Education Malaysia (Policy and Curriculum Sector)
Minister of Education Malaysia
presented the Opening Message of the Summit on 7 March 2023

Dr Ethel Agnes Pascua-Valenzuela, Director of SEAMEO Secretariat, reaffirmed in her welcoming remarks that the SEAMEO CPRN Summit shall be the way forward to develop, enhance and promote new policies for the betterment of our education system. “By working together as a team and putting education agenda as the basis and foundation for building a knowledgeable, tolerant and resilient society guided by common objective, strategy and principles, we shall achieve progress to become a stronger and wiser nation” she added.  

Dr Ethel Agnes Pascua-Valenzuela
Director of SEAMEO Secretariat presented the welcoming remarks

The first day of the SEAMEO Centre Policy Research Network (CPRN) 2023 Summit featured a keynote remarks from Associate Professor Dr. David Ng Foo Seong from the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

In his keynote remarks, Dr. David emphasized on the purpose of schooling. He outlined that school leaders should develop "future-ready learners” and prepare our future generation for: (i) Living, (ii) Lifework and (iii) Learning by considering the past, present and future. Dr David also highlighted the six habits of practices of a future-ready learner which include: (i) inquisitiveness, (ii) ideation, (iii) prototyping, (iv) entrepreneurship, (v) intercultural acumen and (vi) passion. In concluding his session, he also shared the paradigm shifts in reframing successful education such as vision, learning environment and new enquiry methods to measure teaching and learning.

Closing the Summit on the third day, His Excellency Prof. Dr. P.Ramasamy A/L Palanisamy, Penang Deputy Chief Minister II and Penang Executive Councillor for Human Resources, Education, Science and Technology representing The Right Honourable Chief Minister of Penang, Tuan Chow Kon Yeow raised the importance of future education while ensuring the future workforce meets the growing demand industrial needs.

Prof Dr P Ramasamy A/L Palanisamy
Penang Deputy Chief Minister II and Penang Executive Councillor for Human Resources, Education,
Science and Technology presented the closing remarks on 8 March 2023

The SEAMEO CPRN 2023 Summit highlight 24 presentations of policy researches from three SEAMEO agenda namely Science, Education and Culture. Five research papers from the Science agenda, 17 research papers from the Education agenda and two papers from the Culture agenda were submitted and presented in the SEAMEO CPRN Summit held at RECSAM, Penang this year. 

Dr Shah Jahan bin Assanarkutty
Centre Director of SEAMEO RECSAM

The three-day Summit has provided an avenue researchers from the SEAMEO Regional Centres and Network to exchange and present their policy research initiatives and results. It also provided a premier interdisciplinary platform for them to discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns as well as practical challenges encountered and solutions adopted in their research area of education, science and culture.

About SEAMEO CPRN Summit
The SEAMEO Centre Policy Research Network (CPRN) Summit aims to enhance the relevance and sharpen the responsiveness of SEAMEO Regional Centres/Network and the SEAMEO Secretariat to the needs of education leaders for policy research to address regional human resource development issues in Southeast Asia. The aim of the Summit is to update trends on policy research, share ongoing activities with the regional centres, and plan the research activities.

More information, please contact:
Wong Lai Cheng, SEAMEO RECSAM
lcwong@recsam.edu.my