This article is a follow-up on my previous article on research in universities and research centers in the Philippines. In this article, it is assumed that the scientists who reported their research findings in peer-reviewed journals must have begun their investigations as early as five years ago. This gives us an idea of the “gestation” period for the making of a published paper, and the amount of effort that goes into the production of scholarly articles.
As I said in that earlier column, we generally follow the American universities’ tradition that the academic program of the best universities consists of instruction to enable students to become proficient in the professions usually beyond the undergraduate level, to discover new knowledge, and to use this knowledge for service to society.
The research papers of the scientists awarded by the National Academy of Science & Technology (NAST) described in the two succeeding paragraphs all fulfill the three functions of universities.
The NAST identified 13 outstanding and talented young scientists during the 34th Annual Scientific Meeting held July 11 to 12, 2012 at the Manila Hotel. These young scientists were given appropriate awards in the form of plaques and cash by the NAST and the Department of Science & Technology.
In addition, two senior scientists were given special awards for their significant research in environmental protection and tropical medicine. Five outstanding published scientific papers and one book were likewise recognized, and the authors were given cash awards.
Of interest to me, and perhaps also to some of my readers, is the fact that, since my election to NAST in 2004, the NAST awardees have come mainly from four universities in the country: the University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, and the University of Sto. Tomas — all based in Manila.
This year, I find that the Asian Institute of Management and the Nueva Viscaya State University were the only two additions to the big four universities. It would look like the other universities in the country have not been functioning to generate new knowledge, or have failed to perform this important responsibility. There is something wrong about this state of affairs.
Somebody sent me an email that was uncomplimentary to Philippine universities in general: Among the universities in Asia, the Philippines had the lowest number of peer-reviewed papers on education, social science, and natural science. Are we not worried about this announcement and its implications?
I challenge those universities without or with little achievement in published research papers to begin to close the gap between the four universities mentioned above and the rest of the universities in the country, thereby, elevating the reputation of the whole system of higher education.
The poor record of research productivity in the country also reflects the inadequacy of the academic program of the Commission on Higher Education and the other departments of the Executive Department charged with the responsibility of providing funding and other assistance to universities. Something must be done about this problem — and soon.
