12 August 2020 – With the new normal takes in place, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) and Asia Technological University Network (ATU-Net) hosted the ATU-Net Virtual University Presidents Forum 2020 (UPF2020) Series 2 through an online platform via live on YouTube.
The second series of the forum focused on the theme ‘Building Academic Resilience in the Post COVID-19 World’, where Yang Mulia Professor Dr. Dayang Hjh Zohrah binti Hj Sulaiman, Vice-Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB) was one of the expert four panel speakers for the President Talk.
The half-day event began with two keynote addresses from Yang Berhormat Dato’ Dr Noraini Ahmad, Minister of Higher Education Malaysia and Yang Mulia Professor Datuk Ts. Dr. Wahid Razzaly, Vice-Chancellor of UTHM respectively shared their insights on the impact of the pandemic and ways to build resilience.
For the President Talk, the first speaker, Professor Dr. Dayang Hjh Zohrah shared about the impact on UTB and how the university has been coping and transitioning towards digital mobility and e-learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Professor Dr. Dayang Hjh Zohrah, Business Continuity Plan (BCP) was activated to provide guidelines and precautionary measures to ensure the infection of COVID-19 was regulated. She also shared that UTB had started utilising its Online Education Platforms and other non-face-to-face delivery methods of teaching learning since 16 March 2020 and the conversion of examinations to 100% coursework.
She stated that during the COVID-19 pandemic, UTB also had made a number of donation drives to provide support to the community and for this year, students organised UTB Care to assist the needs of frontliners as well as to provide financial support to the underprivileged students to ease their burden and to ensure that all students had equal accessibility to learning.
Following the developments of COVID-19 situation in Brunei that was currently under control, UTB opened its campus for new semester where Teaching and Learning activities resumed as normal with limiting the number of students that is allowed by Ministry of Health’s guidelines, blended learning also resumed.
“The outbreak had an impact on the university but it also created rooms and opportunities for the university to grow its resilience when faced a crisis. Without a swift and clear decision making concerning the changes within the university, it would not have successfully executed the abrupt transformation to digital literacy,” said the Vice-Chancellor of UTB.
“Throughout the period of Online Teaching and Learning, it was found that the students performed better as an overall. E-learning could complement the direct teaching and learning process although it could not replace it”, added Professor Dr. Dayang Hjh Zohrah.
ATU-Net is a strategic international alliance connecting technological higher learning institutions in Asia, and which Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) is both chair and secretariat. ATU-Net UPF2020 is concentrating on higher education and post COVID-19 recovery. Delivered in three series, it includes keynote addresses, roundtable session and Q&A sessions. ATU-Net UPF2020 is attended by university presidents, vice presidents, senior representatives of universities, and other stakeholders of higher education including university students.
