More than 500 representatives from Catholic educational institutions in the Philippines participated in a virtual meeting in which experts in service-learning shared knowledge and practices on the transition “From Theory to Pedagogy.” Organized by the Uniservitate team at De La Salle University, coordinator of the Asia and Oceania hub of this global network, in collaboration with CLAYSS (Latin American Center for Service-Learning) and the Catholic Education Association of the Philippines (CEAP), the webinar held the attention of participants for three hours on January 26, 2026.
During this time, five discussion sessions were held, focusing on the basic understanding and practical application of service learning. A group of experts addressed the fundamentals of service-learning and its integration into curricula and shared key information on strengthening service learning as a transformative pedagogy in Catholic education.
The meeting was chaired by Father Karel San Juan, SJ, president of CEAP, and María Rosa Tapia, coordinator of Uniservitate.
Among the presentations, Andrew Furco from the United States stood out with his analysis of the basic principles of service learning and how it differs from other forms of experiential learning due to its emphasis on reciprocal service and academic integration. Carol Ma from Singapore also sparked a lot of interest with her presentation on different models for aligning service-learning with discipline-based learning outcomes.
In addition, De La Salle University Professor Fides del Castillo introduced the See-Judge-Act framework and the Describe-Examine-Articulate Learning (DEAL Model to support thoughtful and meaningful student participation), and Father Wilmer Tria, vice president of CEAP, contextualized service learning within the framework of that association’s mission, while the secretariat of the Service-Learning Asian Network (SLAN) described service-learning strategies and best practices from various Philippine higher education institutions.
The webinar concluded with a call to action to institutionalize service-learning in Catholic education.
