By: Mohamad Izzuan Mohd Ishar & Mohd Rustam Mohd Rameli
On 9 December 2020, the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), had organized International Education Colloquium with Faculty of Technical Education, Rajamangala University of Technology Thanyaburi (RMUTT) to provide a precise direction for the development of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and Engineering Education.
The event was officiated by the Dean of FSSH UTM, Prof. Dr. Zaidatun Tasir and its welcoming address was delivered by the Dean of Faculty of Technical Education RMUTT, Asst. Prof. Dr. Arnon Niyomphol. The colloquium was led by Dr. Mohamad Izzuan Mohd Ishar, senior lecturer from the Technical and Engineering Education Department, School of Education (SoE), FSSH with the aim to commemorate the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) Exchange between two renowned universities in South East Region.
The virtual colloquium focused on the field of TVET and Engineering Education by presenting a global vision as a contributor to research related to sustainable development and employment. It also served as a platform to exchange knowledge, skills, and experiences among academicians, researchers, and postgraduate students on their research activities and findings within the field of TVET and Engineering Education.
The keynote session by invited speakers was first delivered by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yusri Kamin, Director of Technical and Engineering Education SoE on the topic “Work-Based Learning Approach” and followed by Asst. Prof. Dr. Pakornkiat Sawetmethikul, Vice Dean Academic and Research Affairs of Faculty of Technical Education on the topic “The 12th National Economic and Development Plan Forward to Thailand Industry 4.0”.
With the theme “Discover the Emerging Contemporary in TVET and Engineering Education Research Trends in Malaysia and Thailand”, the colloquium also aimed to transform and revitalize TVET and Engineering Education to its full potential. A total of eight presenters have presented their research works and ideas in the parallel sessions. The presentations covered the topics of Technology Management, Vocational Education, Online Learning, Edutainment, Industrial Revolution 4.0, Sensor Engineering, Community-Based Learning, and Civil Engineering.
To date, the colloquium which was streamed live via FSSH Facebook page had successfully attracted more than 1K viewers including participants who joined virtually via WebEx. At the end of the session, the colloquium committee was honoured to receive the closing speech by the President of RMUTT, Asst. Prof. Dr. Sommai Pivsa-Art and Chair of SoE, Prof. Dr. Fatin Aliah Phang Abdullah. Both speeches highlighted that the collaboration will further be forged with joint conferences and academic visits after the pandemic of COVID-9 end.
