AdZU Research Agenda Framework
“Serving the
Communities and Strengthening AdZU through Research”
The
AdZU Research Agenda Framework reflects the internal and external research
challenges and opportunities AdZU wishes to prioritize in the next three years
(SY 2019-2022). The framework identifies
urgent and significant research themes that would serve Zamboanga City and
beyond, namely: community leadership; marginalization and vulnerabilities; faith
and culture, peace and security; and sustainable development. The framework
also recognizes research opportunities that would strengthen the organic
systems within AdZU, namely: curriculum, clients, human capital, and administration.
As a whole, the framework emphasizes the interconnections between and among the
key elements that allow AdZU to thrive and respond to communities according to
its vision and mission.
AdZU
Research Agenda 2019-2022
The AdZU Research Agenda
2019-2022 is a research roadmap of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU)
guided by its vision and mission, in the service of God and country, as well as
by the Society of Jesus’s emphasis on the environment, youth, and the
marginalized. Generated through
consultations and conversations with different stakeholders within and outside
of AdZU, this research agenda basically aims to guide the prioritizations of
AdZU research efforts. Significantly, this
agenda aims to address and respond to the urgent needs and issues of the
surrounding communities in Zamboanga City and beyond. It also aims to address the challenges
experienced within the Ateneo de Zamboanga University to further strengthen its
operations and services. In general,
this document strategically identifies the different research themes and in
particular offers specific research topics under each theme. The list is intended to trigger more similar
research topics within the context of the research agenda 2019-2022.
I.
EXTERNAL
RESEARCH PRIORITIES
The heedful
extension services of Ateneo de Zamboanga University shed light to the
challenges we face in the vicinity and beyond.
The harsh realities as well as the promising opportunities outside of
the university campus force us to strategize efforts in responding more significantly. Research is one basic strategy. The following are research themes and topics
that can practically inform and intensify the extension efforts of the university:
A. Community Leadership
The local communities and the barangays were found to be
locations of leadership challenges and opportunities for greater service and
human emancipation. Research on, as well
as those related to, the following are urgently needed:
1.
Local governance and leadership towards
resilient communities
a. Scanning
and Strengthening Leadership and Governance in the Barangays
b. Resiliency
of Communities as Indicator of Barangay Leadership and Governance
c. Resiliency
in Communities: Challenges and Prospects
d. Linking
the Civil Society Organization, Government Agencies, and the Barangays
e. Making
Sense of the Development Work of the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in the
City
B. Marginalization and Vulnerabilities
The exposure to local realities nowadays present real
pressing issues on marginalization and victimization of the vulnerable groups.
One way to respond on these issues is to embark on the following research, and
other related topics:
1.
The marginalized and the vulnerable: who,
why, how?
a. The
Plight of the Subanen/Kolibugan/Sama-Bajau/Sama-Bangingi in Western Mindanao
b. Occupational
Safety and Women Workers in Zamboanga’s Canning Factories
c. Sexually
Transmitted Diseases (STDs) among Minors in Western Mindanao
d. The
Youth in Politics: Predicaments and Promises
e. Violence
against Women and Children: Weaving Narratives
f. Victims
of Human Trafficking: Cross-Case Analysis
g. Incest
in Zamboanga City: the Untold Stories
h. Understanding
the Multiple Vulnerabilities of the LGBTQIA in Poor Communities
C. Faith and Culture, Peace and Security
Part of the challenges we face today has to do with the
complex interrelation of faith and culture that impacts on peace and security,
and ultimately development in Zamboanga City, Mindanao, and beyond. The following are interesting research topics
which can be used in the education and formation of the young:
1.
Inter/intra-faith and culture dynamics in
Western Mindanao
a. Islamic
Education and Philosophy in View of Interfaith, Intercultural Advocacy
b. Muslim
– Christian Relations as Depicted in Social Media
c. Models
in Strengthening Intrafaith and Interfaith Relations
2.
Peace and Security
a. Understanding
the Dynamics of Radicalization in Western Mindanao towards Peace Building
b. Biographies
of Mindanao Muslim Heroes and Peace-builders: Platform for Formation Programs
c. Rising
Rates of Teenage Pregnancy: a New Challenge to Schools and Churches
d. Teenage
Pregnancy: Analyzing Risks, Challenges, and Health Prospects
e. Urban
Sprawl: the Challenge of Zamboanga City in the Next Decades
f. ICT
Infrastructure for Peace and Order in the City
D. Sustainable Development (environment,
health, & economics)
In the recent time, there is a clamor for environmental
care, health, and innovations that serve the human populace. We urgently need research on, and those related
to, the following:
1.
Environment and sustainable development
a. Food
Security Issues in Western Mindanao
b. Arguments
for and against the City Master Plan Compliance
c. Managing
the Solid Waste Management
d. Renewable
Energy: Cost, Benefit, and Trends
e. Scanning
Zamboanga City’s ICT Infrastructure: Impact on Disaster Response
2.
Strengthening Health and Wellness in society
a. Maternal
and child health
b. Changing
Views on Vaccinations: Implications to Public Health
c. Maternal
and Child Health from a Cultural Perspective
d. Handling
the Food Handlers: Steps and Missteps in Sanitation Inspection
e. Health-seeking
Behavior and Health Insurance Coverage: Contradictions in Public Health
f. Compliance
of the Barangays to the Mental health Law
g. Scanning
Zamboanga City’s ICT Infrastructure: Impact on Health Care Delivery
3.
Entrepreneurship and Economic Development
a. Zamboanga
City’s BPO Readiness
b. Benchmarking
Zamboanga’s ICT Infrastructure with Metro-cities in the Philippines
c. Family-run
Enterprises and Economic Development
II. INTERNAL RESEARCH PRIORITIES
Our exposure to the
daunting realities outside of the university campus forces us to
introspect. It challenges us to
reexamine the internal university conditions through which we serve the people,
the country, and God. The following
research themes and topics can shed light into this challenge:
E. Curriculum (instruction &
formation)
The shift to K to 12 in the Philippines brought much
transitional challenges in schools across levels and units. The challenges were intensified by the shift
to the new general education curriculum in the tertiary level. This context gives rise to further
reexamination, reevaluation, and reflection of why, how, and what we teach. Hence, the following researches on the curriculum
from kindergarten to tertiary levels are prioritized:
1.
Curriculum: identity, integrity, delivery,
and social transformation
a. Revisiting
the Ignatian Identity in the AdZU Curriculum for Community-based Transformation
b. Drawing
the Line across AdZU Curricula: toward Curriculum Alignment
c. Are
we Developing the Right Competencies: Relating Curriculum and Faculty
d. AdZU
Curriculum and Values: Bridging the Gap
e. Connecting
AdZU Curriculum and Socio-political Transformation
f. Readiness
of AdZU in Catering to Students with Special Needs
2.
Monitoring students’ progress to strengthen
instructional programs
a. Improving
Instruction through Action Research
b. AdZU
GS Drop Everything And Read (DEAR)
Program: an Action Research
c. Action
Research on No Assignment Policy in AdZU GS
d. Action
Research on ICT Integration in AdZU
e. Longitudinal
Study on Filipino Proficiency among Private school Students
f. Longitudinal
Study on English Proficiency among Private School Students
g. “Are
We Ready for Special Education (SpEd)?”
F. Clients (students, graduates, parents)
The question on the curriculum ultimately hinges from
our concern on the students, the graduates, and parents. They are the university’s clients, who
reflect the kind of education and formation a university delivers. The
following are some of the research topics which can shed light to our
reflection on the manner we produce our products:
1.
Holistic development of students through a
culture of assessment
a. Assessing
the AdZU Culture of Assessment
b. Assessing
Students’ Values and Formation
c. Students’
Knowledge, Skills, and Attitude: An Assessment
d. Identity
and Spirituality Assessment among Students
2.
Tracing students and alumni to strengthen
placement and promotion programs
a. Tracing
Employability of AdZU Graduates
b. Job
Skills Matching of AdZU Graduates
c. Tracer
on Exemplary Alumni for Celebration and
Marketing
G. Human Capital (faculty & staff)
The manner we produce graduates has a lot to do with the
kind of human workforce we have in the university. The urgent focus on the students’ training in
the university implies the same urgency to focus on the trainers (the faculty)
and those who drive the different systems within the university. Part of the priorities then is to deeply
understand the AdZU faculty and developing the AdZU human capital.
1.
Understanding AdZU faculty’s commitment,
passion, and productivity
a. Uncovering
and Recovering AdZU Faculty Commitment
b. Interpreting
Work Contentment among AdZU Employees
c. Deep-diving
into the World of the Young Faculty
d. Faculty
Needs and Preferences in the Workplace
e. Tracking
AdZU Faculty Performance
f. Quality
of Life Balance among AdZU Faculty
g. Mapping
the Faculty Mindsets
h. The
Faculty and the 21st Century Skills
2.
Developing AdZU’s Human Capital
a. Redefining
Employee’s Performance Evaluation
b. Compensation
and Workload Alignment in a Rapidly Evolving Workplace
c. Job
Satisfaction among Millennial Employees
d. Assessing
Employees Productivity through Time and Motion Study
e. Relating
Formation and Employees Turnover
f. Role
Perceptions: Issues among Employees
H. Administration (systems, research, social environment)
The crafting and implementation of new curriculum, and
the management of human capital, who will in turn manage the students are
initiated and supported by the university administration. The challenges in curriculum, human capital,
and clients translate into challenges in administration in different areas and
units. Researches on the following are
highly encouraged:
1.
Understanding administration systems in AdZU
a. Inter-office
Communication Problems and Prospects
b. Cost
and Benefit Analysis of Employee Loan Systems
c. Predicting
Bullying through Machine Learning Software
d. Localizing
Security Codes and Standards in Schools
e. Preventing
Hypertension through Early Detection
f. Risk
Analysis on AdZU’s Infrastructure
g. Maintaining
Cohort Studies in Aid of Administration
2.
Strategies for building research
productivity
a. Exploring
Apprenticeship in Research
b. Mentoring,
Coaching, Advising, Partnering: Which Works?
c. Re-examining
Mis/conception and Perception on Research and Research Management in AdZU
d. Uncovering
the Myths about Workload and Research in the Academe
e. The
Pros and Cons of Research Collaboration
f. Understanding
the Research Journey: Exploring Fears, Anxieties and Motivations
g. Incentivizing
Research and Researchers: an Assessment
h. Prestige
in Research and Publication among Senior Professors
3.
Understanding the socio-political atmosphere
of the university
a. Revisiting
Apathy in Social Development Activities
Perceptions of
Democracy in Social Media
