The 68th Installment
The courage to try—a reminiscence of APEN

by Shintaro Ishijima,
President of AIIT, Chairperson of APEN

In May 29, 2014, the Board of Directors Meeting of APEN was held at De La Salle University in Manila, Philippines. APEN is an international organization consisted mainly of AIIT and was established in 2011 for the purpose of disseminating Project-Based Learning (PBL) that is an educational method for fostering industrial professionals in Asia and is developed by us. In three years since the establishment of APEN, the members are 13 universities as the board of directors, 2 member universities and 5 companies or organizations. The significant feature of member universities is that all universities except AIIT are major universities representing their Asian countries and having several tens of thousands of students. I think this is the characteristic of network society. Each University agrees APEN’s purposes of disseminating Project-Based Learning (PBL) and developing regional industries, and participates this network to run specific projects. Therefore, if there is no specific project, the adhesive constituting APEN will be lost and APEN will easily break down. The adhesive attaching AIIT of 200 students together mammoth universities of ASEAN 10 countries, China and South Korea would be attractive projects. APEN would be a platform where member universities run a variety of projects.

Was APEN confident in achieving the current status since the establishment? APEN had no such confidence. In fact, at first we asserted hesitantly inside the importance of higher education for fostering industrial professionals focusing on PBL and requested approval of the member universities. There is a fact that the strategy to make qualitative improvement of our university by the globalization such as acceptance of foreign students or research exchange is impractical for a small university like us. It is obvious to conclude a partnership agreement for students or research exchange between such large universities overseas as to have a powerful influence on their society and our university is less attractive. As a method for achieving qualitative fulfillment of our university, through selling attractive education service to the international market of universities, we had no choice but to take a strategy to increase our university’s teachers and students activities in worldwide. As a result of APEN activities, we developed global PBL project among Vietnam National University and University Brunei Darussalam, established AIDI (Asia Institute of Design and Innovation) focused on PBL method in Thammasat University, Thailand and a graduate school of Universitas Darma Persada, Indonesia focused on PBL method, and lately concluded a treaty of English education and agreed in cooperation concerning PBL method between De La Salle University, Philippines. Naturally many teachers and students have been participating in these activities. We are now convinced of the rightness of our strategy.

I think that a path followed by APEN is similar to the process of starting a business. The first idea is generated by a belief regarding the market’s acceptance. In the case of APEN, it is the belief that PBL method is best as the education system for developing advanced professionals and would be accepted by the educational market of international universities. We are filled with anxiety at this stage and if we withdraw from the market, no risk is taken. However, we will get nothing. Two things giving us a supportive push were announcement of the plan in the Management Advisory Council that makes recommendations on the management of AIIT and is organization of the business community, and no option left for us. So we decided and practiced. Through fateful encounters with a wide range of people, vital force of a company born takes control and of the company’s operation spurts. APEN’s current status traces a path like this. Now APEN seems to be going into action with its own will. Although we proposed a variety of projects for the purpose of activation of APEN and repeatedly negotiated with member universities and the government, lately new needs are created from the actions of APEN. Having received the needs, we are now busy with developing for specific projects. Seiichi Kawata, Dean and Professor, Mitsuhiro Maeda, Professor and Director for Foreign Affairs and I had been making efforts for activation of APEN. However, the circumstance changes, lately APEN seems to drive us in many situations.

In the process of starting a business, after this it becomes entering the stage of tissue expansion and maintenance it's governing structure. Due to taking a step with courage, the business was born and grows up by itself. It has been pleasantest days up to here and is asked to do corporate management for adjusting feuds and conflict within the company, and for maintaining and developing its life force from here. In this phase, the company’s market power increases. Although they achieve gratification from the business and bear heavy social responsibility as they ought to be, the management of internal collision, etc., unpleasant factors will increase. APEN seems to reach this very point and to be full of woe. When looked at the facts already achieved, the results are significant. I keenly feel it is right about having done and think, as they say “Not regret without doing”. I have compared the start and trajectory of APEN with the process of starting a business. Actually APEN business is carried as part of a collegiate business and it is obvious that the risk is different in size as compared with the risk of starting a business launching a new company.
However, the risk is whether large or small, the passion and insight overcoming the risk to develop a new market are required, and can step into action. I am considering that the courage to take a step, with believing in oneself, would be supreme quality while hearing the rumble of thunder and feeling Manila’s heat in the elevated mood.