Title: Faculty Readiness and Professional Development for Distance Education in Philippine Higher Education Institutions: A Scoping Review
Authors: James Russo A. Taga, Ph.D
Volume: 9
Issue: 9
Pages: 70-74
Publication Date: 2025/09/28
Abstract:
Distance education has become a defining mode of delivery in higher education, particularly in the Philippines where Republic Act 10650, or the Open Distance Learning Act of 2014, institutionalized open and distance e-learning (ODeL) as an alternative to traditional classroom instruction. In this context, faculty readiness and professional development play a critical role in ensuring quality and sustainability. Faculty readiness involves technological competence, pedagogical adaptability, and openness to innovation, while professional development provides structured opportunities to address gaps and enhance faculty capacity. This study employed a scoping review method guided by the framework of Arksey and O'Malley (2005). The review proceeded through five stages: formulating research questions, retrieving literature from databases and institutional repositories (2000-2025), selecting eligible studies through inclusion criteria, charting data systematically, and synthesizing findings using thematic analysis. Search terms included "faculty readiness," "professional development," "distance education," and "Philippine higher education institutions. "Three major themes emerged from the synthesis. First, faculty readiness dimensions were found to be uneven across institutions, influenced by infrastructure, digital literacy, and faculty attitudes. Second, professional development models such as workshops, webinars, micro-credentialing, and communities of practice were widely adopted, though many focused more on technical skills than on holistic pedagogical transformation. Third, institutional support and barriers revealed that disparities in funding, workload adjustments, and policy alignment significantly affect the success of readiness and professional development initiatives. The review concludes that strengthening distance education in Philippine HEIs requires sustained, evidence-based, and policy-supported approaches that align faculty readiness, professional development, and institutional strategies to create a resilient and inclusive higher education system.