Tuesday, 27th January 2026 - Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) officially launched the DIGITAsia: Education 5.0 – Digital Transformation of Higher Education Training Programme with the successful implementation of its first on-site synchronous session, marking an important milestone in UTM’s ongoing commitment towards digital transformation in higher education.
The session brought together more than 90 lecturers from various faculties and academic units across UTM, who participated in a structured face-to-face orientation designed to introduce the objectives, learning framework, and professional expectations of the DIGITAsia initiative. The programme is part of the DIGITAsia (Digital Transformation of Asian Higher Education) project, a three-year international collaboration co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, involving partner institutions from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Spain, and Croatia.
The launch session focused on familiarising participants with the Education 5.0 paradigm, which emphasises human-centric learning, personalisation, hybrid instructional models, and the strategic use of technology to enhance, rather than replacing the educators' roles. Participants were also introduced to the overall structure of the training programme, which adopts a blended learning approach consisting of self-paced online modules, synchronous pedagogical clinics, and a final face-to-face Capstone Workshop.
Throughout the session, participants were guided through the core components of the programme, including an overview of the four main learning modules covering Education 5.0, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Learning Management Systems and Learning Analytics, as well as Course Quality Enhancement. In addition, participants received hands-on orientation to the DIGITAsia Learning Management System and were introduced to the Balanced Design Planning (BDP) tool, a digital learning design platform that will support systematic course redesign during the Capstone phase.
The training at UTM is facilitated by a team of certified DIGITAsia trainers, namely PM Dr Noor Dayana Abd Halim, Dr Norah Md Noor, PM Dr Nurbiha A. Shukor, and PM Dr Mohd Nihra Haruzuan Mohamad Said, who will provide continuous academic mentoring and pedagogical guidance throughout the programme.
Following this launch session, participants will complete 30 hours of self-paced online learning, participate in three structured online pedagogical clinics, and conclude the programme with a 6-hour face-to-face Capstone Workshop scheduled for 1 April 2026, during which each participant will present a redesigned course aligned with Education 5.0 principles.
Upon successful completion, participants will be awarded Continuous Professional Development (CPD) credits by UTM, an official UTM Certificate of Completion, and an International DIGITAsia Certificate under the Erasmus+ framework, providing both institutional and international recognition for their professional development.
The implementation of the DIGITAsia training programme at UTM reflects the university’s strategic role as a regional leader in digital pedagogy and directly contributes to institutional aspirations under ASCEND 2030, particularly by strengthening adaptive, future-ready academic talent through technology-enhanced, data-informed teaching practices.
