CWM

Asia Graduate School of Theology celebrates first doctoral graduation

Monday, 08 June 2009 10:16

The Asia Graduate School of Theology, based in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, has marked the graduation of its first PhD student.

Dr Rosalind Lim-Tan, director of the Holistic Child Development Institute at the Malaysia Baptist Theological Seminary (MBTS) in Penang, Malaysia, graduated with a Doctor of Philosophy in Education on 28 April.

Following the graduation ceremony, a short symposium was held at which Dr Lim-Tan summarised her research and discussed its practical implications. The focus of Dr Lim-Tan's doctoral research was the faith formation of children in Malaysian Baptist English-speaking congregations.

Drawing especially on the framework of Russian educationist Lev Vygotsky, her dissertation highlighted significant socio-cultural and personal issues which have the potential to enhance the acquisition of a dynamic Christian faith in children in a way consistent with Baptist theology.

Three international scholars examined Dr Lim-Tan's dissertation, and all commended the quality of the work. In the words of one of the examiners, "it represents a very ambitious attempt to pull together a number of different disciplines and apply them in a real-world situation."