Author: Alvin James Magno

Witness the splendid Christmas spirit unveiled on this year’s”Paskuhan sa Elbi 2019″ as it highlights the humble and modest Christmas celebration of our fellow Filipinos in the barrios.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Fotg0QLhCIFGRSJ6efXY67gGkYw9TID2

As we count the end days of the first semester in the university, we surely learned a lot from our professors, and also, from our personal way of learning from our own experiences. Being immersed in the fundamental subjects of the Develepment Communication curriculum for a whole semester gives us a proper molding on how development communicators in-training should act and possess. It gives us the appropriate qualities and skills set that we need to have in order for us to be effective media writers.

With that in mind, I think all of my qualities as a media writer were amped up because of the training that DevCom had given to us. So, I am giving myself an uno to all the qualities that media writers should possess. However, I want to highlight the qualities that I do believe that took a huge leap on myself — being more resourceful, curious, and imaginative more than ever.

Throughout out lab exercises, we were exposed to the realities in the field. You need to be resourceful when it comes on how you will create a quality output with the things you only have with yourself. Also, you should be very curious on how things work, so that you can deliver to your audience the most pressing issues and concerns that needs to be addressed with. There are also certain situations that you will need to generate your creative juices on how you can transform your data into a more digestible piece of information to your viewers.

Due to the fact that I served as a campus journalist on my previous high schools, I do believe that I have the skill of obtaining relevant data from their sources and organizing it to a more compact form. However, the process of writing doesn’t stop there. You need to validate the information and write it clearly and effectively, and also being proficient on the usage of communication tools. I must say that I am more knowledgeable on validating information due to the fact that lab exercises required us to present substantial and validated information, so I learned in how to triangulate the presented data that I have. Moreover, I must say that my knowledge when using communication tools were heightened because I exposed myself on how these things work. I’ve consulted my seniors and I taught myself alone throughout the process because being a DevCom student must be equipped with this skill because communication tools will serve as our bestfriends throughout our stay here in college.

I am very thankful to what I’ve learned this semester. From the exams, activities, and lab exercises that our professors gave us, it became the building blocks for me to build a strong foundation for me as a media writer.

Thank you, next!

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1e3J3H3FZnMNUK-Prfc_DH6PuHdsmcrgR

As the first semester is coming to an end, I want to say that it has been a rollercoaster hell of a ride. As someone who was shocked on how UP works out, I’ve committed a lot of mistakes because I was new to the environment and I need to cope up with things.

With that, here are my top five things that I want to say to my old self for me to have a smooth semester ahead. This will also serve as a reminder for me to the upcoming semesters that I will be facing during my stay here in the university.

Learn to assess things, learn how to say no.

I was exposed to a world full of endless of possibilities. There are many opportunities that was presented on my table and I took them all. There are certain points in my life that I became very exhausted due to that my extra-curricular commitments were happening at the same timeframe, plus I need to deal with my academic demands.

With that in mind, I should learn how to assess things soundly before I will give my ‘yes’ to someone. I need to solve my own problem regarding impulsivity with the succeeding semesters to come due to the fact that once you’ve committed yourself into something, it is hard to back out.

Don’t be afraid of failures.

As a consistent academic achiever and an active org person in the past years, I became very afraid of failures in my university life. All of the eyes of my family members are on me due to the fact that I am in UP, and also, they have high hopes for me in the future. So my mind tells me that I should be fooling around things. However, despite of the fact that I did my best and poured all of my efforts into something, I think my best wasn’t good enough.

To give you an example, I got a failing mark in my first long exam ever in my UP journey, and I cried a lot because never in my life that I got a failing grade for an exam. I never felt so inferior that time. However, as days gone by, I take that as a motivation to still push forward on things and I redeemed myself from that subject.

We shouldn’t always connotate failures into bad things. Some failures are igniting a spark to improve something from your self. Think of it as a slap of reality, and for me that is indeed a good thing.

Use your time wisely.

I became used to the idea of procrastination since I was in high school and my first semester of dealing things here in UP was not exempted. Because of my fixation to cramming, when the deadline of an academic requirement is fast approaching, I’m always pressured and stressed out. Instead of sticking up to my intended schedules, I sometimes cancel out what should be needed to dealt with that time. For example, instead of socializing with my friends, I just allocated my time to cram my papers.

Time is precious here in the university and it needs to be spent productively. Every lost minute will have an impact to your academic and social life. Yes, it will be hard to get away with your habits, but think of the long lasting consequences of the unproductive use of time.

Take care of your health.

Whenever I went back to my city, my friends, and my former teachers always said that I lost weight after I went to UP to study. They were shocked on my changes, but my parents were the most worried because I was rushed to the emergency room last April because of a sever heart ache I endured. The doctors told that I should rest whenever I’ve been into a stressful situation and eat healthy. However, I sometimes still pulled out all-nighters and skip meals.

You shouldn’t be abusing your body. Don’t wait for an another emergency room situation.

Love yourself.

I never been so lonely in the past few months here in UP. Because of that, my quest to seek happiness drove me to an abyss of things that I know I will regret for years. Before you should channel out your love to others, you need to make sure that you love yourself first. No one will love you more than yourself. Cling yourself with those people that you trust so that you have a strong foundation to love yourself more.

Balitang Isko is a freshmen students’ newscast under the UPLB-CDC, anchored by Christian Morena, with its community journalists Ysobelle Lopez, Desiree Mindanao, and Alvin Magnao serving the UPLB community news with honor and excellence.
Technical Staff: Cyber Biasbas (Editor), Uriel Ian Coronel (Videographer), Kent Blanco (Videographer)

For more Balitang Isko videos, click the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XT89es-Dhs&list=UU61ZFYn8Pr5dMTQl_myLRRQ

Subscribe to the Balitang Isko channel!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC61ZFYn8Pr5dMTQl_myLRRQ?view_as=subscriber

#BalitangIsko
#HonorExcellence
#UPLBCDCForThePeople

Balitang Isko is a freshmen students’ newscast under the UPLB-CDC, anchored by Christian Morena, with its community journalists Ysobelle Lopez, Desiree Mindanao, and Alvin Magno serving the UPLB community news with honor and excellence. Technical Staff: Cyber Biasbas (Editor), Uriel Ian Coronel (Videographer), Kent Blanco (Videographer)

For more Balitang Isko videos, click the link below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XT89…

Subscribe to the Balitang Isko channel! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC61Z…

#BalitangIsko #HonorExcellence #UPLBCDCForThePeople

3 questions are always raised to DEVCOM Students;
“Ano course mo?”
“Ano trabaho niyan pagkatapos?”
“Malaki ba kita diyan?”
Questions that puts mental pressure on students.

This video encourages everyone especially parents and relatives to eliminate mental pressure and support DEVCOM students.

Look into what DEVCOM really is!

Maituturing ang bayan ng Imus bilang isa sa mga makasaysayan at progresibong bayan sa Kabite. Kinikilala rin ito bilang de facto na kapitolyo ng lalawigan. Ngunit, marami pa rin ang di nakakaalam kung ano nga ba ang maipapamalas ng nasabing bayan kumpara sa mga karatig na bayan nito.

Kaya halina’t silipin natin kung ano nga ba ang maipapakita ng Imus sa buong Pilipinas. DAMBALASEK PIS!

Being in the premier state university in the country, dealing things here are not as easy as you think. Professors are indeed shaping the students minds are capabilities to their maximum potentials, which at some point, stresses the students out because of the sky high standards they set for their classes. With these as an inevitable situation for all of the students in the university, there are still a number of students who are not adjusting well or coping up on the dynamics of their studies, and they are indeed in that state of mind that are fuzzed out of negative emotions because they don’t have effective ways to unwind themselves. But in this article, I will present to you my five ways on how to divert yourself from the stressful life in the university.

1. Sleep or Nap.

Majority of the students in the university tend to cram a lot of things at night, from activities and assignments to reviewing for an upcoming exam, thus sacrificing one of the most precious things that we must treasure in our college life – sleep. We should not normalize this kind of habit due to the fact that sometimes, it just intensifies the stress and our works for the other day will be downgraded. When you are stressed out or tired but you need to work on your academics, just take a short nap and this will somehow help you de-stress a bit.

On weekends, recover your tired body by maximizing your sleep. Your bed will serve as a charger to amp up your energy. This will give you a nice jump start to your week ahead.

2. Watch your favorite TV shows, films.

Entertain yourself on your free time by watching your favorite TV show or film. For me, this is one of the most effective methods to de-stress because it will serve as an escape on all the fuzziness encircling your mind. You want to feel that love again? Watch K-Dramas or Romantic Comedy movies! Or do you want to experience that thrill on your heart? Watch adventure or horror types of shows. In that way, you are becoming a human again, because of the emotions that you experience that you get from watching these types of art.

3. Stroll around Elbi.

This is one of the most therapeutic things that I am doing on my free time. I just wander around the campus and enjoy the scenery that Elbi has to offer. Just take a brisk walk around the campus, unwind on the parks and tourist spots, and observe how these diverse nature of people act, and you will see how it is very soothing not only for the eyes, but also for the mind because it gives you a sense of peace and clarity. This will not only gives you a healthy mind, but also a healthy heart.

4. Bond with your super classmates.

Who can understand and relate on all of your academic struggles better than your super classmates? Bonding with them on your free time by sharing all of your negative thoughts or just sharing the latest ‘chikas’ are indeed one of the best ways to divert yourself from the stress that you are experiencing from your academics. They will also serve as your support groups whenever you need some help on your studies but also in your problems.

5. Go back to your hometowns and spend time to the people you love.

If you have the capacity to go back to your hometown on the weekends and you don’t have any academic responsibilities that needs to be done on the campus, then go back. This is, indeed, the most effective way for me to de-stress myself to all the negativity and heavy thoughts.

Going back to the closest people that I love, whether they are my family members or my closest friends, and spending quality time with them is one of the best things I can get because in that way, they will motivate me to still go on despite of the hardships that I experience in my university life. Seeing them gives that strength that I need to stay strong because all of the things that I am doing in UP are dedicated to them.

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It is indeed that we are in the stressful eras in our life, but as we, human beings, are created to adapt in certain situations. I hope that you should also consider these tips because these, indeed, worked for me on how I unwind myself in the stressing university life.

Padayon Isko’t Iska! Laban lang!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOFi2auNzP0

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Kf_tetkrXx57J5rDeopLK3YZPfQkJnEu/view?usp=sharing

Every year, a record breaking number of applicants have overwhelmed the University of the Philippines when the University of the Philippines College Admission Test or the UPCAT season have been commenced. From its long queues, to the mental exhaustion on the exam itself, and the emotional torture when waiting for the results, sweat and tears have shed out by thousands of UP aspirants throughout the history on the first process of becoming a certified Iskolar ng Bayan. Thousands of stories can be derived from the examinees which, in that case, we will know what are their aspirations in life and whom they draw inspiration from. Considering how competitive the exams are these reasons drives them to strive for securing a slot in the university. Here are some of the untold narratives of UPCAT takers with their parents:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n5iCNTnk_PmfL8gw4H_7Ko0HYFan2-eS/view?usp=sharing

Wanting to give back on her parents’ efforts and sacrifices as Overseas Filipino Workers, Marialle Panganiban, a UP aspirant from STI Sta. Cruz, took the UPCAT with outmost preparation and determination to hopefully pass the said exam. She said that nowadays, in order for her to have a bright future ahead as a civil engineer, she need to get to a reputable educational institution to have an advantage for her future employers, and she thinks that UP is the best school for her to get quality education. In order to have the strength and moral support on one of the most important exams for her life, her mother, who recently went back in the country, accompanied her while waiting and after taking the exams.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p_mq25fvuYspe82J5iksJvDy0-OQAhcW/view?usp=sharing

When I asked Alexandra Niem, an aspiring development communicator from Colegio de Los Baños why she wanted to continue her studies in UP, she just giggled and she said that she just wanted to experience the UPCAT narrative for students and she wanted to become like her Kuya TJ. When I asked who the said person is, she told me that he is the son of the employer of her mother who is working in their household. He became her inspiration to apply for the UPCAT because she wanted to follow the footsteps of him in UP because Alexandra, tearfully speaking, wanted to give a good life for both of her parents, her mother as a house helper and her father as a contactual worker. Her mother Irma, also stated that she supported her throughout the entire UPCAT process because she said that she don’t want her to have the same fate with her husband and to have a great future ahead of her.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tspBPfeaGWbkGICHLqlnrzU1TudhB61d/view?usp=sharing

An aspiring doctor for the masses, Angeline Grace Moralde from San Pedro Relocation Center National High School came four hours early with her mother in her testing center. Mixed emotions of excitement and anxiety are rushing up into her that gives her butterflies in her stomach while by waiting for her UPCAT. Motivated with her dream to serve the people, she prepared diligently months before the test. UP has been her dream school because she is well aware about the quality of education being given in the university and she said that she might get depressed if she will not pass the UPCAT. As I further clarify about the statement, I found out that she will dedicate and offer this whole UP journey to her late grandfather wherein he became close to her when he was still alive. She said that her lolo gave meaning on what UP can truly offer, especially he wanted to give the best fortune and future for her favotrite apo before he depart from this world.

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I clearly understand how they are anxious at that moment because it is uncertain what lies after the UPCAT. It will be a total emotional torture for them when they are waiting for the results. I was indeed one of them a year ago having the same tormenting experiences, so after interviewing them, I gave last minute tips for them to potentially use in the exam and gave them insights on how adventurous my UP journey is. The last thing that I saw before I left them in their testing centers was a smile full of hope to become an Iskolar ng Bayan. I also hope that it will be the first reaction that they might have when the UPCAT results came out in march.