Author: Geráld Diola

What makes a topic development-oriented?

That is one of the many questions so often asked by students in the College of Development Communication, most especially by those who are new to the field of DevCom. To help shed some light on this, we asked DevCom upperclassman Amiel D. Oropesa to share her top three insights.

Amiel D. Oropesa is a Batch 2015 student at the UPLB College of Development Communication. She is perhaps best known for her career as a professional photographer under the brand #ShootMeAmy – recent events covered include Metanoia 2019, CineLaban 2019, and Aboitiz Foundation’s APRI Youth Development Summit. For bookings, media partnerships, or inquiries, you may contact her at adoropesa@up.edu.ph. You can also like her Facebook page at Amiel Oropesa Photography.

He starts off his day with a plate of corned beef and rice. Every mouthful is held by a silver spoon. He chews silently, staring on the bookshelf directly in front of him. It’s a cramped apartment, but where else were you going to put his parents’ research references? He doesn’t mind, though; he’s used to the sight. There is no fear nor anxiousness in his breath, as he calmly recalls how the past months – years, even – have led up to this day. He freshens up and puts on his favorite shirt: a buttoned-down, green and black shirt that he bought in Indonesia (where, he admits, he won an international research award). He chooses brown slacks to go with it, then his lone (but trusty) pair of rubber shoes. Shortly after, his father drives him to the testing venue in Diliman. The father looks on with joy as his second (and youngest) son heads off to try out for college. But the boy runs back, hugs him, and returns his course.

The boy breezes through the exam with just the right amount of effort. Not too much, but not too little. Products of his attention in class, the voices in his head narrate the questions that he reads. Language Proficiency is read by his review school tutors. Science is read by the high school teachers who guided him along the way. For Math, it’s his own voice replaying, back from the days of his intense problem-solving. And for Reading Comprehension, a team of various narrators who have deemed a heightened consciousness necessary for the final struggle.

“I’d like to be the director of IRRI (the International Rice Research Institute) one day,” he muses. “The food production sector goes largely unnoticed, and my heart beats the strongest for it.” Bertrand, soon to be a graduate of the Philippine Science High School, reflects on his senior high school as an agriculture specialist. “I recognize how privileged I am for my education, and I want to give back by helping the marginalized.”

How the boy thinks is very similar to how I think, but the paths we he and I have taken differ greatly. Still, it’s an honor to have met this global nationalist in the making, and I couldn’t have been prouder to call him my brother.

Two hours long, and worth more than two hundred points – our first 7 PM exam for DEVC 11 was a memory still dreaded by everyone in my class. A few days ago, our professor scheduled the sequel to next week, and the entire lecture hall was filled with one, loud, synchronized gasp from the class.

Contrary to popular belief, while they make up a big chunk of our grades, exams don’t have to be so scary. After asking around from my upperclassmen (as well as reflecting on my own performance), I gathered a few tips on surviving exams. Read on so you, too, can slay the beast!

Ask why and not what

Before every exam, you will always see students trying to memorize quotes, equations, formulas, concepts, and everything else. However, some concepts are better understood than memorized.

For example, our STS 1 course expects us to memorize the four definitions of technology based on an assigned reading. Instead of memorizing what these definitions are, we can try to understand how technology manifests itself in different forms. Here’s an example thought process:

“Okay, technology is usually described as the gadgets that we have. Then, they’re also the knowledge that we gain, related to the use of technology. And technology is something that people have been doing over time. That also constitutes some kind of culture!”

If we find the explanations or the narratives that help us piece everything together sensibly, we’ll have less problems retaining the information in our heads. Because then, we’ll be knowing the answer just because we know it by name – but because we know how they fit in relation with the others.

That’s kind of like knowing not just what’s drawn on the individual puzzle pieces, but also how the pieces fit together. That’s how you remember the bigger picture better.

Association

However, there are some cases where memorization becomes the only option. Some examples include the types of leads you’ll encounter in journalism, quotes about definitions of your field from important theorists and practitioners, and so on.

It turns out that it gets a lot easier to memorize things if you associate them with other concepts. These other concepts could be colors, hand gestures, memories, or even how they look when printed (if you have photographic memory). Or, you could also use metaphors and analogies. In fact, memes are great examples of metaphors and analogies, just like the following:

I’ve used this technique not only in exams, but also speeches and essays. They help form stories in my head, and it somehow gets more organized in my head – much easier to memorize.

That would explain why you’re seeing wrestlers on this post.

Work in increments

One of the scariest feelings is when we realize that suddenly, there’s not enough time to learn the lessons under the exam coverage. That’s a common reason why people panic before and during exams: they’ve crammed all the information in a short amount of time.

While this works for small short-term things, you won’t be able to retain this information for long. Although it may sound counter-intuitive, the best way to prepare for exams is not through reviewing – but through understanding the lesson during the lesson. Try to make it a goal that you don’t end the day without understanding the current topics.

Keep it cool!

No matter how much you prepared for the exams, it can all go to waste if you panic!

If that happens, chances are that you’ll be unable to perform at your best. Panicking can cause forgetfulness, and nothing feels worse than forgetting things that you worked so hard to memorize. Generally, we’re able to form our thoughts and sentences better when we’re calmer, so don’t be afraid to chill and take it easy.

(READ: How Do You Chill?)

 I say generally because some people work better under pressure. While that’s completely valid, one should always watch their stress levels, because if left unchecked, this can lead to various health problems. And in a university that requires a lot of outputs (and fieldwork especially for BS DevCom students), you wouldn’t want that.

What I do is I limit my reviewing to the day before the exams. The night before the exam, I eat a full meal for dinner, try to get at least seven hours of sleep, and keep myself away from things that would make me panic.

Different things work for different people. Find what works for you and stick to it.

Failure is an event, not a person.

Sometimes, it’s not the fear of the subject that hinders us, but the fear of failure.

We all have different stories and different backgrounds. Some of us might be the high school valedictorians now suffering their first failures, the first-generation UP students acting as their families’ hopes and breadwinners, the confused partygoers who wish to find what their dreams are as they drift through their lives in the university.

It’s easy to take our failures as a depiction of who we are. After all, throughout our stay in elementary and high school, we’ve always been dictated by our numerical grades. We were also quantitatively assessed when we entered UP. I don’t blame anyone for seeing themselves as defined by numbers.

But I also want you to remember that you are not your grades. Hear me out.

Failure is an inevitable event. No good play is produced without having been rehearsed tirelessly. No iceberg sticks out of the water without having so much of itself underneath the water. No invention is finalized upon the very first prototype.

Think about it, new models of the phones and the laptops that we use now are being released every year, improving upon their faults and their strengths alike.

Exams and grades are simply dated snapshots of what can be assessed quantitatively from us. Do they measure how happy we’ve become over the semester? Do they measure how well we’ve been eating or sleeping? Do they measure the quality of our conversations, our relationships with people?

These dated snapshots are frozen in time. You, however, aren’t. You are a person constantly changing, every day. Every morning that you wake up, you will have become a better person than you were yesterday. While grades can take photographs, your life is the live video whose script is constantly being written. Cliché as it may sound, what matters is that we learn from our mistakes.

So don’t be afraid to take that next exam of yours; when it’s over, that’s one chapter of life closed, awaiting the next one.

And onto the next, and onto the next.

The college experience has only begun for our freshman students, and it’s only going to be more challenging in the years to come. With deadlines and exams on the horizon, how do we keep our cool?

Take a breather

Although the pressure of doing well in academics is real, it’s important to remember that you have your limits as a human being.

We often hear “ang tulog nababawi, ang grades hindi” – but does not resting really benefit us in the long run? According to Healthline, sleep deprivation puts all of your body systems at risk – making you more vulnerable to mood swings, flu, heart diseases, and more.

But we’ve heard that narrative time and again, and we can just recover our sleeping hours later. Why maintain sleep, then?

During waking hours, well-rested people can think on their feet more quickly. This is especially important for exams and unannounced quizzes. Being well-rested can also put you in a better disposition – that’s why you often hear “wala sigurong tulog ‘yan, ‘no?” when people spot others who are grumpier and more irritable than usual.

Especially in a course that specializes in working with people, you’d want to have enough energy to have good interactions with them.

So when you feel that you’re at your limit, freshen up. Take a bath. Eat. Sleep if you need to. Just remember to set an alarm – if you can’t trust yourself to wake up on time, keep practicing.

Do what you like doing

If you don’t think that sleeping will help you relax, allow yourself to engage in activities that you enjoy doing. If you have any hobbies – such as singing, playing an instrument, making art, playing a sport – bring them out!

The reason why I can confidently suggest this now is because I found myself (and my friends) scrolling through social media despite wanting to use the time to work. If you’re not in a state of mind ready to work, you’re not going to get anything done.

The mind has its ways of diverting attention away from what it considers stressors. If you can’t use the time to work, you might as well do things that you particularly enjoy. Chances are that if you’re in a good disposition after doing the things that you like, you’ll be glad to have found time for yourself, and you’ll get back to the workspace more energized.

Take a step back

If rest isn’t enough to get you back on track, there might be something else that’s bothering you. Did you forget something? Did something happen today that upset you? Do you need to let something out?

If so, it’ll help a lot to take a step back and piece things together. Try to make sense of what puzzles you. Did you know that you can also use the problematique method in your own life? Try it if you haven’t yet. Chances are that you’ll find something that you weren’t able to see before – but know which things are in your control.

And if you can’t do it on your own, that’s all right. Different people have different needs. Call a trusted friend if you need to. Study together, or just hang out. What’s important is that you’re eventually able to get yourself back on track.

This article was written by Geráld Diola, Alexander Delizo, and Kyle Saldonido.

The streets were filled with students wearing ethnic clothing, civic groups promoting spine health, and organizations advocating polio vaccination. They were among the 13,000 people who flocked to the streets for the Bañamos Festival 2019 Civic Parade held last Tuesday, September 17.

The Civic Parade is one of the activities of the 18th Bañamos Festival, with the theme “Tagumpay ng Bayan ay Matatamasa ng Mamamayang Nagkakaisa”. The said festival celebrates the 404th foundation anniversary of the Los Baños municipality.

“Ganito po talaga kami karami every year,” Member of the organizing committee Jammil Avellano said in an interview. “Sa order po ng participants, mauuna ‘yung mga government officials, followed by the sponsors, then our departments, schools, and various civic groups in Los Baños.”

For most people, the Civic Parade is a part of local tradition. For others, it’s about visibility.

According to Avellano, since government officials spend much time inside their offices, putting them at the front of the parade would give them more recognition. On the other hand, civic groups, local businesses, and established corporations would advertise their products and advocacies.

Meanwhile, Colegio de Los Baños (CDLB) Principal Ricardo L. Patalen hopes to instill this parade philosophy in his students. “CDLB supports the Bañamos Festival, and it’s our commitment to participate every year,” he shared. “First of all, we show the people of Los Baños how we walk, and it’s also an advertisement for our school.”

“We asked them to wear ethnic clothes which they used as costumes for their Dance Festival in school last week,” Patalen added. “We also required them to join the parade, but it is not compulsory. It’s in the syntax. It’s their option to join. We want them to experience this, but again, it’s not compulsory.”

Meanwhile, a trailblazer of the Civic Parade, the Autism Society Philippines – Laguna Chapter advocates their cause through the yearly march. “Gusto naming ipaalam sa mga tao na may mga serbisyong available for them and nandito kami to help,” organization representative Mrs. Marivic Ramos said.

According to her, they use such occasions as avenues to forward their cause: letting people know that there is help for those with autism.

Not everyone attended the parade for the same purpose. Some claimed that they did not know why they were there, and that they joined because many people were parading.

A total of 112 groups participated in the Civic Parade. Included in the list of participating groups were LGBT Los Baños, Samahan ng mga Magkakambing sa Los Baños, Ahon sa Hirap Microfinance Inc., Solo Parent Federation of Los Baños, and many more. Also joining the parade were corporations such as Jollibee, KFC, and Banco de Oro (BDO).

Laptops, smartphones, power banks – these are some of the tools that students value, regardless of their course. Competency in these tools is important in the field of development communication, but why? In this article, we’ll be contextualizing their use in the life of a DevCom student.

1. The Laptop

Practically speaking, laptops make things easier to do. You won’t need to borrow other people’s laptops, go to the library or computer shops and print documents from there, and you can keep your personal files with you as you travel.

In the DevCom context, what once was a luxury item is now a necessity. Communication-related studies must keep up with the state of technology, seeing as how media has evolved over the years. In here you’ll most likely be putting your notes, presentations, documents, recordings, photographs, and videos.

2. The Smartphone

Considering its ability to fit in your pockets, the smartphone has now become one of the most versatile pieces of technology. Uses in the field of DevCom include the following:

• Photography
• Voice and video recording
• Livestreaming
• Map and location search
• Mobile photo and video editing
• Web search
• Note-taking
• Communication (texting and calling)
• Access to social media
• …and more!

Your proficiency in smartphones can greatly improve your output in journalism classes and more. Investing time in learning these skills will be very much worth it in the long run.

3. The External Drive

While external drives are known to be one’s saviors of space, these see further use DevCom as the bridge for your files between your devices. They come in several forms, such as the large, passport-sized drives, and the thumb drives that are much more portable. I highly recommend that you get USB On-the-Go (OTG) compatible thumb drives, because not only are they compatible with computers; they can also plug right into smartphones. You can also get separate adapters for external drives that don’t have the specific connectors for phones.

4. The Power Bank

We all dread the moment our phones run out of juice. On normal days, that means one less way to access the internet or communicate with people – but it’s a lot more troublesome when you’re out on the field.

While many phones these days come shipped with large-capacity batteries, some DevCom work will require us to be away from charging stations for extended periods of time. This is important to remember especially if you need to do a lot of battery-draining activities, such as live streaming or covering events through live social media posts.

Note that having a power bank around can other people might they need it. Who knows? You might just help someone cover an important story that you as group would not have been able to otherwise, or even help keep them away from danger by providing them with a means to communicate with home base.

That’s one way to build social capital.

5. The Pen and Paper

Finally, this duo deserves a spot in this list for a few obvious reasons. One, you’ll need these for note taking and for quizzes in class. Two, they don’t require batteries or other pieces of equipment to operate.

More overlooked is how you can quickly jot down notes on paper while doing interviews so you can verify things that you might not be able to understand properly in the recordings. Remember that you can also create drawings and diagrams to aid your note taking.

Call any of these phone numbers when something important comes up, said the Officer of the Day last August 31, 2019, at the Batong Malake Barangay Hall.

Data gathering is an essential step for all development-oriented activities. To exercise our skills, we were tasked in the end of August to gather data from assigned barangays. As a freshman student taking BS Development Communication, it’s important to learn the ropes of journalism as fast as I can.

Some of my key takeaways from the experience were as follows:

Be resourceful

Don’t go in completely blind! Chances are that you will have saved a lot of time by checking official websites and social media platforms. These were able to provide my group with point persons and contact information. If you find phone numbers or e-mails listed on their websites, you can try requesting interviews through those channels. However, they might not always be up to date, so preparing for real-life meetings is still very important.

Follow up

Government offices, for example, are always swamped with work, and they might place your requests on low priority. At other times, they might simply forget! While some might deem it a sign of impatience, following up on requests shows that you are genuinely interested. If by following up on your request, you reminded them that they forgot about it, there’s a big chance that you just saved so much time.

Respect is key

Since we are dealing primarily with people in DevCom, we should always strive to maintain good relationships with the people we connect with. In everything, we must practice professionalism – which entails being prompt to meetings, proper in attitude, and goal-oriented in every transaction. At best, this can lead to less worries and smoother processes.

In the future, the networks we build with people might prove to be valuable in other dealings. The world is small, so let’s develop our connections!

Hear me out, I can explain.

As development communicators, it is important that we assess our performance in the present, so we know how to improve in the future. However, what we know about ourselves on paper doesn’t always match what the real world says about us. That is why we have separate assessments: one for how we know ourselves on paper, and another for how we see ourselves based on evidence.

At a glance, here’s a breakdown of my scores.

• 

And so we ask…

Among the qualities listed, which quality would be the one that you need to work on the most? Why?

“Resourceful”, “Interested in and loves people” are my lowest-rated qualities. For “Interested in and loves people”, I believe it is because I have been used to just having access to things that are within my reach, and that would have been sufficient in passing my exams. I will admit that I was to some degree sheltered growing up.

Given your ratings, what keeps you from getting that 1.00 self-rating? 

My reluctance/hesitation to break out of my comfort zone is one major reason. Another is the anxiety towards not getting things perfectly the first time around. These problems are not impossible to solve, though, and I have chosen to make the conscious decision to step out of my comfort zone, perhaps one step at a time or leaps, if necessary. No matter how daunting the challenge may be, as long as it is for my own growth, I will face it with open arms.

Among the skills listed, which skill have you developed the highest competency? What contributed to the development of that skill?

“Writing clearly and effectively” — this is if I put enough time in polishing my work. Meticulousness over the smallest of grammatical details in my English classes, as well as constant exposure to different types of media (e.g. formal literature, informal social media, etc.) are among the top influences.

Among the skills listed, which skill would be the one that you need to work on the most to develop? Why?

“Gathering data” — this is related to my being sheltered. I admit to being used to being spoon-fed information that cannot be outright searched through the internet (although I am quite used to researching journal articles and other resources online). In line with the goals of development communication as a course, I have to become more involved with the people I am supposed to serve — no longer as detached as I had been before.

That’s great and all. But what does the Stegosaurus have to do with it?

When I was three years old, my dad bought two posters containing pictures of dinosaurs. We put them side-by-side on the wall in our bedroom. Filled with wonder, I asked my dad what his favorite dinosaur was, to which he quickly replied, “The T-rex!”

Of course, I had to know what my mom’s favorite dinosaur was, too, so off I went to bother her during work hours. “Mama! Mama! Ano pong favorite dinosaur ninyo?” Referring to the poster on the left, she picked the Stegosaurus – which, to this day, I still associate strongly with her. Had it not been for its iconic back plates, it probably wouldn’t have caught my mother’s attention, and I probably wouldn’t have spent hours reading up on why Stegosauruses had ridiculous-looking growths protruding behind them.

Growing up, I felt the world becoming smaller and smaller. With age came the fear of failure, and so did the hesitation to tread into the unknown. Sixteen years later, I conducted my first interview as a development communicator-in-training; in front of them stood not a bumbling ball of energy, but an anxious, angsty college student contented with the simplest of answers. Nothing beyond the questions, just what was necessary. The things I were known for when I was younger – curiosity, resourcefulness, imagination, industry – they had all but faded away.

And that’s a bit of a problem.

As development communicators, we are at the forefront of real change. We must be for the people. We are the bridge between communities, between those who have and those who have not. And we must have the same curiosity in interviewing a farmer about what might make his life better, as with a child in finding out that a Stegosaurus uses its plates to absorb heat from the sun to warm itself during cold nights.

I want to reconnect with my younger self. I want to learn how to be as interested in the world as he was. I want to be as brave as he was in stepping outside of the comfort zone.

But I wouldn’t want to become him again.

Because being good is different from doing well; that three-year-old boy has experienced so little of what got me to where I am now, and he knows so little of what I can do now. Rediscovery is so much better than simple retrogression. We look back and dig deep, but let’s let this fossil remain in the museum. Appreciate. No longer are we in the age of dinosaurs; it’s time to head back to the present.

And into the future we cast our eyes.

Beginning mostly as a Facebook essayist, budding writer Gerald Diola is a freshman at the College of Development Communication. Having witnessed firsthand the effects of Typhoon Nina (2016) on Bicol, he has since felt a sense of urgency to write for the affected and afflicted. This experience inspired him to someday write a play about typhoons in the Philippines, and through this dream, he has started transitioning from a sheltered dreamer to a citizen more conscious of society.

These days, Gerald writes mostly personal reflections, but developments in the wrestling world easily get him latched back onto the keyboard. Among his favorite promotions is the Manila Wrestling Federation, which brands itself as a satirical performance art that mirrors Philippine society.

While his background in science and professional theater has motivated him to communicate in creative ways, Gerald has yet to experience writing for journalism. But as with serving the people, it is a challenge he accepts with open arms.

Into the ring — and out of the comfort zone.

View this post on Instagram

Hindi kulob ang hangin sa labas ng comfort zone

A post shared by Geráld Diola (@gkdiola) on Aug 28, 2019 at 6:15pm PDT