#NEWS | SYP students celebrate Humanities Festival 2020
December 4, 2020 — The theme for this year’s Humanities Festival is “Bagong Kadawyan,” combining the Tagalog term bago with the Ilocano term kadawyan. Translated to English, the phrase reads “new normal.” A fitting theme, since despite all the challenges with the COVID-19 pandemic, Philippine Science High School — Main Campus (PSHS-MC) still pushed through with the annual festivities.
As such, the activities were adapted to fit the online setting. The Specialization Years Program (SYP) students mainly attended webinars; contests were held virtually as well.
Grade 11
By Victoria Albitos & Kaira Balcos
People’s Economic: Tugon sa Bagong Kadawyan
After the opening ceremony, the Batch 2022 students proceeded to a webinar on economics hosted by Ma’am Bambie Untalan of the Social Science Unit. Professor Reginald Sore Vallejos, Assistant Professor for Development Studies at the University of the Philippines — Manila, was the featured speaker.
The webinar focused on economic concepts that the students learned during the first quarter, such as the economic problem and the factors of production, and related them to the “new normal” or bagong kadawyan that arose due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The further development of the Philippine economy was discussed as well, introducing topics such as the AmBisyon Natin 2040, a long-term vision that aims to abolish poverty in the country in order to become a predominantly middle class society by the year 2040.
“I liked when [Prof. Vallejos] started to nuance it towards the Philippine context, like plans for moving the economic epicenter away from Metro Manila and the unsustainability of certain ongoing programs,” shared Cyril Lati, a student from 11-G. “What I mostly learned is that they have a plan to develop the country so that by 2040, we’ll be better.”
A Journey into Exploring Multiple Realities through Qualitative Research
Following the webinar on economics was a panel discussion on qualitative research, hosted by Ma’am Kornellie Raquitico and Sir Daryl Wyson of the English unit. Three speakers were invited to talk to students regarding their research experiences in their respective professional fields and the academe.
Professor Avon Pearl S. Amores, a psychologist at the National Center for Mental Health, tackled her encounters and the different challenges she faced at the psychiatric facility studying cases such as schizophrenia. She disclosed to the students how these topics were difficult to implement as quantitative research studies since they fell in a wide spectrum that could not easily be translated to numerals.
Assistant Professor Ronald Allan L. Cruz of the Department of Biology at Ateneo de Manila University, discussed how he was able to incorporate his love for scientific discovery and interest in popular culture into his qualitative research studies. He advised the students to view their research projects as opportunities to act on what they wondered about, and to explore and discover new fields or new angles on the different topics of their interests.
The last panelist, Professor Michelle G. Paterno of Ateneo de Manila University, shared her experiences in qualitative research as both a student and a professional, as well as the different reasons she continues to pursue qualitative research. She emphasized that research is used to tell stories for a certain purpose.
When asked about what he learned from attending the webinar, Juan Carlos Austria from 11-G said, “A valuable lesson that I learned that I can apply to my English research is that even if my study is about ‘language, literature and culture,’ the applications of these can be applied even to the sciences.”
Presentasyon ng Awtput
The last scheduled activity for the day was the Filipino Unit’s Presentasyon ng Awtput, where numerous Grade 11 students presented their First Quarter projects.
Students were given the choice to work on a COVID-19-related poster or short story individually, in a pair, or in a triad. The requirement was a major assessment in Filipino, and from there, the Filipino 5 teachers selected students to represent their block. Five minutes were allotted for each presentation, which was done live in front of the rest of the batch and the judges.
To evaluate the output of each of the block representatives, three judges were selected from the Filipino Unit, namely Ma’am Ma. Celeste Aguila, Ma’am Ester Camille Barquilla, and Sir Salvador Fontanilla I.
The projects were presented starting with the representative of Block A. Each group chose an angle in which to view the pandemic. There was a wide range of topics, so each poster was unique in creativity and composition. “The variety was great and the efforts of the representatives were definitely shown,” said John Dimayuga, a student of 11-B.
Like prior events, the presentation was held through Zoom, and both the presenters and the audience found it challenging to adjust to the new format. “The [presentations] were less engaging than if they were presented in real life,” said Dimayuga.
Chesca Quiambao of 11-H shared the same sentiment. “It felt very distant compared to past events. I think not everyone has adjusted to presenting online, so it felt like some of the presenters struggled,” she stated.
Batch contests like these are usually held in one of the school’s auditoriums, complete with the noise and energy of the whole batch to cheer on the presenters. Due to the restrictions, it was not possible to hear the loud shouts of supporting classmates. However, the event organizers did their best to still carry the same feeling to everyone in attendance despite a few technical difficulties.
“Even though the event was held only through Zoom, I felt the presence of my batchmates, my blockmates especially, through the support they gave me through [the live] chat,” said Katriona Nono, 11-B’s representative. “The Filipino teachers who [hosted] the event did very well in making it feel like we were there in the auditorium too, through the energy and warmth that they gave throughout the program.”
Grade 12
By Kurt Ceballos & Paolo Linsangan
Balik-Danas
The first designated activity for Batch 2021 handled by the Social Science Unit was Balik-Danas. Like the name suggests, the alumni were able to relive their immersion experiences and at the same time, give tips to the current Grade 12 students who have yet to do the same.
Some of the webinar’s highlights showcased the passion and dedication of these groups to let their advocacies be heard, and to help the community they chose to serve to the best of their abilities.
The first group with speakers Kinn Villaluna and Alexi Tan shared their experiences with the kids of Fort Aguinaldo Elementary School. In their project “Akademiko Henyo,” the group held weekly experiments with the kids. They even reorganized the local laboratories to provide a more conducive environment once they had left. All of this was done with the goal of promoting an interest in Science among the students.
Nurture NESt was the title of the project introduced by Ker Ferrer, Gwen Dumayas, and Robbie Malaluan. Other than their initial goal to rekindle the students’ interest in learning, they also provided some of the basic necessities that the children lacked such as slippers and tools for maintaining their oral hygiene.
The third group was represented by EB Perez-Bellen with their project “SCICOMmunity: Komunikasyong Pang-agham sa Makabagong Panahon” which aimed to improve the low scientific literacy of Quirino High School students. They tackled topics that are considered taboo, such as sexual education, through a modular approach. “Kapag ikinahihiya, hindi napag-uusapan,” was one of the ideas they wanted to change in the community. The graphics they used even had translations for different local languages.
The fourth group, represented by Jessie de Grano, did their immersion in The House of Refuge. Their project “SiyenSAYA” conducted activities to increase the STEM awareness of the children.
Some students were doubtful at the beginning of the webinar due to the change in circumstances brought by the pandemic. However, as the webinar progressed the Grade 12 students were given tips that prove useful even if the batch will no longer have a physical immersion. The question and answer segment gave the Grade 12 students a chance to clarify some misunderstandings and to interact with the alumni. “Generally hearing [more] personal tips from the upper years felt really nice,” said Dona Marabe of 12-B when asked what she thought was the highlight of the webinar.
Personality development and communication tools
Next, Batch 2021 had the option to attend a webinar on public speaking facilitated by Sir Audrey Morallo of the English Unit. It was given by Mr. Michael Macugay, an educator with 15 years of experience, ranging from teaching in prep schools to training cruise ship personnel.
Both the basic and essential elements of public speaking were discussed. This included the types of speeches one can give, and even went as far to include the old Greek concepts of rhetoric.
The differences of virtual speeches from in-person speeches were also highlighted, with their respective advantages and disadvantages being discussed. Mr. Macugay then shared some helpful tips in virtual public speaking.
To conclude the webinar, the speaker shared his key takeaways and some quotes. “They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel,” said Mr. Macugay, highlighting one of his main points about connecting with the audience.
He also shared that, “According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means, to the average person, if you go to a funeral you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.” The quote reiterates the importance of knowing how to speak publicly, and the value of the tips previously given.
Although most of the topics had already been previously discussed in past English courses, the webinar still proved that we can still learn new things everyday. For Alvaro Loste of 12-B, his most important takeaway was “the reflection on the difference between just talking and actually effectively communicating.” With the help of the webinar he was able to realize that communication is a two-way street, and one needs feedback, may it be through questions or mannerisms, to know if a speaker is connected to his audience. “You only know you’re communicating and not just talking if you can feel people listening,” he added.
The start of something new
Despite the challenges brought about by the “new normal,” this school year’s Humanities Festival kicked off successfully. Most, if not all of the activities managed to bring the spirit of the annual event to everyone, even if it was just through computer screens. From essay contests to webinars, the organizers have prepared more activities for the Pisay community to enjoy in the coming weeks.
Watch out for activity and schedule announcements through the Humanities Festival Facebook page or Pisay Direct, and stay tuned to The Science Scholar’s social media accounts for weekly Humanities Festival articles!
