Thesis Students at UPLB
On September 12th I was invited by members of a Graduate Seminar class, CED 299, under Dr. Carol Santillana, professor of community education at the College of Public Affairs, as resource speaker on the topic, how to write a thesis proposal. Total number of students in the two-section class was 16, but I was informed by someone at the end of the seminar that there were about 80 who attended. That’s surprising as seminars usually don’t get attended, even at UPLB. It must be the topic.
Well, I enjoyed discussing the topic with the students, and I’m personally encouraged that more and more students are becoming much more interested in trying to understand why they have to do a thesis before they graduate from college.
How did the students arrive at the idea of inviting me as resource person in their class to discuss the topic in writing thesis proposals? I understand that many of the graduate students of UPLB today have a copy of my book, How To Write A Thesis Proposal. They must have believed that they’ll get more from a seminar than from reading the book. The book was essentially my lecture notes in a course, Introduction to Development Communication Research, which I put together and reproduced in mimeo form in 1984. However, in early 1985, the UPLB-CA Publications Program selected it as one of the little books that it would publish in 1985. When the book ran out of copies, I volunteered to do a revised edition, which came out in 1996, then a third edition in 2003. The third edition went on three printings.
A few months ago, I thought I should update the book into a Fourth Edition. While working on a possible 4th edition, however, I realized that the greater bulk of what I intended to add was not a logical part of the thesis proposal. So I decided to do an entirely new book, a sequel to the book, How To Write A Thesis Proposal. The tile of the new book is Writing Your Thesis, comprised of four parts. The first part is substantially similar to the current book, but with substantial editing and additional material. Part II of the proposed book deals with writing the thesis manuscript, which includes data analysis and interpretation, as well as data presentation using communication techniques such as use of visuals. Part III is actually an expanded bibliography. Part IV is simply titled Appendices, but it is very meaty, if I might say. Five significant topics are expounded in full-blown articles included in the appendices as they could not be discussed logically in the main body of the book. Part IV contains, for example, a sample review of the related literature, an outline of how to review a scientific report, full discussion of a systems theory-based methodology called problematique analysis, full-blown discussion of the issue of plagiarism, which has become endemic problem worldwide among students, and a discussion of how to get published in an academic journal.
The U.P. Open University shall publish the book. It should come off the press by the first quarter of 2012, perhaps in time to be launched during the UPOU anniversary celebrations in February 2012.
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Honesty Coffee Shop at Panyesanan
There’s something going up at Panyesanan, that farm-garden in Bgy. Rizal in Lipa city, owned by retired UPLB-CHE Dean Flor Librero. Last week Kuya Flor and Ate Aida dropped by LB so we had breakfast at our place. This doesn’t happen frequently, so we took advantage of their visit to UPLB to have breakfast together.
Kuya Flor says he’s renovating the “bar” at Panyesanan into an Honesty Coffee Shop, patterned after the popular Honesty Coffee Shop in Ivana, Batanes. He says, “let’s teach the younger generation about the value of honesty by giving them opportunity to be honest first to themselves.” At the new Honesty Coffee shop shall be a hot and cold water dispenser, an old Chinese porcelain bowl that shall contain coffee sachets (brewed coffee shall come later), and a jar where you can put your payment and get your change, if you wish to get your change.
No one is going to guard the coffee shop. So, honesty is the best policy, still. By the way, in the Honesty Coffee Shop in Batanes, there’s a note at the side of the entrance that says, “Our Guard is the Lord.” Now, try to fool around with that kind of guard. That signage will also appear in the Panyesanan Honesty Coffee Shop. It will open for business on October 16th, Kuya Flor’s birthday.
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Ang Mapagsamantalang Ticycle Driver ng Los Banos
A few days ago, I tried to take a tricycle in front of the South Super Market to Bong’s Auto Supply in Maahas. I had my car fixed there. When I asked the tricycle driver how much it costs to Bong’s Auto Supply, he told me without blinking an eye, “Thirty-five po ang isang sakay dito.” That means everytime you take a tricycle from there, it would cost P35, without regard for distance. From the South Super Market, in front of the UPOU, to Bong’s is only about 600 meters. That costs P35. It takes only three minutes. Earlier in the day, I took a tricycle from Bong’s to the gate of UPOU in front of the Soputh Super Market and I was asked to pay P20.
UPOU drivers told me, “masyadong magugulang ang mga tricycle driver dyan, sir.” Of course, I didn’t take a tricycle ride to Bong’s because I just hitched on a UPOU vehicle that happened to be going the direction of Bong’s that time. What I don’t understand is, these tricycle drivers are actually making it extremely expensive for those who have less budget to ride tricycles, especially if they have some things to bring home like groceries and the like. I would have thought that the tricycle drivers would actually help their neighbors economize a little bit. But no, they’ll get all they can from anyone, mostly the poor since those who can better afford don’t ride in tricycles; they have cars.
So, you’re willing to pay P35 for only 600 meters of the national highway that should take even less than three minutes? I’d say, sumubasob sana kayong mga mapagsamantalang mga tricycle drivers!
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What's Your Choice for a Profession?
Have you heard this message from the media lately? “Magtrain na lang kayo maging Pinoy hilot sa halip na mag-aral ng nursing. Mas malaki ang sweldo ngayon ng hilot.” Now this has very serious implications that the government officials who have been mouthing this line could ever imagine. Why this line of thinking?
What’s appalling is that this message originated from government officials. I’m taking this as a demonstration of their inability to provide jobs for the citizens of this country. Very pathetic, indeed. The more serious point that I’m concerned about is degradation of Filipino human values. Being a Nurse is being a professional recognized the world over, and being manghihilot is essentially having a sideline.
Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against the manghihilot. I engage the services of a manghihilot regularly because I prefer the hilot to the synthetic-sounding “therapeutic massage” that’s provided by a “therapist.” However, we should not tell our people to become manghihilot simply because today they might be getting a little more pay compared to the nurses. Those who wish to become hilots, by all means go ahead. TESDA provides good training in Pinoy Hilot. Those who wish to pursue nursing as profession must, however, be encouraged and supported by the government. Today, more than ever, we need nurses to provide better professional health services to our people. Let’s provide our population some dignity in their chosen professions, not mere sideline.
By telling the larger Filipino public, particularly the younger generation, “mag-aral ka na lang ng Pinoy hilot kaysa nursing. Mas malaki naman ngayon ang kita ng hilot,” we are telling them not to dream beyond being a hilot. Is this what P-Noy wants us to dream when he said, “ngayon, pwede nang mangarap?”
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