Let Justice Be Served

Just this morning, I have heard that a student was raped and murdered. I was really shocked.

For six years that I have been staying here in the University of the Philippines Los Banos, it is my first time to hear about that kind of incident. The last one happened few years ago when I was not still a college student. Then I learned the student is graduating, she lived near our house, and she was abducted just within our village. It was really sad that such thing happened, and at the same time it also serves as a caution. I used to walk alone in a dark shortcut road near our house, and sometimes I even go to the convenience store even late at night. So after hearing what happened, I realize it is not safe anymore.

I do not know what those suspects had in mind but I just hope and pray that nothing like that will ever happen again, especially in our university. It can not be prevented that we have to stay late in other friends' house for a group study. Before, there was a patrol car roaming around the village at night and at early dawn but I do not see them anymore right now.

I believe that there are still good persons in this world. I hope those type of people who have such motives will wake up and turn away from evil actions. God wants us to do good, to love one another. Let us spread peace, love, and hope. May she rest in peace and may justice be served. May the Lord God bless her family.

Let us all be careful, especially the ladies. And even the men and guys, who are sometimes victims of robbery. Let us take care of ourselves, and remember to change your routine of going home. God bless us all.

Murmurs from the heart...

It is difficult to be away from home... It just means being away from the unending yet sweet words of my mom, the hard-to-understand commands of my dad, the annoying but cute grumbling of my dear brother, and of course, the almost everyday fights with my guy which usually ends with hugs and forgiveness... Just how sad to be away...

I am currently studying in this prestigious university where bright minds meet and struggle for the sweet mental torture and to attain survival. Graduates from this university are well known experts and land for high paying jobs. Though the process is really difficult yet the fruits it will bear are fulfilling and remarkable.

Being away from home also brings a lot of responsibilities. The decisions that you will make can either make or break. Sometimes, it is not easy to decide by your self, you might not know that you are already digging your own grave. There a lot of temptations coming along the way, the twist there is how are you going to make it despite all the odds and whatever have gone through your way.

Sometimes I can observe that some people are intelligent yet they lack the diligence in studying but there are also students who already did all the research and studying yet they still failed the subject. There are also times wherein luck is just too kind to students who even did not study yet they still manage to be in the top. Well, as they say, in this university, it does not matter who is in the top or who studied a lot, the more important is, who stand amongst all at the end of the line, the ones who survive and smile after going through all those hardships...

Indeed, it is not easy to be away from home and to study in this university. Yet I know someday, everything will pay off. Good luck for me.

History

Traveling is fun and interesting. You will learn the history of the place or the events that took place there. When we had our field trip in the museums in Manila, I have learned the essence of taking History 1 as a subject in college. Just by looking and examining the different artifacts in the museum, you will not understand them unless you have read or heard about it. In elementary and high school, the teachings in History subjects are not that enough since some of those teachings are just meant for memorizing, afterwards you will forget about them. But when you analyze and understand the occurrence, you will learn many things by heart that you will still remember them in the future. Also, in our History 1, I learned how to dig in beneath the issues, asking yourself how and why did these things happen, or how those events affect us in this present generation... Before, I was hesitant to take History 1 because many are saying that you have to memorize a lot of things in that subject. Yet my teacher proved them wrong! As a Filipino, it is essential to know and learn more about our history. As a student, now is your chance to make that happen!

Food or Fuel?

Last June, we had a forum on "Food or Fuel, friends or foes?"

With the present economic condition of the country, our university has been and will always be aware of what is happening and doing actions to help alleviate the problems. Among these are the fora in different issues. Several government agencies attended together with the researchers and scientists in the university. The students were also there to hear both sides of the issue and ask for questions.

One of the speakers said that there is nothing to argue whether food or fuel even with the present situation because it should be food and fuel. We need fuel to cook our food. We need food to survive. There was also a speaker who said that the results of his research proved that Jatropha should not be used as bio fuel. There was one who suggested that we can ask for our indigenous people to plant Jatropha in their areas and they will sell it to us for lower price because these people are not hungry of money. My seatmate reacted to that and he told me that we will be exploiting our indigenous people if we will do that suggestion which is not really good.

Another spokesperson said that we have plenty of fuel resources, the government only needs to tap these. Also, it had been said in the news that our agricultural lands are being replaced by bio fuel plants and that is why many are against bio fuels. The speaker corrected that issue and said that they will not be using agricultural lands, instead they will utilize the unused lands to plant Jatropha.

Oil price hike leads to increase in fare and prices of other commodities. With the increasing price of rice in the market, it looks like there is rice shortage but many are saying there is rice hoarding. The prices are high but the salaries and wages are not going higher. The typhoons happening in the country just worsened the situation.

Again, it should not be food or fuel, indeed it should be FOOD AND FUEL.

Incentives

In economics, there is theory of incentives on solving social and economic issues like giving incentives to small size families to alleviate population problem, giving free green bags to shopping center customers to promote environment protection, and deduction on taxes to taxpayers who pay on time.

Incentives do not only work in economics. These are very effective in enhancing the academic performance of the students in class. When teachers give extra points for students with no late and perfect attendance, the students will be encouraged to comply to these requirements. In attending seminars and fora, without bonus points, there will only be few students who will have the willingness to attend such events. in that way, they will not only earn bonus points, they will also learn new insights and acquire more knowledge aside from what they learn inside the classroom. If the teacher announces beforehand about the forthcoming exam, more students will be prepared and their grades are better than the unannounced exam. However, there are times that these incentives are not good like when the student knows that the teacher will give bonus points, he will not study more because he depends on the incentives, that he will pass the exam because of the bonus points. Other teachers also give bonus problems related to the topics and those can not just be mere bonus problems because those need some effort. Another teacher, for the bonus questions, asked what is her full name, age, room number, and address.

Lastly, incentives are also useful at home. When parents motivate their children to do well in school, they use positive reinforcement rather than punishments. They will reward their children to inspire them to do well and to do more so that they will receive more and more benefits. An example of this is the parents will promise to their child that they will give her the doll she wants to have if she will get a high score in her exam. Or if the child is an adolescent, the parents may offer him for a new phone if he is among the top students in class.

Incentives are very useful. However, these must be use in a right way and right time for these to be effective.

I hope so...

My feet were just too tired and the heat of the sun annoyed me. I woke up early this morning for the hope that I could get the subject I needed. Though there are still no results, my hopes are high and I am being optimistic about it. In other universities, students do not experience this dilemma and they do not have to worry about their subjects. But here, things can not go that smoothly. I went home for the vacation and I was not able to get an earlier flight. Because of that, I lack one subject now and I am facing this problem. That is one of the many differences between UP and other schools, we experience the torture and difficulties that others do not. I just pray I can manage to get a slot... There are still more days to wait so I have to have faith! Everything will be alright.

Staying in a Dormitory

My university is truly far from our place. While most of my classmates and friends can go home during weekends, we are just left in the dormitory or sometimes hanging around the campus. I stayed in an apartment for one semester and I did not try it again. There is a big difference in the apartment and in the dormitory, especially the living expenses, house rental, electricity and water bill, and house maintenance expenses. We are not rich and so I rather stay in the dormitory until I will graduate from my course.

A dormitory owned by the university is cheaper than the private dormitories. But the cheap price has its own consequences. Electricity and water supply is not always available. Water supply is from five in the morning up to eight in the evening. If you planned to go back late in the evening, you better save a pale of water for yourself before you leave. Typhoons and bad weather occur often and when these occur, electricity will be unavailable with or without prior notice for how many hours or days, and sometimes even the water supply. I have experienced the nights where we have to study for exams and we have no other choice except to use candles. The generator can not accommodate all the rooms. As always, these are the things that most freshmen complain with regards to our dormitories and so others will transfer to apartments or dormitories outside the campus.

But for us who can not afford living outside, we still choose to stay here. Our payment for one semester here is equal or less than their payment there for a month excluding the electricity and water bill. Safety is always assured inside the campus, I just do not know if the same goes outside. I also work as a student assistant in our dormitory, which is exclusive for women, and I can work more here than in other offices.

As you can see, there are more good things than the not-so-good things brought to us by staying in a dormitory owned by the university. That is why many still choose to stay here even those who can afford staying outside.

Unpredictable

Life has always been like that, so unpredictable that you really have to expect the unexpected as what they say. Worst things happen even when you feel you are very lucky enough and in that case, depression and disappointment are normal. Problems and challenges in life are usually expected to be present to anyone at anytime. Yet you still do not know how to deal with those even when you have prepared for it.

Exams in school are similar to those things. The teacher announced the date of the exam ahead of time and you planned for studying strategy. You did the necessary preparation, went to the library, read and understood the concepts, practiced solving the problems, and everything seemed to be running smoothly. The day of the examination came and you were ready for it.

There are many things that might happen. One is due to unknown reason, your mind went blank and you could not think of any answer to the questions or way to solve the problems. You kept on looking at the exam paper and asked yourself what went wrong. So that was mental block and it was one of my depressing experiences in a Biology exam.

Another is your watch did not register the correct time and you were not aware of that. When you arrived at the examination area, you were five minutes late. The teacher was about to give you the exam when you suddenly remembered that your calculator was left in your house and it was a computational exam. When you informed the teacher, she told you to get back your calculator. Good thing if you are living near the university and the delayed time is lesser.

The third is when you felt your fully prepared, you did not sleep the other night just to practice solving problems, and the exam did not turn out the way you expect it. Others often asked why, what is wrong? They have done their best yet the questions in the exam are undoubtedly nerve-cracking and mind-puzzling plus the time limit.

These are just some of what I experienced in my previous exams. Sometimes, you thought you failed but luck happens and you are the top scorer in the class. Life is indeed unpredictable.

Survival of the fittest

Here in the university, every student is being tested in a ring of fire. No one escapes from experiencing the torture, specifically mind torture, and it depends upon that student on how he or she will handle everything until the end of the semester. When June comes, you can still hang out with your friends without worrying exams and papers. But when August is on the way, be prepared to feel the so-called 'hell weeks' where anyone will be stressed and depressed.

It was my first year in college and I was not used to the weather here. It was August and you could not understand the inconsistent weather that time. Due to the low relative humidity of the place and the trees around, I became sick and it was pneumonia. After a week of exams, I went to the university health service for a check-up and the doctor required me to stay there for medication. My friend accompanied me and she left to get some clothes at out dormitory. She did not come back, I just learned she got fever. Another sad thing, I sent my phone to my mother a week before that because it was not functioning well. So I could not contact my family and friends. My only visitor was my dorm mate. After two days, I was fine.

It was my first and last serious sickness. Now, three years had passed and thank God that I am still fine despite all odds. Last week, I had to absent from my class because of my fever. This week has been so stressful and depressing for me. My performance is not good and I blame myself for being lazy sometimes.

Exams and requirements are always there. The challenge is, how will you survive? It is just a matter of time and management. Time lost is lost forever. I just hope I can advice myself more than this.

Miracles do happen

There are times in our life when we are so down and you feel that the world is turning its back from you. You may think that you are so stupid to commit those mistakes which made up all the mess. You blame yourself for not doing what you supposed to do in those times. This must be normal to anyone.

For every student, the exam, projects, exercises and papers are always the "make it or break it" part of each subject. These will determine whether the student will pass the course or repeat it. Sometimes, it is the exam that matters most.

I am in my fourth year in college and it is my first time to experience such hardship. They say that it is normal in this university to get a passing grade. All students aim for the highest grade but with the difficult life here, getting a passing grade is a relief, it is much better that a failing grade and repeat the subject. Before, I wonder why some students flunk their subjects. I felt sorry for their parents who worked so hard just to send their children in school yet these children failed to pass the course. I blamed these students for neglecting their exams and wasted their time. The government is spending a big amount to subsidize our education yet they are just wasting this money.

Now I have a different view. It does not matter whether you are intelligent enough and you have prepared well for the exams because the moment that you receive your test paper, many possible things will happen that make you fail the exam. First, your time was consumed in the essay part and you have little time for the problem solving. The teacher was not satisfied with your essay and you have answered only one problem. Second, you made a wrong input in your calculator and the rest of your answers were also wrong because of the first answer. Third, your professor did not accept your test paper because you passed it almost a minute late. And fourth, you were so careless that you converted the given parameters which should not be converted. These mistakes may look so simple but they can make you fail in your exams.

I was praying and hoping that I will pass the subject even though I knew that there is little chance. I was very bothered that my head kept on aching everyday. I even had dreams about it. It was this afternoon when I fell asleep and had a dream that I passed the subject. I was praying that the dream was a good sign. When I went to check my grade, I was really happy and thankful for the miracle. Thank God for answering my prayers. So now, I do believe that getting a passing grade instead of a high grade is not really bad after all. That miracle taught me so many things and I am thankful for it.