Friday, August 29, 2008

A word of advice

Before I proceed, please do check who are the only people who can view this.  This is a very delicate matter, and I don't want to appear like I'm spreading malicious imputations or anything derogatory; but I believe YOU should know about this, just so you'd be prepared.  But please don't spread this, okay?

Last week our J199 prof, Dr. Malou de Ocampo, asked us to submit the RRL and Framework of our thesis.  Since I was going solo for my thesis, I obliged and did my work.  I believe some of you can attest that I didn't sleep Thursday night just to do those parts (Hi K.Lo and Elsie!).

The next day, I submitted my paper to her.  Last Tuesday, she returned the papers, mine having a few marginal notes on the first few pages of the RRL, correcting me of some of the mistakes I've committed.  I even received a 9/10 in that part.  The Study Framework, however, was subject to revision.  I believe she only read the first page of that part, seeing as there were no marginal notes in the succeeding pages.

When I came to class this afternoon, she told me that she wanted to talk to me after class.  At this point I started to get nervous.  When a prof tells you to "see her after class," it only means you've done something wrong or the professor wants to do something "naughty" with you.  Haha.  Seeing as to the impossibility of the latter, I started to jog my mind for possible offenses I may have committed.  But she said it was about my paper.  It could only be one thing if it's about my paper...

So I waited 'til the end of the class so that we could discuss and get it over with.  I tried to convince myself that my worst fear isn't true, that maybe she's just going to commend me for my excellent work (I know, I know, mayabang na.  But I had to appease myself).

When the class ended, I approached her, wanting to talk to her already.  But she told me that she'll "speak to me last."  KABOG, mga friends.  Hindi ko kinaya.  Napakapit talaga ako.  Malalang malala na ito, sabi ko sa sarili ko.  If this is not something serious, I believe she could openly discuss it with me in front of my classmates.  But no.  I'll speak to you last.  At this point nanlalata na talaga ako and I could feel na unti-unti na'kong hina-highblood.

When my turn came, I approached her with my laptop in hand.  She asked for my paper but stupid me, I forgot to bring it.  I showed her a soft copy instead.  Then, she asked: "Did you really do your paper."  Okay, cut.  Fade out.  Soundtrack music off.  Ambient sounds off.  Everything off.  I could feel my blood rushing through my head.  My worst fear was confirmed.  She's accusing me of plagiarism.

Of course, I tried to defend myself.  I told her I really did that work, that I slaved over it, over sleepless nights, blah blah blah blah blah.  But the look on her face, it was very, very revolting.  It was filled with doubt.  She said that my work was "too polished" for a first draft.  At this point I wanted to scream at her face and throw cuss words at her.  But I'm a nice child, so I restrained myself.  I kept on telling her that it was I who did the work, that I slaved over it, paulit-ulit-ulit... Then she asked if I've done the same paper before, or if I copied it off somewhere.  At this point I thought she was fishing for acts of self-plagiarism.  Of course I haven't done it before!  And it's impossible to copy it from somewhere else, seeing as the research gap, the essence, the hole my study was trying to fill with, is the fact that there are no local literature written about the matter.  So it's impossible that somebody else thought of it first!  Kasi ni-research ko talaga ito.  At wala talaga, friends.  Believe me.

I don't know what happened next, or I didn't want to remember.  But I remember staring blankly in her eyes, hers staring back at mine, as if asking me what to do now.  I could see the disbelief in her eyes.  I continued to defend myself, told her I'd show her my sources, pointed her to some of my electronic sources to which she apathetically nodded upon and breezed through.  At this point alam kong hindi sya naniniwala sa'kin.  She was even asking of my framework model.  Gusto ko siyang murahin at this point kasi putangina, halatang hindi niya binasa yung paper ko kasi mga 2 or 3 pages away lang yung framework model ko from the last page she had notes on.  Putangina talaga.

My eyes then started to well up.  With my voice breaking, I told her it's unfair for me to be accused of something as grave as plaigiarism when I've put blood, sweat and tears over my thesis.  At solo na nga ako sa lagay na 'yun eh, so doble talaga ang hirap kasi parehong ako lang ang gumawa.  I felt really, really offended.  I thought to myself, hindi ko deserve ito.  Andami kong hirap na pinagdaanan para sa buwakananginang thesis na yan, to the point of straining friendships, sacrificing trips to the mall or precious Internet time.  Tangina.  Tapos gaganyanin ka lang?!

Nung makita niyang tumutulo na luha ko, nag-iba tono niya.  She started to be nice, telling me that she just asked because she wanted to know/confirm.  EH TANGINA NYA.  If she's going to ask, that's equal to accusing someone kasi you have some sort of assumption going at the back of your mind.  BA'T DI NA LANG SIYA NAGSEARCH SA NET KUNG ALAM NAMAN PALA NIYANG KINOPYA KO LANG??!  For sure nasa Internet yun kung totoo nga.  Eh tangina niya accuse agad eh!  Di man lang chineck or vinerify kung totoo yung perception niya.

Sabi ko na lang sa kanya, para lang matapos na, sabi ko I get her.  She hasn't seen any of my works before kaya niya inisip na ganun.  Pero tangina naman, have we become so cynical that a work that stood out in class (her words, not mine) is something to be approached with doubt?  Tangina.  Ganun na ba tayo ka-jaded?  Na isang magandang bagay to come out of this pile ay hindi totoo, na peke, na kiyeme-kiyeme lang at 'di dapat paniwalaan?!  BULLSHIT!

Andami kasing nakaka-aggravate na factors eh.  One, THESIS ito, friends.  THESIS.  Hindi lang basta-basta article o ano eh, THESIS.  Naka-attach yung bibliography ko, sana chineck niya.  Kumpleto 'yun.  Tangina hirap na hirap ako maghanap kung pano mag-bibliography na APA style eh!  Sana umabot man lang siya sa page na 'yun.

Two, Comm Res dept sya galing eh.  DIBAAAA???!!  Hindi ko na kailangan i-explain.  Nakaka-aggravate talaga siya.

Three, sabi nga ni Sheila Coronel, we live in the age of the Internet.  Taena isang Google search lang yun kumpirmado mo na kung nag-plagiarize yung tao o hindi eh.  Pakshet.

Four, returning employee sya.  Nag-retire na siya before.  So hindi ko alam kung expert ba talaga siya sa bagay na yan for her to be throwing accusations around like that.  Tangina kung si Chua 'to manginginig na tuhod ko, pakshet aamin agad ako kahit hindi totoo eh.  Pero hindi sya si Ma'am Chua eh.  SHE WILL NEVER BE 1/1000000000000000 PARTS OF WHAT MAM CHUA REALLY IS.

Nangyari na 'to sa isang kakilala eh.  And now I understand what that person feels.  Nakakagalit nang sobra-sobra.  Instead na purihin ka sa paghihirap na ginawa mo, gagaguhin ka pa, pagbibintangan ka pang nangopya o nanggaya sa iba.  Tanginang lipunan yan!

Ang nakakainis pa, sobra-sobra na pangdi-drill nila ng PLAGIARISM PLAGIARISM PLAGIARISM words of caution sa mga estudyante, eh alam ba nila kung pano iaapproach yung mga ganyang kaso?!  Hindi eh.  Half the time unfounded yung mga claims nila eh.  Diba?  Nakakangitngit ng wisdom tooth eh.

Ayun lang.  Sobrang sinira niya talaga araw ko.  Strike two siya, friends, strike two.  Pangalawa nang foul na ginawa sa'kin this week.  Taena talaga world 'wag ka sa-strike three sa'kin di mo magugustuhan mangyayari!!!

Gusto kong pasalamatan sina K.Lo, Dyan at Hannah na super pinasaya ako kanina nung naiiyak-iyak na talaga ako.  Taena I can't live without you friends!!!  Alabshu (yickee!)!!!  Hahaha.  Seryoso.  I really appreciate it, friends.  You have uplifted my spirits.  Maaasahan ko talaga ang aking Greek Chorus.  Hahahaha.

Yun lang.  Word of advice lang sa'ting lahat.  Sana hindi rin mangyari sa'yo 'to.  Sana hindi na mangyari kahit kaninuman.  Nakakainis eh.  Diba??!

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Long Weekends are good. Very long weekends are...

Iskos and Iskas got their much-deserved rest from academic stress this weekend as one holiday after another cancelled two days of classes, giving everyone a four-day vacation.

So what does one do with 96 hours of free time?  What else?  Catch up with more academic work!  Hahaha.

Ninoy Aquino day is on the 21st but we all know our President is an economist so she wants us to spend money to "stimulate" the economy, whatever that means.  Luckily for us, Quezon City day (which falls on the 19th) isn't a national holiday so there's no reason for moving it, giving us a full four days of free time to spend (more like, splurge).

Sunday, August 10, 2008

The Big Two-Oh

 N.B. This is my last exercise piece for Creative Writing 141 - Creative Nonfiction (Autobiographical Writing).  The tall order is "Shifting Forms."  IT WAS HARD, considering there's a word limit.  So if you don't understand this, don't worry, you're not supposed to.

The Big Two-Oh

I wrote it on the survey questionnaire, hand stiffly holding the pen, ink making its way in painful strokes along the surface of pristine white paper; and then, I cringed.  There is not a feeling of remorse with knowing, but with writing where things become permanent than they actually are, it becomes frustrating.  And as I write the big two numbers that define my life, I gaze at the truth that has been with me for several days now but have refused to accept its reality:  I’m 20.  I have crossed the threshold, straight into the great beyond.

It’s been two decades since I first stepped out of my mother’s womb.  It may not be a big deal to some but hearing it—seeing it printed on paper for the first time—makes it more than just a matter of figures.  It is a passage, a gateway into another world.  A “point of no return,” or “crossing the rubicon” according to Julius Caesar.

Nothing could equal the feeling one gets when truth is set on paper.  This is what makes newspapers credible, contracts binding and statements truthful.  What has been written cannot be undone, and what has been written shall ring true from here on end.

*
<blitz_krieg47>       I wonder what comes after?  You know, after all this fuss.

<fuzzy_logic29>       One could only hazard a guess.

<blitz_krieg47>       I know, right?

<blitz_krieg47>       People may say it’s nothing, it’s easy, it’s no different.  But you won’t really know it ‘til you’re there.

<fuzzy_logic29>       Right.  The best way to understand something is to experience it, or so the cliché goes.

<blitz_krieg47>       Sometimes I wish I’m not this sentimental.

<blitz_krieg47>       It just spurs a lot of unnecessary emotions that I tend to harbor.

<fuzzy_logic29>       Don’t be so hard on yourself.

<fuzzy_logic29>       Remember what your philosophy used to be?

<fuzzy_logic29>       Be spontaneous.

<blitz_krieg47>       Be spontaneous.  Haha.

<blitz_krieg47>       Thanks for reminding me.
 *
People say drinking too much coffee will make you nervous.  I say being a full-fledged adult makes me doubly—sometimes triply—nervous.  Not because of the things that I’ll soon encounter, but because I’m suddenly jolted into the shoes of my parents.  Having a younger sister doesn’t make things a teeny bit easier.  Now I understand… I would often catch myself saying.

*

To my dear little sister,

I was very nervous when I took you to your UPCAT exam the other week.  I know I should’ve been a bit more calm and supportive, giving you advice and encouraging you to do your best, but the brotherly instincts got the best of me.  I know I sounded like Dad when I gave you advice after advice, and they may have threatened you; but I’m glad that you’re calm and composed and optimistic about all this.

You are the youngest in the family, and as I begin to exit a life I’ve led for the past two decades, I could only think of you—you who’s the last in the family to go through this stage.  I have my fears, but I have my hopes as well.  I could only wish the best for you, my lil sis.

I know I have not been the best brother in the world, but I hope I could make up for all my shortcomings.  You have not been the best little sister either, but I guess I can’t blame you for that.  I’m just glad we’re as close as over right now.  I assure you, though you may hardly notice it, things’ll only get better from now on.

I have the utmost trust in you!

Forever your Kuya,
JM

*

My sister and I disagree on a lot of things, but one thing we always agree about:  music.  I think we inherited our pop sensibilities from our mother, who’s very liberal when it comes to tastes and preferences.

She may have her own preference for other things, but most of the time our taste in music jives.  I remember one summer when we would religiously tune into MTV waiting for Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way” to be played.  We were such teeny-boppers then.

But we’re in different places now.  She’s barely even starting college, and I’m well on my way out of it.  We didn’t even meet halfway.  There are far more things we like differently now, and, sad to say, music would become one of it.

*

This town is colder now, I think it's sick of us
It's time to make our move, I'm shakin' off the rust
I've got my heart set on anywhere but here
I'm staring down myself, counting up the years
Steady hands, just take the wheel
And every glance is killing me
Time to make one last appeal for the life I lead

Stop and stare
I think I'm moving but I go nowhere
Yeah, I know that everyone gets scared
But I've become what I can't be, oh
Stop and stare
You start to wonder why you're 'here' not 'there'
And you'd give anything to get what's fair
But fair ain't what you really need
Oh, can you see what I see?


- One Republic, “Stop and Stare”

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Ang thoughtless lang ng argument na 'to... [UP Students are Fake Scholars?]

Okay.  Let's make things clear.

1)  The post you're about to read is from a New Era University Student.
2)  He is criticizing the use of the word "Iskolar ng Bayan," in its true context, meaning education is being paid for by the taxpayers.
3)  This is a rambling of a distressed Filipino citizen and NEU student for no particular reason.  Yun naman ang point ng rambling eh, saying things without a point.  Haha.
4)  Dahil rambling ito, wala ring clear rationale, logic, at proposed action.  Talagang total thoughtless, nonsense rambling lang talaga.
5)  Above everything else, no judgment on my part.  Kahit baluktot ang argument.  Kahit may maling grammar.  Kahit hindi ko talaga siya naiintindihan sa abot ng aking makakaya.  Sabi nga ni Boy Abunda at mga showbiz exposes, heto ang ebidensya, kayo na ang humusga.

originally from: http://ramblingsofdennis.wordpress.com/2008/08/04/up-students-fake-scholars/

UP Students: Fake Scholars

•August 4, 2008 • 24 Comments
UP students are not supposed to be called “Iskolar ng Bayan” (Scholar of the Nation). They are “paying scholars”. If you are paying more or less PHP 21, 000, would you really feel that you are indeed a “Iskolar ng Bayan”? Upon enrollment, UP students get in line to pay for their tuition holding wads of cash roughly four times thicker than those from New Era University would pay for. I am sure that we don’t need figures, charts, and statistics to prove the veracity of my claim.

Had it been somebody from PUP, PLM, PNU, TUP, or any state university/college who boasted himself as “Iskolar ng Bayan”, I am inclined to agree. Otherwise, if it’s from UP who claims such, I will maintain the same incredulous revulsion.

Braggart, think twice! Admit it or not, you don’t deserve to be called  “Iskolar ng Bayan”… in the true sense of the word.

[UPDATE] Given, may point siya dahil nagtataasan nga naman ang tuition sa UP, and in the literally contextual sense of the word (anu daw?!), hindi nga apt ang label na ito sa mga bagong pasok na UP students.  But the label goes beyond that mere function naman eh.  Diba, diba?!

Dahil journalist ako, nag-investigate ako at nalaman kong may impetus naman pala ang statement na ito (na originally ay pinost pala as reply sa blog ni Bikoy), and I quote:
I am supposed to pursue my MA on this “state-subsidized private school” (as you call it) but the tuition just caught me off guard that I decided to enroll at PUP instead.
Kaya naman pala...

Sana Acads na lang...

Gaya nga ng sabi namin ni IA, sana, sana, Acads na lang ang pinoproblema, 'wag nang isama ang ibang bagay...

At least ang acads, kung hindi mo alam ang gagawin, pwede kang magbasa ng libro o magresearch sa internet o magpatulong sa classmate o sa kapatid...

At least ang acads, 'pag masyadong marami, nakakatulong ang kape para makapagpagising...

At least ang acads, worst case scenario na ang pagbagsak sa subject, eh alam naman nating lahat na hindi pa katapusan ng mundo 'yun...

At least sa acads, may 4,000+ kang karamay sa university at daan-daang libo pa nationwide.  At least alam mong katiting lang ang problema mo kumpara sa iba...

At least sa acads, alam mong one way or another some other student has surpassed what you are experiencing now... clear at definite ang steps, at alam mong sigurado kahit anong mangyari may solusyon sa problema, effort lang ang kailangan...

Hindi 'yung may pinoproblema ka pa bukod sa acads.  Anjan ang lovelife, family life, friendship, org life, affiliations, commitments, etc. etc...

Haaayyyy... sana acads na lang.