While it was never my first choice, personal circumstances led me to taking up my PhD in distance mode. Time will tell whether or not this will end up being a good choice. But I would need to make the most out of it. I had thought that my experience as an online teacher would be an advantage. This made me feel secure enough to feel more relaxed coming in.
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Blogs about work, life and everything in between.
Online Uni Life #5: Sympathy and empathy (Part 2)
I was one of them. Not that I thought it was a smooth ride overall, but I think things started out nicely. Within a few years, I had built enough confidence to start teaching with a bit more authority. But the change in dynamics was significant as I moved from handling graduate to undergraduate students….
MMS 199: our new course where students show us what they got
The most recent revision of UPOU’s Bachelor of Arts in Multimedia Studies programme was the product of the efforts of all the faculty at the Faculty of Information and Communication Studies. The junior faculty, in particular, brought about the most meaningful changes and additions. One of my ideas was the the addition of MMS 199…
Online Uni Life #4: Sympathy and Empathy (Part 1)
I am one of them. I remember this being my mindset going into UP Open University. With the way the University of the Philippines is structured, there is a separation of faculty from the rest of the staff and the students. I tried to reject that separation early on. I did not want to be…
Online Uni Life #3: My main problem as an online student
I was going over discussion forums in the recent courses I had handled. They are typically sparse at UPOU. And what posts there are usually feels stiff. What I mean by that is posts almost always seem forced. It’s rare for them to be written in a conversational manner. It is as if, students’ frame…
Online Uni Life #2: The changing virtual landscape
It’s tricky for me to compare my time in the Diploma in Computer Science to that of the Bachelor of Arts in Multimedia Studies programme. The student demographic was different. I was also different. Also, while the curriculum and scheduling of DCS was already established, BAMS was still in a state of flux. What did…
Online Uni Life #1: Foreword
I just realized something. I rarely write about my experiences in an online university in detail, at least not outside the context of research or course content. So, I figured that this was as good a time as any to start. My first foray into distance learning happened around 2000. I was a graduate student…
The silver angel candleholder
I’ve been slowly sorting through some of the old stuff in the house, figuring out what to keep and what to dispose of. Today, I found this in one of the boxes in the storage room. And around it is a personal story. After graduating from college, I couldn’t get a job. It was the…
Why playing this song has meaning to me
Every now and then, I get asked what music my dad listened to or what his favorite song was. Even up until his wake, someone asked. Unfortunately, I have no straight answer for it. But it does make for an interesting story. His wife, Jeanette, will likely have a more definite opinion on this. But…
DRAFT: On speaking in public and recording myself
In a course I’m currently involved in building, I’ve posted a number of articles that provide tips on how to do a better job with presentations and speaking in public. I’m sure you will also be able to find a lot of other resources should you look for them. But I also attempted to share…
My most awful Lazada experience (so far). And also… Viewsonic monitor impressions.
(Originally written back in November 2020.) One big thing I miss about being a kid is that I can just give up, cry and let my mom or dad save the day and tell me everything will be fine. Those days are long gone. I remember my first Viewsonic issue several years ago. A unit…
Gratitude from the Librero family… and what comes next for us
What I saw this past week went way beyond professional courtesy. Despite my obviously skewed perspective in the matter, I can honestly that this does not happen for anybody, even among his peers. I can only imagine how farther family and friends across the globe, along with both UP Open University and UP Los Baños…
Finding the best way to say goodbye
March 16, 2021 — My day was just about done. It was around 9:30PM and an email to my thesis supervisor was my final task before I can try and get some sleep. In between space-outs, I’d been getting paperwork done and contacting people. Calling people and sending messages induces anxiety for me, but I…
Kitchen island build
I had initially thought about doing one of those build videos which I have watched non-stop for several months now. Then I realized that there isn’t much of a point to it. It takes a whole lot of time and focus away from what really matters to me, at this stage: learning and avoiding as…
‘Fixing’ social media? (Part 1)
I spent an entire week in Siargao some months ago, before the pandemic became a big thing. And while it may as well be the closest thing I’ll have for one this year, it wasn’t a vacation. Or at least, it wasn’t mostly fun and relaxation. I was invited as a facilitator in ColLaboratoire 2020….