To guide Grade 9 to 10 students from public schools for a better understanding on media and information literacy, Computer Business Association (CBA), the College’s information technology and business student organization, spearheaded “TeachTalk” on June 11 via Google Meet and Facebook Live.

To kick off the event, participants were entertained with hosts Lance Salen, CBA Executive Vice President for Human Resource and ID 120 Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) major in Business Intelligence and Analytics (BSBA-BIA) student, and Bea Pineda, CBA Creatives Director and ID 118 BSBA major in Computer Applications (BSBA-CA) student .

Additionally, CBA President and ID 118 BSBA-CA student Bianca Junio gave her opening remarks. “I know most of us have a really hard time adjusting with the online modality [...] Given those times, we should be thankful that we are still given the opportunity to learn, to grow, and to bond with our classmates,” she expressed.

Being e-literate in the digital world

Meanwhile, Student Affairs Officer in CIIT College of Arts and Technology Mr. Gabriel G. Fullon shared his insights on the subject matter at hand. With 10 years of teaching Media & Information Literacy and Qualitative Research to Senior High School students under his belt, he is currently taking up a Master of Arts in Communication major in Applied Media at De La Salle University.

Mr. Fullon highlighted that media and information literacy is “the ability to create, understand, analyze, and evaluate information through the use of media. Being responsible users of information is what media and literacy is all about. But stepping out of bounds as a Senior High School subject, it is important for every netizen to know how to make use of information.”

With a wide array of social media platforms and applications, the possibilities are endless with gaining access to information. “Media is a powerful tool, it can create or destroy,” Mr. Fullon shared. 

But the question is the content and information of a creative tool such as a Facebook page. However, if a particular Facebook page spreads fake news and the wrong information, this becomes a destructive tool in the media. In the case for elections, “It’s either the media is used to create a political dynasty or to destroy a political dynasty. Laging dalawa ‘yan,” Mr. Fullon added.

Furthermore, he shared that it is important to evaluate information and not be a passive receiver of information. “You have to be very critical of the information that you receive. Hindi masama maging critical.” It is by analyzing both sides and angles of a story.

From his experiences in communication, Mr. Fullon reminded the participants that fact checking is vital, especially in times of crisis. Check the source, read the other sources, and read the entire article; while staying vigilant at all times. 

On the other hand, anyone can be a content creator. With YouTube being oversaturated with influencers, reviewers, and reactors—to stand out is to know what kind of information you create and share to your audience. “We have to be very accountable and responsible to everything that we share on social media. Kasi hindi lang ikaw maapektuhan niyan. Maapektuhan rin ‘yung mga taong nakikita ng shinashare o mga content na pinaniniwalaan mo,” he further stated.

Student-friendly application tools

In the context of online classes in senior high school and college, Mr. Fullon gave examples of applications that can help even with the use of a smartphone and sufficient data.

• Discord

A popular application for gaming aficionados, Discord users have evolved through the realm of education. As this doesn’t require strong internet connection with its accessible internet bandwidth, “Para rin lang siyang Messenger, pero hindi siya malakas kumain ng internet,” Mr. Fullon explained.

• AZ Screen Recorder

Another useful tool for mobile gamers to record and edit their gaming highlights to be posted online. AZ Screen Recorder it doesn’t only cater to the tech savvy, “Hindi siya kailangan ng internet, malinaw, at may audio recorder siya; basta meron ka lang microphone or earphones mo lang.”

• Google Suites

One of the useful applications in the family of Google Suites, “Pwede ka rito gumawa ng website. Ang kagandahan dito, drag and drop lang siya.” There’s no need for coding, programming, and scripting with a PowerPoint style of website-making. Ah, the times we are living in.

• Wix.com

If you’re into the complicated side of designing, Wix.com offers a more professional design for portfolios and resumes. Having a flashy and artistic resume for high school and college applications is key in this day and age. 

• Canva

With Canva, you can design posters, powerpoint presentations, and logos, just to name a few. This is definitely useful for teachers and students alike, without having any background knowledge on graphic design and Photoshop. When you’re on-the-go, Canva is here!

Enlightenment on information

When asked about the main problem of the media today, “It is the filtering system because anyone is free to create any kind of information [...] Sometimes we tend to create problematic content. Information is established as a culture the more we participate, consume, and contribute to the culture that is being created by this content,” Mr. Fullon shared.

For aspiring content creators out there, one searches for ways to gain traction and stand out. On social media, data analytics are used to gain viewers, Mr. Fullon says “Ang mahalaga pa rin is the content that we create. Remember people tend to consume things that they find valuable to them [...] Kung gagawa lang tayo ng content for the sake of creating content, hindi guarantee na nandun ‘yung engagements.”

Furthermore, changing the mindset of people truly starts with you. “When we do something na may mali, we have to point it out but in an ethical way [...] You have to make them feel that it’s safe to share your information out there. Kailangan maayos rin ‘yung shinashare mo,” Mr. Fullon explained. With “cancel culture” promoting an environment of toxicity, it’s important to educate and not degrade those who are willing to learn. 

“Let’s make it a culture na mag-educate and to properly inform a person who made a mistake online para healthy ‘yung online environment,” Mr. Fullon added.

This event would not have been possible if it not for CBA’s talented group of “TeachTalk” organizers:  Project Manager, CBA Documentation Head, and ID 120 BS-Information Systems (BS-IS) student Leandro Sinca, Assistant Project Manager and ID 120 BSBA-BIA student Andrea Suliguin, Executive Vice President for Human Resource Salen, Executive Secretary and ID 120 BSBA-CA student Bristine Bernales, Logistic Head and ID 120 BS-IS student Toni Ortega, and Creatives Head Pineda.