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Pasa, Ayn
Pasa, Ayn
I was a little intimidated about my part in the group project at first since I was in charge of making reviews for Rizal’s various works, and that meant I had to familiarize myself with and reassess some of my high school readings again. It was no surprise that everything still felt the same as I did years ago, with the hint of melancholy and despair in my heart as I read through the novels especially. Something about the nostalgia of reading a book I once did in my younger years and reflecting on it now gave me a sense of closure, for the lack of a better term, of the things I did not understand when I was a mere teen. As a young adult, I have grown to care more about the lessons and allegories that Rizal shared in his era, and in those moments I have pondered about these stories and wondered why they were still relevant in today’s society. Others’ insights also opened my mind to new perspectives I have not encountered before, so the added nuance and brainstorming also gave me more knowledge about Rizal’s manuscripts.
As I reviewed my groupmates’ contributions, I also wondered about the past and how it has come to be now. One example would be that I’ve seen Intramuros many times now in the present, but it leaves me wondering what lives were like in the past, and how much has changed since then. It is no question that decades or even a century of progress will change a city, but my heart aches to see history in front of me. I realize that I too will be part of a future Filipino’s longing to see how much we have changed and it chills me to think that what if their present will not be so different from our past? When war is waged all the time and corruption is sown eternally, will we ever get to see a Philippines that is truly free? I truly hope so, despite my pessimistic side.
I believe that the topic we discussed in our project, mainly Rizal’s footsteps and his works, are a general piece of history that aids us to review the past yet inspires us to move forward as a community. I enjoy that we tackled Rizal and the places he went to, seeing the narratives of his morals and life grow with us, and I like that we focused on works that showed his interest in the betterment of the Philippines and his encouragement of his fellow citizens who do the right thing. Overall, I want the project to be admired by Rizal fans and non-fans alike, especially by younger audiences, only because I believe it to be a nifty summary of his history and even of society. Safe to say my initial intimidated nature for the project was replaced by curiosity and longing for change, and it will be something I will carry with me for years to come.
Pena, Vernon
Pena, Vernon
I was assigned to the “Must-Visit Locations” for our multimedia project. I would say that at first, I thought that my part was kind of boring because growing up in the Philippines, I assumed that I went to all of Rizal’s memorable places or we could say historical. To be honest, I am not the biggest fan of Rizal, I always despised him as a kid because my teachers would always require us to study his works and literature. I would always view his work as useless and a waste of time. But as I matured and learned the history of Rizal. Everything changed
Looking into the historical and memorable places where Rizal went to. I felt a sense of connectedness to our ancestors. I realized that I walked the same places as my ancestors. This gives me a sense of belonging and pride in our society. It made me ponder on my life decisions that I had when I was a fool. I learned that no matter what the circumstances are, no matter how fucked up our problems are. We are not alone because there was someone from the past who had already experienced those things. This realization made me a stronger person because imagine the places I go to were the places where Rizal stepped into before. Despite these “aha” moments. I also realized the importance of learning our history because unfortunately the issues that are prevalent back then, are still present today.
The exploitation, abuses, and discriminations are still out there in our society. It is quite disappointing that despite the sacrifices of our national heroes back then for our freedom. We did not learn a single lesson. We are still wrapped into the hands of the Western mentality and our views to our own people are completely different compared to how we view other countries. The corruption that was prevalent back then is still present until now. Have we not had enough? Are we still going to be fooled by other countries? Are we still going to believe the sweet words of our corrupt politicians? I think not. It is time for us to live up to the sacrifices of our national heroes. It is time to look at ourselves and ask, is this really who I am? We should start embracing our own culture and traditions. Only then, the sacrifices of our national heroes will be worth it.
This concludes my learning experience in GERIZAL. Thank you!
Romero, Agatha
Romero, Agatha
If I were to describe my time during the creation of the multi media project I would say it was enlightening. As a student who lives in the modern era filled with technology and internet, I fear that people are slowly losing their interest and love for books and literature. With everything in the grasp of technology, the attachment to pen and paper also deteriorates slowly. Our GERIZAL final course output is a website that is dedicated to our hero - Jose Rizal, we have thought of students who prefer the internet as a source of information and incorporated and shaped a form of learning that will hook the newer generation into learning more about Rizal and his works. It was fun working on our project, I was learning and relearning about Rizal and at the same time I had a blast incorporating information in fun ways people will be able to interact and have fun reading. I was assigned to work on a review tab for Rizal’s works and I intended to create my “review” as some sort of reflection for people to be hooked on and try to read or reread Rizal’s works themselves. It was fun having to reread Rizal’s works, especially works that I have read long before the course. I find that some of my opinions, and thoughts have changed throughout the years - a sign of maturation and growth. I enjoyed editing the visuals, I find myself editing and thinking of making it eye-catching and at the same time full of information for our target audience - both for their entertainment and knowledge. Unlike the other groups, our topic was quite general - we mainly focused on a method to bring Rizal into the modern world, in our case we decided on this interactive website. I believe that history is not boring or outdated, I believe that history is a timeless artifact, that should be shared through generations, but I also believe that just like society that is continually evolving, history should shape itself along too. This is why we decided on the website as our final project, a modern take, and a modern solution to bring Rizal to modernity. For people who mostly value the internet, and gadgets nowadays, the website is a possible alternative for them to know more about our national hero. People learn more and have fun as well and we are able to spread Rizal’s impact - a win win.
Roxas, Aliah
Roxas, Aliah
For the multimedia project, our group chose to create a website containing content such as must-visit locations, entertainment (e.g., 'Which Rizal Novel Are You?'), and book reviews of Rizal's works, and I can say that working on this project was light and enjoyable. My specific task or part in this project is to develop the content on Rizal's Footprints page, wherein we included historical locations or Dr. Jose Rizal's connection to certain sites in the Philippines and added a brief background or context on the relevance of it to Rizal's life.
In terms of the experiences I encountered in doing the content, I can say that it has further deepened my knowledge on these locations, especially sites or landmarks I was not aware of. Also, I found myself becoming more interested and curious, especially since now, I want to see these places in person. Learning that some sites have preserved original works of Rizal, and that they are still present or functional to this day, I felt both excited and amazed. I find it incredible to witness a work that has lasted for such a long time, especially when it was created by someone who is highly revered by many, including myself.
I also believe that working on this project has contributed to my knowledge and skills as an Organizational Communication student. It somehow served as a practice that helped me hone my ability to simplify, organize these information, and, at the same time, make the content interesting for our target audience (Gen Z) without losing the significance and purpose to inform.
I believe that exploring and familiarizing ourselves on these historical sites and works allow us not only to memorize or know them, but to also understand and appreciate Rizal's aspirations and love for the country and Filipinos. For instance, when we visit these locations, our knowledge continually grows, especially when we take the time to learn about their historical background. At the same time, we also get to see the beauty of these places, much like how Dr. Jose Rizal described them in his memoirs and mentioned in his works. I believe that the website, with the purpose to learn more about Dr. Jose Rizal not just as the Philippines' national hero but a symbol of hope and resilience, encourages us to reflect on the current state of our nation, how his ideals still resonate today and also prompt us to contemplate on our role as Filipino citizens. These works and locations serve as reminders of the sacrifices and hopes embedded in them, not only by Rizal but by all Filipinos who love the country. With this, we hope this helps us learn to appreciate and value our country on a much deeper level, and realize the responsibility that comes with being a Filipino citizen.
Silamor, Finela
Silamor, Finela
It was genuinely fun to format Rizal’s works, lessons, and highlights of his life in a modern way - by creating and designing a website around them. Collaborating with my groupmates was a thankfully smooth and positive experience. I am grateful they are just as passionate and knowledgeable about Rizal with their efforts in ensuring quality outputs. Even though this was created near the end of the term, I still continued to learn things I have not through working with these classmates. I am glad my group decided to create a website as interactability is very potent in keeping the users, our audience, entertained and engaged with content. This gives users the freedom to view and enjoy whichever topic about Rizal we have provided at their own pace and sequence. There were admittedly a few road bumps during the creation of the website. Google Sites was completely new to us and had quite a learning curve to overcome. Formatting a quiz-style game would have been difficult and/or impossible within the website so I had to look for an external game maker which also had a learning curve. Despite these setbacks, we were able to achieve what we envisioned in the first place with our concept paper. Varying the subformats of our topic keeps the website interesting. For instance, the “Entertainment” section is unique in that it is a gamified lesson on the main characteristics of Rizal’s two most popular writings, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. While I believe that the other subtopics are just as interesting, this short game is written simply but succinctly enough for Rizal’s message to come across and may be easier to digest as a casual user.
Though broad, our topic encompasses what we found most relevant about Rizal - his life, popular works, and values and ideals he has passed onto Filipinos. I am certain that these subtopics will pique the interest of students because, as mentioned earlier, our curation of topics and their respective formats were based on what may be both informative and interesting to the average Filipino student: book reviews, a travel guide, and a personality quiz. As I had mentioned during our progress report, it is unfortunate that some fellow students that I know of did not have exciting experiences learning about Rizal in their high school Filipino classes. I hope that with our curated choice of topics and engaging multimedia format, Rizal can be reintroduced to these students in a more enjoyable, memorable way.
Solis, Aishe
Solis, Aishe
Completing this multimedia effort on Noli Me Tangere, El Filibusterismo, Sa Aking Mga Kabata, A La Juventud Filipina, and Sa Mga Kababayang Dalaga sa Malolos was a very satisfying experience. The project not only allowed me to delve into the deep complexity of Dr. José Rizal's works, but it also pushed me to consider how these works continue to connect with Filipino society, both historically and today.
This study requires more than simply evaluating the substance of Rizal's literary works. It was an exercise in comprehending the underlying ideas of freedom, social justice, and the battle against oppression concepts that are still extremely important today. Rizal's works include significant insights into the human condition, and translating them into a multimedia format challenged me to think imaginatively about how to express these concepts visually and philosophically. The approach itself was a combination of technical skills and personal introspection. As I investigated and evaluated each piece, I realized how Rizal's writing might impact not just the revolutionary attitude of his time, but also urge us as a country to rethink the disparities that still exist in our society. The more I thought about Noli Me Tangere, the more I was struck by its terrible beauty and the sense of helplessness that pervades the story. Crisostomo Ibarra and Elias represent distinct types of resistance, yet they both meet a horrible conclusion. Their experiences reflect the continuous fight for liberty, justice, and self-determination. Elias' closing comments, which echoed the notion of handing the torch to future generations, were particularly moving. They reminded me that the battle for a brighter future is far from ended, and that each generation plays an important part in bearing the weight of the past and creating tomorrow.Rizal's writings transcend time and continue to provide useful insights on the state of our country. This study provided me with a better understanding of how colonialism and socioeconomic injustice continue to be chronic difficulties. His writings highlighted the value of cultural pride, the battle for justice, and the potential of education as a vehicle for emancipation. While some of the topics Rizal addressed may appear to be from the past, they are nonetheless painfully pertinent today. The challenge of this multimedia project was not only to show Rizal's writings in a visually appealing manner, but also to internalize their message and consider how they connect to our current social, political, and cultural milieu. Rizal's insights into the human spirit, vision of an ideal society, and demand for change and opposition to injustice are more than just historical teachings; they are blueprints for modern action.
As I concluded this effort, I learned how much Rizal's ideas of education, independence, and togetherness still govern us as a nation. His works push us to be better, to fight for what is right, and to remember the sacrifices of those who came before us. The experience not only enhanced my comprehension of Rizal, but it also rekindled a sense of duty to positively contribute to society, much like the characters in his writings who battled for a better future despite the gloom of their times.
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