UST Departamento ng Filipino under the College of Education brought together language and literature experts from different universities in its two-day webinar Wikaakuhan 2022: Tomasinong Pagdiriwang ng Buwan ng Wika.
In her opening remarks, Education Dean Assoc. Prof. Pilar I. Romero, Ph.D., centered on this year’s Buwan ng Wika theme “Filipino at mga Katutubong Wika: Kasangkapan sa Pagtuklas at Paglikhâ.”
She encouraged the participants to interrogate the extent of the use of Filipino and our native languages in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields, which get a large funding and support from the government.
Dr. John Iremil Teodoro, Professor at De La Salle University (DLSU), and Asst. Prof. Joselito Delos Reyes, who teaches at the UST Department of Literature, gave talks during the first session on August 27.
In his lecture “Isla-Islang Literatura, Iisang Arkipelago: Ang Halaga ng Pagtuturo ng mga Rehiyonal na Panitikan,” Dr. Teodoro emphasized on having an archipelagic consciousness to teach regional literatures effectively.
Meanwhile, in his lecture “Ang Dapat Mabasa at Iba Pang Pagninilay sa Gahum ng Panitikan Uwu,” Dr. delos Reyes said that we should recognize a big shortcoming of the teaching sector during the pandemic.
He pointed out that teachers will not be able to explain deep and sublime concepts with gusto if they only face a cold monitor or with a rushed module.
Dr. Teodoro was recently appointed as the Director of the DLSU Bienvenido N. Santos Creative Writing Center, while Dr. delos Reyes is a Resident Fellow of the UST Center for Creative Writing and Literary Studies.
During the second day of the webinar, held on September 3, Dr. Romeo Peña, Dean of the College of Arts and Letters of Polytechnic University of Philippines, lectured on “Pagtuklas at Paglikha: Ang Naging Gampanin ng Pananaliksik at Malikhaing Akda sa Filipino sa Panahon ng Pandemya.”
Dr. Peña explained that we often find in creative works the possibilities of how we will respond to social problems.
He also recognized research articles, published in DLSU Malay and UST Hasaan journals, which focused on the Filipino experience during the pandemic.
In her closing remarks, Assoc. Prof. Zendel Taruc, Ph.D., Chairperson of the UST Departamento ng Filipino, said that television programs have long been using Filipino in Math, Science, and Technology, as STEM professionals do in social media today.
The lectures were live streamed at the UST Departamento ng Filipino’s Facebook page.
