PERFORMANCE TASK IN ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES NAME: JAYRALD MEJIA TEACHER: JANELYN M. SOLIBAR Social Media: A Boon to People’s Lives Information and communication technology has changed rapidly over the past 20 years, with a key development being the emergence of social media. The pace of change is accelerating. For example, the development of mobile technology has played an essential role in shaping the impact of social media. Across the globe, mobile devices dominate in terms of total minutes spent online. They put the means to connect anywhere, at any time on any device in everyone’s hands. As defined, social media are interactive computer-mediated technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, career interests, and other forms of expressions via virtual networks. We can’t deny that it plays a great role in people’s everyday life. It has been ingrained to our society today to such extent that it is virtually impossible for people to take you seriously if you are not on any social media platform. Everyone is always in a frenzy when it comes to socializing online. Even the corporate world has jumped into the badwagon and companies are very active online, posting updates and answering queries. There are many social networks to choose from. Some of the popular ones include Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram. As the popularity of social media keeps on spreading all over the world, there have been mixed feelings about these networks and how they impact the youth and the society at large. Is social media a boon or just a bane? From a practical point of view, it is undeniable that online platforms has been beneficial to humanity. Connectivity is the actual beauty of social media. It reduced the world to a global village, where people can interact with others from other parts of the world by just a click of the button. Through these interactions, people can share ideas, acquire information, and find opportunities out there. Social media give them the avenue and opportunity to make new friends and also allows them to maintain their old friends. Apart from just socializing, the social networks have become frontiers for the corporate world to advertise their goods and services. Since social media is less expensive and profitable medium for promoting and advertising business products and services to the people, a lot of business owners in both online and non-online businesses are now using it. Moreover, social media provide the best opportunity for people to promote their product and to reach the people who are looking for your product. Therefore, social media offers an array of opportunities for the society and the youth. Social media is also the best source for getting the latest information and updates. It makes the people updated with the latest happenings around the globe. Before the social media, people wait for the daily newspapers to read news, or the people wait for news broadcasts on television for the latest updates. But after the development of social media platforms, people can update themselves on the spot. In just a click of a mouse or a finger touch, the information they need come out on the window screen in a flash. But anything in excess is worst as they say. Addiction to these social media spread like wildfire nowadays, strangling and leading misguided users into the sty of either preys or predators. Everyone must be responsible enough in using these social networks. Instilling into our minds the ethics of using social media may be a Herculean task, but it will surely prevent us from wallowing in the quagmire of unwholesome and ungodly doings that might poison and corrupt susceptible young minds. It’s true, after all, that social media are public domain and everyone can view what a person would be posting. We have the freedom to do things we want, but this freedom is never absolute. We may have the freedom to stretch our arms, but if we hit somebody by doing it, we are violating his right. So it’s really important to be a responsible social media user. To be a responsible user then is to put into paramount the ethical standards in using social media, for like a lighthouse, it would strengthen our sail and lead us and our society to the right direction. “Ang Pag-ibig ng Edukasyon” Sa panulat ni: Dian Joe Jurilla Mantiles Tunay ngang ang edukasyon sa buhay ng bawat isa ay kapara ng isang walang katapusang paglalakbay sa mundong sinasaklawan ng aspektong ‘pagbabago’. Ito ang pinaka-makapangyarihang sandata na kahit sinuman ay walang kakayahang baguhin at angkinin sapagkat ito ay permanenteng nakaukit na sa diwa at kamalayang pantao ng isang nabubuhay. Sa bawat umaga ng ating buhay, tayo ay binabasbasan ng Poong Lumikha ng kalayaan upang makaanib at makasabay sa kung ano mang kakatwa ang sumasaklaw sa ating lipunang kinabibilangan. Hindi man lingid sa ating kamalayan subalit buhat nang tayo ay nasa sinapupunan pa lamang ay batid na natin ang espiritu ng ‘pagkatuto’. Maging sa kauna-unahang pagsambit natin ng salitang “mama” hanggang sa tayo ay unti-unting nabihasa sa ating “abakada” tayo ay nabibilang na pundasyon ng edukasyon. Karaniwang pamantayan sa edukasyon na kung ang tao ay nasa gulang tatlo na ay maari na itong magsimulang pumasok sa isang paaralan. Samakatuwid, mahabang panahon ang iginugugol ng isang tao para sa kanyang edukasyon. Sa aking labindalawang taon na pananatili sa loob ng paaralan, masasabi kong ako ay parang nasa isang paraiso. Bagamat hindi sa lahat ng pagkakataon ay masaya ako, maraming pagkakataon naman sa aking buhay ang nagpapaunawa sa akin na ang edukasyon ay patuloy na umaangkla sa aking pagkatao at maging sa aking kalapit na hinaharap. Ito rin ay patuloy na nag-iiwan ng hindi mga matatawarang implikasyon ng pagbabago sa aking pagkatao na siyang dahilan kung bakit ganito ako katatag ngayon. Bukod sa mga karaniwang talakayin, prinsipyo at pang-akademikong layunin na siyang ipinapabatid ng edukasyon, ito rin ang nagsilbing balangkas upang mabuksan ko pa ang lagusan sa kabilang ibayo. Mula dito ay binigyan din ako ng pagkakataon upang makakilala ng iba’t ibang deskripsyon ng aking kapwa tao at mga karanasang aking daldalhin habambuhay. Ito ay ang aking karanasan noong ako ay nasa ika-4 na baitang. Ang karanasan na marahil para sa akin ay mapanglaw at natatangi lamang. Isa akong walang kwentang mag-aaral. Oo, tama ang nababasa mo. Wala akong ibang inisip noon kundi ang makawala sa paaralan na kapara ng isang bartolina sa akin ay nagbibigay lamang ng pasakit at matinding paghihirap. Ang tanging namumutawi na lamang sa aking isipan noon ay ang pagpasok buhat sa kagustuhan ng aking mga magulang. Naaalala ko pa noon na sa tuwing darating ang katapusan ng Marso ay wala akong ibang ginawa kung hindi ay panoorin na lamang ang aking mga kaklaseng maglakad sa harapan ng entablado kasama ng kanilang mga magulang upang tanggapin ang kanilang mga parangal. Gustuhin ko mang itago ang aking nararamdaman, subalit ito ay pilit na kumakawala at ako ay tila isang ibon na sa piitan ay nananahanan. Hindi man hayag sa aking mga magulang ang kanilang pangingimbulo subalit nararamdaman ko ito. Pinipilit ko itong labanan subalit wala akong magawa. Napakalakas ng enerhiyang ito at siya ring enerhiya ang untiunting sumisipsip sa aking pag-asang makapagbagong buhay. “Bakit kahit na anong gawin ko ay wala pa ring nangyayari?” ito ang katanungan na patuloy na sumisilab sa aking mura at gahasang isipan. Sinusubukan ko ang lahat ng aking makakaya. Sinubukan kong magsipag at umayon sa kung ano ang pamantayan sa aming klase. Lahat ng ito ay hindi naging madali sa akin. Sapagkat noo’y wala pa akong kabatiran patungkol sa mahalagang papel ng edukasyon sa aking magiging kinabukasan. Wala pa akong alam sa edukasyon maliban sa ito ay “mahirap at walang kwenta”. Nagdaan ang maikling panahon at dito ay nakilala ko si Ginang Adora Madayag. Ang aming guro sa asignaturang Filipino. Siya ay may edad na sa panahong iyon subalit napakalakas ng kanyang impresyong iniwan sa akin. Hindi ko maipaliwanag subalit dahil sa kanyang mga pangaral ay tila unti-unting nagbago ang pagtingin ko sa aking sarili na noo’y walang pakialam sa halaga ng edukasyon. Sa kanya ko rin natutuhan na hindi lamang pala akademikong kaalaman ang batid na ipamalita ng mga talakayin sa paaralan bagkus ay naglalayon din itong bigyan ang lahat ng pagkakataong makabuo ng pagkakaibigan at pamilya sa lahat ng aspektong sinasaklawan nito. Hindi lang dapat kaalaman ang ating panghawakan mula sa ating mga guro nararapat ding maunawaan natin ang tunay na karunungan mula dito. Sa markang “90” ako nagsimulang yumabong at nagpatuloy sa pagkamit ng aking mga adhikain sa paaralan. Hanggang ngayon sa kasalukuyan, patuloy pa rin akong naglalakbay papalapit sa aking mga pangarap sa buhay. Ang karanasang ito ang nagturo sa akin kung paano umunlad hindi lamang sa aking mga markang nais matamo subalit nakaanib na rin dito ang mga prinsipyo at impresyong hindi na maiaalis sa aking puso’t isipan sa kalagitnaan ng aking paglalakbay sa mundong ibabaw. Nawa’y lubusan nating mabatid na sa ibayo ng mga pamantayang sumasaklaw sa kultura ng edukasyon, ang layon nitong magbigay ng magaganda at makabuluhang karanasan ang magsisilbing proteksyon at sandata natin sa pakikidigma sa ating mga sarili at sa kung ano mang pagbabagong nakaukit na sa ating panahon. Ignorant. Incompetent. No better future. These are some of the pungent and offensive words I heard from those who deem that I will not be successful in the future. Some of these invectives I have received are from my own kith and kin. It’s sad, but this is the reality. I came from a poor family. I was born in Palo, a beautiful town in Leyte. My mother, Adona, is only a housewife while my father, Dennis, is a farmer. I have three siblings namely: Arthur, Argel, and Argelyn. They are the one who always make me happy when I’m drowning in the depths of blues. We are just a simple family like what most families are. My parents don’t have enough money to bring me into a private school nor buy me expensive clothes and school supplies. So they enrolled me in a public high school where I spent four years learning and harnessing my potentials. I admit, I’m not an intelligent student nor a person loved by many. I’m just a normal guy who prefer to be alone and see tranquility amidst the chaos in my unfathomable mind. High School had been such a grueling phase for me. This is the time when I experienced sleeping for only one or two hours, and worst, I come to school without even sleeping. This is the time when my faith was tested, strength was exhausted, and my abilities were put to full trial. I didn’t know if I should dream on, or if my story was already concluded. At first, I tend to be a shy and introvert person. I’m afraid to socialize and interact with my classmates and teachers. I even got nervous and tremulant when someone approaches me, and I can’t even utter a single word. But as time goes by, I learned finally how to make friends and build rapport with them. It was during these years when I had to be independent and do things on my own. This is time when I realized that there are a lot of things that I still need to be know. I have to start from scratch and learn life the hard way without expecting any support coming from my friends and acquaintances. Even if I have received nasty and hurtful words from my relatives and other people around me, I still chose to rise and stand still. My life is far from perfect. My friends can attest how difficult the challenges that I went through. I had to spend sleepless nights juggling my academics, extra-curricular activities, and school obligations. At the same time, I had to carry the burden of people’s constant criticisms and expectations as to how far I can go. There are moments which made me think about giving up. Going through situations that you have least expected to happen is never easy, but matters the most is how you are going to cope with it. Instead of letting painful circumstances distract and ruin me, I made them as my motivation to strive harder. I remained being passionate with my studies, set higher goals and worked diligently towards reaching them. I may have big problems, but I have a bigger God. I know I’m not the only one who has overcome adversities throughout my high school years. All of us have our own stories of survival that are worthy of recognition. Perhaps some people had it worse than mine, but I realized that no matter what you’re going through, it will always depend on your attitude to rise amidst all the hardships. We must instill in our minds that as we thread our paths toward success, there would always be twists and turns but we need to find the courage to keep moving forward. At the end of the day, it’s not our achievements and failures that are counted, it’s our determination and perseverance in achieving our goals. At the end of every challenges and adversities, there is triumph, and the key to reign triumphant is not giving up. I know life remains uncertain. I still so many journeys to take, tears to cry, and hurdles to overcome. Remembering the tribulations of my life and the challenges I’ve overcome, I get reminded of God’s promise of a better life. In His time. In His will. In His way.
