Filipino Pride Books 2021

 This tag I received from Darrel Marco, friend and kindred spirit is pretty special. I am an ally. And don't you forget it!

Darrel Marco talks about Children as Beings in this episode of Author Ch...

Darrel Marco shares his insights on the topic, Children as Beings, in my workshop last month. The workshop is a children's story book writing for aspiring writers of children's stories.

He presented studies discussing the child as being in children's literature and questions, "where is the child in the story?" This gave me and the participants a lot to think about particularly on the didacticism that exist in Philippine Children's Literature. Now I am thinking of looking at titles of books for children that honor the child as a person.

Darrel is in Denmark on graduate studies under the Erasmus+ International Master in Children Litertaure, Media and Culture.

National Book Week 2018: Stories! Stories! Stories!

Darrel Marco explaining the judging mechanics

National Book Week begins on Saturday, November 24, 2018 and will end on Friday, November 30, 2018. NBW Chairperson Darrel Marco shares with us what makes this NBW celebration exciting, why libraries are all the more important in today's globally conflicted world, and compares NBW 2018 to Rhandee Garlitos'  Chenelyn! Chenelyn! (Adarna House)

 1. What makes NBW 2018 exciting?

Stories! Stories! And more stories!!! 

National Book Week 2018 this year is themed "Connected Actions, Collective Vision: Libraries transforming society".

I believe that it is thru the telling of stories that we can transform our society -- stories of struggles and hardships, stories of failures and downfalls, stories of hope and aspirations, stories of collaboration and cooperation, and stories of success and happy endings.

We are opening the 2018 National Book Week with a Reader's Theatre Contest and a Storytelling Festival on November 24, 2018 at the Gateway Gallery in Cubao, Quezon City. This is one successful story of collaboration between the PLAI and an NGO gearing towards the development and promotion of literacy in our society thru books and stories.

Another notable collaboration is among different regional librarian's councils working hand-in-hand with the Department of Education divisions to promote the National Book Week.

This year, we also introduced the nationwide Graphic Novel Making contest. Entries started pouring in from all over the Philippines since August, and this is aside from the usual Poster Making and Essay writing contests. Winners of these contests will be announced on the opening day, as well.

I think what makes this event exciting is the fact that this is not purely librarians' work but a collaborative effort of a community wanting to promote literacy. Some events and celebrations may have the flash and bangs but makes the NBW2018 special are those minute details that make the event more endearing to the public.

Entries for the Poster Making Contest

2. In light of the current political climate in the country and in the world, how do librarians and libraries factor in book development in the country?

The dawn of social media was a double-edged sword, with one side helping us to move forward thru easier and real-time communication, and with the other one shaking up our core value i.e. the truth. We are bombarded daily with deliberate disinformation in the forms of fake news, alternative facts and historical revisionism, and oftentimes people retaliate thru namecalling or smart-shaming. I say, let us go back to the facts -- i.e. the written and verified ones.

As librarians, we are supposed to be the gatekeepers of these facts. The library that is open to everyone -- the innocent, the accused, the victim, the abused and even to some extent, the criminals -- should be a bastion of social justice. We still have a long way to go in developing a learned nation that would go to books to seek for facts instead of social media but I am positive of the steps being taken to have a more media and information literate society. Additionally, there is also a sliver of hope that Philippine children's books today are tackling more radical and sensitive topics that were used to be considered as taboo.

The judges troop together for a photo op.

3. If you are to compare the NBW to a book, what is it and why?

In an ideal world, it would be The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Who doesn't love a beautiful butterfly as an ending, right?

But looking back, I would rather say, it's Chenelyn, Chenelyn by Rhandee Garlitos. 

Books are there whenever we need a friend or a helping hand, whenever we want to while away our time at the beach or at a coffee shop -- but we just realize their true importance once they are gone. We take for granted those books that are offered in front of us, given that we have social media, Netflix and technology.

I hope that books and technology would co-exist and would not go against each other. I mean if you could go watch one episode of RuPaul's Drag Race, then try to read one chapter of a book too, or even one short story, and you'll see that your life will change.

Full Paper: Project LEARN Revisiting History and Creating New Narratives for Young Filipino Readers

Revisiting History and Creating Narratives for Young Filipino Readers from Zarah Gagatiga

PPT: Project LEARN @ the 7th Rizal Library International Conference

Project LEARN @ the 7thRILC from Zarah Gagatiga

Joining Rizal Library's 50th Next Month

November 16-18, 2017 is the 7th Rizal Library International Conference. This year, I am presenting a paper I co-wrote with Darrel Marco and MJ "Xi Zuq" Tumamac. Our paper, “Project LEARN: Revisiting History and Creating New Narratives for Young Filipino Readers” has been accepted for presentation under the sub-theme “Culture and History: Philippine Studies and Libraries, Jose Rizal and Libraries, Evolution of Cultures in Literary Texts, Reading Customs and Practices”.

Below is the abstract:

Project LEARN: Revisiting History and Creating New Narratives for Young Filipino Readers

This paper describes the creative process that went through in revising a thirty-year-old series of illustrated children’s books by the Nutrition Council of the Philippines Publishing Corporation (NCPPC), the Bulilit Books. It is a series of books written in English and in Filipino for children age 0 - 12. The series tackles issues and concepts on physical and mental development, home and family life, art and culture, including stories from Philippine folklore and mythology.

The revision project is named Project LEARN: Linguahe ni Juan Para sa Kabataan and has three phases: (1) research and development; (2) production stage; and (3) post production, publishing, distribution, and marketing of the books. The project is already in stage 3 having published all three titles in Filipino, Cebuano and Hiligaynon in July 2017. Plans for distribution and marketing strategies are on-going.

The goal of the Bulilit Books was to improve the health and well-being of the child, however, the language use, prevailing political thought and socio-cultural climate of the 70s were evident in the stories. To simply reprint the originals would prove out of context for the young readers of the 21st century. Significant revisions include changing some elements of the story to create a narrative that is relevant to the experience of the new target readers; adding a guide for teachers and parents that address pedagogical methods; updating the language register and orthography and translating into other languages to cater to a larger audience of parents, educators, and learning communities; and providing new illustrations and design to reflect new trends and methods in illustrating and producing books for children.

Authors: Zarah C. Gagatiga, Darrel Marco, Michael Jude Tumamac

Topics: Culture and History: evolution of cultures in literary texts; reading customs and practices

 

 

Author of the Month: Darrel Manuel Marco

Telling stories! Reading aloud! Doing what he loves!

The blog's Author of the Month is Darrel Marco. He is a librarian, storyteller, reading advocate and an adventure-seeker. He goes around the country to tell stories and spread the love of reading. He also has presented papers about libraries and children's literature in Finland and Japan. A lover of life, long adventures and literacy!

The three books in the Bulilit Books series are his first books to be published by the Nutrition Council of the Philippines Publishing Corporation (NCPPC). I am proud to have worked with him on this project. I wouldn't be surprised if one day, we get to see more books from Darrel!

1. Describe the experience of writing your first books

I have been told a million times that it is hard to write children's books. 'Children's stories are more challenging because you have to think of the appropriate language!' 'You always have to consider the contexts of your readers, especially if they're children, it's hard to write stories with sensitive topics.' Thru writing Bulilit Books, my first-ever books soon to be published and read by many, it is true. Writing children's books, or any book, or writing in general are never a walk in the park.

When I was invited to become one of the writers for Bulilit Books, I immediately threw in my blue chip and shouted "I'M IN!" without considering the odds. After all, I have big trust in my writing team, who mostly have experience in writing children's stories (both have won writing awards). Joining a writing team proved to have advantages -- two heads are better than one (!!!) -- and that much of brilliant grey matters give birth to a lot of ideas. Now this is where collaboration, teamwork, and compromise come into play. I appreciate the open communication between our team -- from the storyboards, to the illustrator's studies, revisions back-and-forth, back-and-forth, back-and-forth, and I learned to love Google docs, where we got to collaborate and share ideas.

Darrel in his element: sun, sand and sea!

My favorite part in the whole process got to be the Kid Test. I am not new to the world of children's literature as I have been a librarian and storyteller for a time now, but during this part of the writing process, I took a step back and used my writer's point-of-view. It was a big realization for me that the kids are very critical of what they hear and what they read. They are also very particular with details up to the smallest dot and a misplaced pot. Kids can really tell and they tell it to you bluntly, point-blank without batting an eyelash, nary a smile. Alongside these comments from the kids are the feedback and reviews from the many focus group discussions we have conducted with the teachers and other stakeholders. Indeed, it was a walk in the park. THE. JURASSIC. PARK. But all of those deemed to be very helpful in all our revisions and notes for future projects. After all, it is when we make mistakes that we truly learn [thru feedback, mentoring and constructive criticism, of course.]

As a storyteller, I am used to telling stories from books made by different writers. This time I believe as a writer, it is my stories that will tell who I am.

2. Where do you draw inspiration in writing stories?

It is always the innocent look in a kid's eyes whenever they hear me tell stories that continues to inspire me to tell and eventually write my own stories. Stories are magic. It's the ooohs and aaaahs, the laughter and sadness, the excitement in a kid's eyes that tell me -- Yeah! Push! Go Go Go Para sa Bayan! It is also our vision to inspire more Filipinos, children and adults alike, to read and love reading, and eventually, to write their own stories. Each of us has a story to tell, and these stories can conjure magic. Magic that can teach us compassion, empathy, and love (always!)

 Bulilit Books 2017

3. What are you most excited about the Bulilit Books?

How our kid partners from the Kid Test will react when we show them the before and after of the books. Plus the fact that it will be read and told in Hiligaynon and Cebuano! How exciting!

4. Five books that inspired you to become a writer

I'll make this short:

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - I was Bod, lost and did not know where to belong until I found a family.

The Percy Jackson series! by Rick Riordan - I would love to write a Filipino version of this

Oh The Places You'll Go! (or everything) by Dr. Seuss - play with words! The Filipino language has a lot!

Love you forever by Robert Munsch - heartwarming and heart-wrenching

Sandosenang Sapatos / Papel de Liha - books where Filipino traits are being highlighted

Millennials and School Libraries

Sharing with you this PPT by Darrel Marco as presented during the 2017 PASLI Conference in Cagayan De Oro.

How millenials reshape and reinvent the school libraries from Zarah Gagatiga

Salamat, PASLI!

Hangang ngayon, punongpuno pa rin ang puso ko sa pasasalamat sa mga officers ng PASLI (Philippine Association of School Librarians), sa iginawad nilang recognition para sa aking mga gawa, nagawa at gawain bilang isang school librarian, teacher librarian at advocate ng mga aklat at pagbabasa. Hindi ko kase inakalang makakakuha ako ng ganoong recognition mula sa mga kaibigan sa pinili (at pinilit) kong propesyon. Isang sorpresa! Wala akong nasabi sa video chat kundi, salamat at salamat!

Taos puso rin ang pasasalamat ko kina Darrel Marco at Ann Grace Bansig na naging saksi at tumangap ng plaque noong araw na iyon, April 19, 2017 sa N Hotel, Cagayan de Oro City. Bukod sa nanay ko na isang librarian rin, silang dalawa ang susunod na angkop na tumangap ng recognition para sa akin. Bakit nga ba ako wala noong araw na iyon ng PASLI conference? Unang araw pa naman ng conference yun. Well, my dear readers, palipasin muna natin ang ilang araw at ikukuwento ko sa inyo ang dahilan. Pramis!

So, now I wish to formally deliver my response and, yes my acceptance speech. Nakukulangan kase ako sa ginawa kong FB post. I think, PASLI deserves more than a post on FB as a way to thank them.

My dear PASLI friends and colleagues,

How I wish I was there to personally accept the plaque and to humbly receive the recognition that the organization have accorded me. I do not think of the PASLI standards nor its values when doing my work and advocacy. Gusto ko lamang gumawa ng tama at ng mabuti dahil hindi ako perfect na tao. To quote John Steinbeck, "now that you know that you are not perfect, you can be good." At dahil ang pagiging school librarian ang isa sa mga alam kong paraan kung paano maging mabuti, I pursued being one with all my heart and soul to the point of being unorthodox and downright, ah, different.

I believe that when we pursue our passions, life rewards us a hundredfold.

The love of family.

The support of true and good friends.

You, PASLI and the more than 100 participants of the 2017 Annual Conference, make my work and advocacy possible! Rewards na kayong lahat sa buhay ko.

I have had many failures as a school librarian. And I suppose, for as long as I live, I will not stop making mistakes. In a way, this makes me happy because it affirms two things: I am alive and I am still in the process of becoming.

Feeling ko, maraming deserve ang ganitong recognition. Kaya naman, magsisikap pa akong kilalanin at tulungan ang mga taong nagsisikap na maging mabuting school librarian sa abot ng aking makakaya. Alam kong hindi ako nag-iisa at panahon lang ang naghihintay para dumami tayong lahat na mga mabubuting school librarian. Sabi ni Salve Dimzon sa FB, "how to be you po?" And reply ko sa kanya ay isang kanta ni Barney, the Purple Dinosaur:

I'm the one and only me
I'm special you see
You're the one and only you
You're special too!

Lahat tayo ay may likas na galing, talino at, siyempre ganda! I hope we can be an inspiration to each other!

Muli, salamat PASLI! Hindi rito natatapos ang aking paglilingkod!

Hangang sa susunod na pagkikita!

With  much love and with a grateful heart,

Zarah G :-)

PS - please continue to pray for my health and well-being! I shall keep you all in my prayers!

From CPE to CPD for Filipino Librarians 2017

Before I write about the updates regarding the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for Filipino Librarians, here are blog articles and some content on the topic which I posted in the blog dating as far back as 2007.

Dr. Corazon Nera, who was the chair of the Board for Librarians in 2007 presented updates on the resurgence of the CPE and the Professional Standards for Librarians during the PLAI Southern Tagalog Region Librarians' Council. If my memory serves me right, this was the time when the BFL finished working on a set of guidelines for the practice of librarianship and revisiting the CPE of several years back. Apparently, with the organization of regional councils of librarians, standards and CPE programs for Filipino librarians would have a platform of implementation. Two years after, the CPE Program for Librarians Articles 1-3 date of posting April 26, 2009  was presented by Mrs. Elizabeth Peralejo who was then a member of the Board for Librarians, during the PATLS seminar.

The BFL was indeed hard at work, and still is, to fully interpret and implement Republic Act 9264. However, there is much talk about challenges in fulfilling and meeting CPE requirements. In 2010, I wrote about complains and worries of librarians on the "earning" of CPE units. I gave my two cents as an ending to the post.

The concerns on meeting units and points, asking for permission and seeking for supervisors, looking for funds to finance one's CPD activities are all real!

Ms. Angelic Bautista, who was a school librarian back in 2011 asked me about professional activities for school librarians. I asked a friend, Darrel Marco, who was a school librarian in De La Salle Zobel gave his response. He enumerated different ways in which school librarians can update their knowledge and upgrade their skills. I gave additional tips and lent insights too. 

Three years ago, the BFL conducted consultation meetings with leaders and practitioners in the profession. Here is a document on the consultation on new guidelines on the CPD for librarians. 

If I started blogging about the CPE of Filipino Librarians, (which is now called CPD see how it changed from education to development), back in 2007 that would be ten years to its evolution into a law,

More of that on my next post.  

Book Preview: Bulilit Books 2017

Book Preview: Bulilit Books 2017 from Zarah Gagatiga

Writing and Teamwork in Tagayatay

During the last National Holiday, I joined a creative team of dreamers and advocates to work on a commissioned book project for a Philippine based non-government organization. We spent an overnight stay in a cozy house in Tagaytay to write and create. Ah, bliss!

With Darrel Marco, collaborating on a story while the rain falls softly outside.

 This is a big project that we hope to finish by February 2017. That's all I will share for now. More news to come, definitely. But for this post, let me tell you the wonderful thing that happened during the write-in.

There were three stories to be finished that day. The creative team critiqued the two stories and were immediately re-written for the final draft. The last story, the most challenging to write, was finished early that afternoon. While the writers worked on the third story, the illustrator, who was present during the workshop, worked on the studies of the two stories that passed workshop critiquing. By 4PM, we had a good idea how the two books will look like.

Thanks to technology, our Mother Tongue writer and translator was working alongside us through Fb Messenger and text messaging.

The project still has a long way to go. I am positive that, working on a steady pace we will be able to see the project through post production.

Here is a glimpse of our artist's study of one spread:

Tinsley Garanchon's study. So cute!

The 2016 National Children's Book Book Fair at Xavier School & the PBBY Kids Lit Talks

The 2016 National Children's Book Day (NCBD) Book Fair was a lot of fun! Bumasa at Lumaya vol. 2 was launched. Editors, Neni Sta. Romana Cruz, Ani Almario and Ramon Sunico had short but substantial talks. The book fair program boasted of storytelling activities, Yoga for kids and adults, product presentations, author talks and book signings, exhibits of works and selling of art by Ang Illustrador ng Kabataan.

The PBBY Children's Literature Talks were well attended. There was a mood of fun, festivities and so much hope for the industry.

In our librarians' workshop, Darrel Marco and I facilitated points of discussion on how school librarians can "awaken the force" - their own and their readers too. In a nutshell, Darrel introduced the core competencies necessary to plan and implenent innovative reading and literacy activities for digital learners. These core competencies are: assimilation, collaboration and awakening. He also did a profiling of the digital learner. He even showed a homegrown video that he made using Puppet Pals, an app for digital storytelling. He used this video to teach access to information using the Table of Contents among grade school students.

Afterwards, I stretched the points he raised in the input session and moved on to the workshop. The participants read books, wrote reviews and posted short annotations of their reviews on social media.

Watch out for more professional development activities! Do join us! Let us learn together!

Bumasa at Lumaya!

Japan Trip 2015: Nagoya to Osaka Day 1

And so, I am back.

I am here to tell the tale and it goes like this.

When my paper was accepted for oral presentation in the IAFOR LibrAsia 2015, I was excited. Who wouldn't be? I thought, I will be presenting, once more, to an international audience and it is going to be in Japan. Japan! Images flashed through my mind: kimonos, haiku, ramen, robotics, kamishibai, kabuki masks, geisha, samurai, Studio Ghibli, and, cherry blossoms. The long and short of it, the preparation for the trip was remarkable. Thanks to the help of Darrel Marco and Ann Grace Bansig, I was booked on time and got my visa a week before our scheduled flight.

So, Darrel and I were together on the flight coming in Japan via Nagoya Central Airport. The Conference was in Osaka but due to our limited budget, we went the long way round. And boy, did we go round and round on our first night in Nagoya. When we reached Meitetsui Station, we looked for the bus stop of the night bus. We needed to ride this bus on time since the last trip is at 24.30. We followed the instructions in our online reservation form but couldn't find the spot. Our first attempt was the Meitetsui bus station but it was the wrong one. We asked the staff where Willer Express makes its stop but they simply said they do not know.

We went back where we started. You see, when you are lost, go back to where you began and you will find your way. So we retraced our steps, tried calling Willer Express (a futile effort) and trusted our instincts. We headed to JR Line and there, we found an information center. We asked for directions. The language barrier was so strong that it was an additional challenge. We comprehended through actions and signals, body language, and yes, intuition, again. The Japanese police and information staff we talked to when we were looking for the stop of the night bus were all very serious at helping us. I think they know what we meant and that they provided us with the right directions, but expressing these in a language foreign to theirs didn't help us. On our third try, yes, we went back to Meitetsui Line, a Japanese woman came out of nowhere when we were asking for directions from a taxi driver. Luckily, Chisako, our savior for the night, could speak English. Another luck came about. Darrel's Android picked up a signal to connect via wifi so he could download a map. Showing the map and our reservation print out to Chisako, she helped us find our way to the bus stop. She was after all, going to Tokyo via Shikansen and our way to the bus stop is her way to Shinkansen station as well.

With Chisako who helped us find the stop of the night bus.

It was a long walk. Pretty much like a regular 3k run for me. So imagine Darrel and I lugging our bags and suitcases, lost in Nagoya with only our map, our print outs and our guts intact. It was a test of faith. I never realized how steadfast and persevering Darrel is until that night. He never gave up given the time left at our hands. He was calm too. I sure did learn a lot of things from him that night. These days, I worry a lot. I almost gave up telling Darrel to buy us new tickets in another bus company. The thing is, he has so much trust. So much faith. Then I realized, I am growing old. How blessed am I to be in the company of the young.

How unafraid and trusting was I when I was Darrel's age? Maybe I need to remember. Maybe I need to bring back that heart of a child in me. I sure need to reflect more on this. Darrel and I were together Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. There I was being blessed with the grace of friendship and the kindness of a stranger.

The Night Bus has a game console, a small TV screen and headphones for music.

Finding the bus stop, we thanked Chisako. I gave her a copy of my book as a token of gratitude. The long ride to Osaka began. When we reached Osaka, we walked four or five corners more. We reached the train station, got off at Shin-Imimamiya, walked three corners, and finally we found our hotel where Ann Grace, May Schif and Willian Frias had checked in a day before. They were on their way out while we were on our way in.

SURPRISE! We were so noisy! We were so Pinoy!

Together at last!

Librarian-Storyteller: Darrel Marco

Librarian-Storyteller Darrel Marco shares his answers to my questions before we had our storytelling session in Sambat Elementary School with Sambat Trust scholars.

What motivated me to volunteer?
I really want to share stories as I know how powerful they are. They can touch and transform lives. They can even build a nation.
. 
What is my personal goal as a storyteller?
More than the telling of stories, I want those who will be able to hear them, to share and pass on those stories. At the same time, I also want them to create and share their own stories. Stories are power that everyone has and anyone can afford.

 What is my volunteer-storyteller experience prior to this activity?
I've been telling stories to LG and EED students for 5 years now! Usually read-aloud, but now I'm trying to venture into ala-Ms Z-style and digital storytelling. I also love to do volunteer storytelling to communities especially the minorities.


What are my expectations from this experience?
 FUN!

Filipino Librarian: Darrel Marco

This month's Filipino Librarian is Darrel Marco, school librarian at Xavier School Nuvali. He has been a school librarian for four years and enjoys every minute of working in the school library environment. Mr. Marco is a BS LIS graduate from UP Diliman. He has presented papers on school librarianship in local and international conferences.

a. What's your lib story? Describe how you made the choice of majoring in LIS and what was college life like for you as a LIS major. You can cite challenging stories and success stories while studying the course. 

LIS was never really my first choice. I really wanted to be in a course where there’s moolah after graduation (really really wanted to shift out of LIS to BA or Econ). But because of a relative abroad, less exposure to courses other than engineering, medicine or law, and as an obedient son, I selected LIS as one of my preferred courses for college. Little did I know that I would eventually love LIS not just as a course but as a profession.

One of the main reasons why I stayed in LIS was my involvement in UP FLIPP (Future Library & Information Professionals of the Philippines). I applied as a member of the organization during my Freshmen year, second semester.

During my college days, especially in my General Education subjects, the usual scenario would be:
Classmate: Hey!
Me: Hi!
Classmate: What’s your course? (based from my experience, my classmates would usually be asking for your course without even asking for your name. haha!)
Me: LIS
Classmate: What’s that?
Me: Library and Information Science
Classmate: So, you love reading books?
Me: Meh @.@

After all the application process, friendships built, values formed, goals set, challenges won – I realized that it was not just me who had that kind of experience; that I was not the only one who’s typecasted as a bookworm because I was an LIS major and that I was not alone in the battle of upholding our course.

The greatest challenge really for me was to explain the “unexplainable”, especially to my relatives. I really found it hard to make them think outside of the box that not because I was a LIS major, I would definitely end up as a solitary-all-the-time-reading-creature-while-stamping-books-and-hushing-noisy-people. In short, with condescending tone, “Ano yun??! Librarian?” But all those perceptions changed when I became a member of our student council, where my LIS identity was reinforced, and eventually graduated with flying colors (PINK and FUCHSIA!).

Studying the course was not really a walk in the park and if one has determination and willingness to learn theories in librarianship and eventually, put them into practice, LIS would be a fun course to take.

If you love providing information to other people (most of my students find this impressive since I can answer most of their questions), or, describing and classifying books and other resources (this works especially for the OC-OC in me),or, you simply want to make a difference in a person’s life since library science is a service-oriented profession, then choose to be a librarian.


b. What has been the greatest challenge you've faced so far as a licensed and working librarian? Why do you say it's a challenge? 

I work as a school librarian.

School librarians are also teacher-librarians.

So, while I function as a librarian doing the technical stuff such as cataloguing and classification, doing reference services, designing library bulletin boards and current awareness services, delivering resources to my users who are usually teachers and students, I also function as a teacher. AND IT IS NOT EASY. [Emphasis]. There will be preparations of lesson plans, curriculum planning, [almost] sleepless nights because of preparations of presentations, lesson proper, classroom management, behaviour and discipline plans, and I must admit, I was never prepared for them during my first years. It was only through constant exposure, experience and practice that I was able to acquire those skills [Emphasis … AGAIN].

I guess there was a lapse in teaching those necessary skills since when one graduates as an LIS major, s/he will not simply be a librarian, and that there are many different types of libraries that an LIS graduate can choose to work in. During my college years, I never really thought of being a school librarian, it was only after graduation when I saw that opportunity and grabbed it, and I never regretted it even once. What I really want now is for school librarianship to be recognized as a discipline, wherein librarians function not only as librarians but they are also EXPECTED to have skills and functions of a teacher.

c. What is your area of expertise in LIS? 

Uhmmm… As I have mentioned above, as a teacher-librarian, one needs not only the “technical” skills of being a librarian but at the same time, the skills of a teacher. Furthermore, I believe that the LIS field is a very practical field, where one learns and encounters problems and tries to solve those problems through practice, practice and practice. A librarian cannot simply live in a paradigm of dogmatic theories. Theories are best tested when put into practice.

To answer the question (haha!), I can humbly say that I am starting to work on teacher-librarians’ roles in the promotion of having an information literate society i.e. integration of teaching pedagogies, technology, and IL skills (which I believe librarians should have) and their application in real life.

d. What do you think are the requirements and preparations necessary for becoming a LIS professional? 

As frontliners in an information society, I believe LIS professionals should continue to be adaptive to changes. Information come and go. They continue to add up and bloom and soon, there will be an information boom. LIS professionals need not only acquire and provide information for themselves and for their users but they also need to be critical of the information that they receive and disseminate. Information literacy skills are the vital skills that LIS professionals need to have nowadays. Since we deal heavily with information and its dissemination, we need to know how to evaluate them, synthesize them and eventually share them for the common good.

MOST IMPORTANT : A librarian MUST be a READER.
READ. Not just to enhance your technical skills as a librarian.
READ. Not just to be up-to-date. but also
READ. for leisure and entertainment.
READ. to know which materials to recommend to your users, and
READ and enjoy!

e. What rewards have you reaped from being a LIS professional? 

I was able to travel to Europe and represent our country!
I was able to share my experiences to students of LIS
I was able to meet new friends in the LIS field and other related fields.
Good books!!! (YA novels and children’s books, who’d say no to them?)
Hugs, hellos, and smiles from my students. Nothing beats that!

Librarians Read Series of 2010

In November 7, 2010, I asked five librarians to guest in the blog and share their reading choices over the years. This blog series was in part, a carry-over of Teen Read Week 2010. From November 8-12, 2012, one Filipino Librarian was featured in the blog. I am re-posting and curating the posts as part of the Filipino Librarian blog series I'll be reviving this month.

The five reading librarians are: Darrel Marco, Ann Grace Bansig, Dean Igor Cabbab, Fe Angela Verzosa, Von Totanes

Would be cool if there's a book discussion group with librarians as members meeting once a month.

Dear Librarian: The Pilar Perez Medallion

Darell Marco, school librarian and blogger, sent me this inquiry -

I'm writing to you with regards to our report in her class. WOuld you know anything about the Pilar Perez Awards? e.g. criteria for judging, who were the judges, what were the "contending" books, why did it die? etc? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Darell is pursuing his MA degree at the UP Diliman and is currently taking up Reading Cognates at the department of Reading Education. His professor, Prof. Portia Padilla, has assigned the Pilar Perez Medallion to Darell. Answers to his questions will be posted next week.

What is an interesting, if not, intriguing about the award was, it that suddenly died out as soon as it began.

Love a Librarian: Living and Loving the Challenges of the LIS Profession

Darrel Friend as many people call him graduated from UP SLIS 2009. He is currently enrolled in the MLIS program of the UP School of Library and Information Science. He is a lower Grades Readers' Services Librarian of De La Salle Zobel since 2009. He is a storyteller; blogger; friend and yes, demigod.

He writes about the unending challenges of being a librarian. This he experienced early on as a LIS major at the UP Diliman. Now, he has learned to live and love every bit of challenge that the profession throws upon his path.

As I have mentioned in some of my posts, I never really dreamed of becoming a librarian and honestly, I was never really a fan of books. They were just a waste of time for me. I'd rather be watching a movie or sleeping than straining my eyes with those lines which I did not appreciate. BUT. That was way before. I've changed [I think!]. And this pivotal event in my life took place when I was still in college, trying to enjoy the best of both worlds: studying and partying [in the sense of having fun, enjoying extra-curricular activities, non-acad stuff and the likes].

[Don't worry, I would not elaborate much on the "studying" part because I know, I know, it seems a boring topic]. Studying means complying with all the academic requirements, the tedious jobs of researching [when in reality I was just surfing the Net for Mangas] and then submitting a one-page paper [well, that was what I remember as far as abstracting is concerned. Accuracy. Brevity. Clarity. Peace. Serenity (and I sounded like Fergie)]. I could still remember the nights of cramming. Attending classes in just cargo shorts and flops. Treading the campus from end to end just to realize that you didn't have a class. Well, that was how my life as a plain college student went. But I was never a just-a-plain college student.

What made my life in college worthwhile and what made me stay in LIS and eventually pursue a career as a librarian, as far as I could say and as honestly as I could explain, is being part of an organization: UP FLIPP, or the University of the Philippines Future Library and Information Professional of the Philippines.

I could still remember when ate LC Fernandez [in her jumper and thick glasses] and Veronica Silagpo[the girl with a boyish attitude, which scared me] approached me along the then UP ILIS corridors asking me if I have some time for an orientation. I declined the invitation because I said [as an excuse] that I still have a next class. Those were the days that I was still totally doubtful of my course. The usual scenario in a General Education [GE] class went like:

Classmate: What's your course?

Me: (with hesitations) LIS

Classmate: What's that?

Me: Library and Information Science

Classmates: Ooooh. So you love reading?

Me: (...)

I thought to myself that it would have been a hell lot easier if I told them that my course is BA or Eng'g or ComSci!!! That was why I conditioned myself that I would soon get out of that college [ILIS] and shift to a better-sounding course [BA or something engineering]. But since ate LC and Veron were too eager, they tried to invite me once again for an orientation of what their organization is all about. And this time, I gave in.

Of course, I underwent the usual application process before one is admitted to the organization: number of tambay hours, sigsheets, activities, etc. But I guess what made UPFLIPP different was the fact that one would not feel alone in the course of application. More so, one is not left alone in the crusade of uplifting the field of Library and Information Science and upholding our rights to be called as professionals. I suddenly realized that we all come from a common ground and are directed to a common goal: the fact that we want to change the view of people towards librarianship and to break the bad stereotypes that have been associated with librarians.

I think that is why up until now I choose to stay in the LIS profession. Aside from the fact that being a library and information professional is not a dead-end job, and the law of supply and demand dictates that if there is a high demand [for librarians] and low supply [of licensed librarians], unemployment would not be a problem, the field of library and information science continues to pose challenges. As information continues to evolve and develop, the role of librarians continues to adapt to changes as well. [Wait, why am I being so serious? Ha Ha] Likewise, aside from the fact that I am enjoying my work with my "kids" around is the reality that my friends and orgmates are and will always be there, upholding the same principles we share and continue uplifting our course and our profession.

Nowadays, if people ask me what I do for a living, I proudly and humbly say that:

I am a [Demigod] Librarian *wink*