A Symposium: Mediatization of the Youth
Fr. Christian Buenafe O'Carm
Where is the love?
Quick withdraw. Quick credit. Instant mail. Instant text messaging. Instant noodles. Instant meal. We want everything done so fast like the abrupt motion of our lives. Okay! By the way, does it contain love? Where's the love? In this sense, we should not forget the love- the love we feel inside, the love we shared, the love that allows to gain fulfillment in friends, parents and most especially, in God. Let's put love- the love that binds us, even it is quick and instant.
Love . . . is the real essence why do we exist in this world. It is the key that open the gate of happiness of each individual. We have our relatives miles apart from us or ocean apart. But, communication devices are continually created to fill in the gap of family-to-family relationships. Thus, media are built for accessing our kin ships here and abroad. It strengthen the closeness bonds of families. But, does it really take there? Chatting... is known to link people just sending a short mail ( or a sentence only) that can be sent for a couple of seconds, a second or a tenth of second! Or in cellphone, it is like SMS (a.k.a. Short Message Send). Message should be short but meaningful. What a short text if this contains no notion?
Family is the most influential agency in every life. No sort of things can be compared on it! Sharing and showing love with one another is the happiest moment. No technology, pieces of articles, media or whatsoever that bears the ultimate feeling we feel inside. When there is no choice to connect to our loved ones but through media, please express it heartily. It partially eases the emptiness inside. Remember, do it in the right way. You should think of it- media can touch our lives but what touch us most is the family, the people around us, the presence of God because of immeasurable and unconditional love present to us day-by-day with no help of something like money and property.
Media is very much affected of computer technology because of its strong influence and how it works. Media brings forth information, news, latest styles and etc. Mostly, these are made through the use of computers- the works and magics of it. These materials are enhance in the wonders of computers because of its many different uses and capabilities. Because also of explorations about computers, media improve more to attain the tastes of the users. They organize more enhancements. That is, it develops more and more. The random improvements of media depend on how the computer technology will act.
Media affects education in many ways. Media can be good partners of professional teachers to gain quality education. Thus, education can use media to integrate or to execute instructions. Media, nowadays, is very rampant of different kinds and uses. Two of its uses are to entertain and to educate. Since education is an aim of media, more developments have been discovered to answer the needs of educating the people. So that the students/learners will not be bored of listening the teacher with the aid of media, perhaps, there may be an accompaniment of a little bit of entertainment to arouse their senses.
Today's technology is powerful in connection to media and education. Technology gives more inputs for media and education. Technology is the result on what the science has been applied. In education, it can change dynamically the teaching- learning processes. In media, it can help to merely spread out the messages it encompasses. It will never become obsolete because it is gradually develop for human needs and wants. Technology is very powerful! It can dehumanize and demoralize the society. So, it must be deliberated to avoid inevitable circumstances. It can fasten the works we want to do hastily. It can entertain preferably than our family. Kids find satisfaction in playing such us video games.
The painting of Joey Velasco, Hapag ng Pag-asa, was a very good example in relation to education. Many street children, poorest of the poor kids have no education. The primary reasons- they have nothing to enroll and nothing to eat to feed themselves while in school. Instead of going to school, they lend their time for looking money by working- in smokey mountains, streets or anywhere. . . Their parents cannot sustain their basic needs. Dr. Jose Protacio Rizal once said, ''Youth is the progress of our nation''. How can we attain progress if the youth has no progress? Let's put love and solicitude. Many influential people are responsible for handling this task to prioritize education before anything else. On this point, children don't know what lies ahead by the use on their own bare and candid hands.
