Rewind: The reporter as teacher

My work as a reporter has introduced me to different scenarios, situations, and perspectives. Meeting people from different walks of life, color, religion, and orientation is a great learning experience.

My exposure to these diverse realities served me well. I aspire to be a service-oriented young professsional.

I have come to develop a communication skill that stems from careful study or assesment of context. This involves listening, observing, and researching on the elements.

I am a communicator. I believe communication is effective if it is mindful of details, context, consequences and character.

I know that in teaching, we need to employ a lot of listening, levelling off, and coaching. Teaching isn’t supposed to be just lecturing. Above all it is mentoring and facilitating, where students could see theories and realities from where they are coming from.

This puts me back to my university education and orientation: to serve my country.

This brings me to the field —dealing with the public, learning first hand and living with them.

The field is harsh. People expect a lot from a reporter. This has forced me to push my self to the limits by doing multi-tasks in achieving goals and missions.

I struggle to be a hardworking young professional with an enterprising mind and a heart for service. (Entry to the “Learning Highlights” portion of my curriculum vitae, submitted to Ateneo de Davao University, where I taught journalism for a semester in 2005.)