Tuesday, March 4, 2008

The School Outside the Walls (revised)

University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila and De La Salle University – who are still unfamiliar with these names? Prestigious and famous schools in the Philippines have raised their banner high enough. But prestige and fame do not constitute success.

The Manila Times School of Journalism is a school that is not so known to many. Some are familiar with the paper it publishes, but oftentimes they still ask, “Does it really have a school?”
The school is The Manila Times School of Journalism. Take out the “School of Journalism”, and that is the only name familiar to most of the people.

Established on October 11, 1898, the Manila Times has since been a witness to, and have been a part of the Philippine history. The Manila Times School of Journalism was instituted sometime in 2003. It is located at the fourth floor of the Manila Times building at 371 A.Bonifacio Drive, Port Area, Manila.

Its dull and aged façade shows how long this building has been at service. It may not look very competitive against other colleges because of its population of less than a hundred, but this has gained some advantages. The administration knows every student and they have direct access with everyone. With all its facilities, such as the television studio, video cameras, radio booth, and its own national newspaper, the students have enough time to undergo their hands-on training.

“One of the reasons why I chose to study at The Manila Times School of Journalism is because it has its own paper and it operates on a trimester basis.” says Arnela Daniela Almirez, a current sophomore student of TMTSJ.

Of all the existing schools in our country, few are only offering a specialized course, and this is a plus factor for a student’s training. Schools should not imprison their students inside the four walls of a room, filling their minds with formulas and theories. They should let them have the first-hand experience of their lessons. A person’s prestige and success do not depend on what school he graduates from, but on how he is trained and on how he used his training after he gets out of school.

1 comment:

Rome Jorge said...

Checked, posted on time - Prof. Jorge