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By Katrina Guevarra
TRADITIONAL education is tantamount to drone and
boredom to most people. They would rather be somewhere else than the
dreaded classroom. Rock concerts and radio talk shows are where they
want to be and what they want to hear.
Rock Ed Philippines, a volunteer group working
to provide venues and events for alternative education, is out to
prove that rock music, musicians and radio stations are the new
classrooms for today’s youth. The group has a radio show airing
every Sunday evening over NU 107 FM where musicians, poets, artists,
entrepreneurs and writers serve as teachers as well as fellow
students.
Hosted by Rock Ed’s founder Theresa Badoy and
poet Lourd de Veyra of jazz band Radioactive Sago Project, the
program does not dictate to students what to think or say. Instead,
listeners join hosts and guests in their quest for the facts
necessary to make informed decisions on the issues of the day.
“It came out of my frustration to play an
active role in the resolution of various problems plaguing our
country. Then, I noticed that my nieces and nephews have all the
songs of the local bands memorized. That was when I realized that
young people listen more to musicians than to teachers, politicians
and priests all combined,” Badoy recalls. The Hello Garci scandal
had angered Badoy then.
However, she explains that she did not
particularly like the idea of attending rallies and admits that she
is unsure of what protest movements to trust. After deep
contemplation, Badoy saw a glimmer of hope in music and musicians.
“People always seem to trust music and
the artists behind them because basically their works are
expressions of truth,” she intones. Being a music fan herself, she
had first hand experiences on how the compositions of some artists
had led her to political awakenings. She then ponders that maybe,
like her, music can lead other people to enlightenment too.
De Veyra shares his experience on performing and
interacting with the youth during the “Malinis Please”
pre-election concert: “I learned that both the artist and the
audience are both inquirers along the way. When I interacted with
the crowd, I was surprised that they had a different sentiment on
certain matters, something distinct than what I presumed,” he
points out, adding, “They do not have a gnarling sort of cynicism
and irony that you keep inside. Actually, they were optimistic.
That’s why you do not have the right to be snarling.”
Rock Ed is resolute in providing alternative
education through music, poetry, sports, photography, fashion,
graphic design, literature, new approaches to science, film,
cultural studies, theatre, dance, and a lot more creative
alternatives to the traditional classroom set up.
They bring this kind of learning not only to
students but also to out-of-school youths, communities living
alongside railroad tracks and prisoners. Rock Ed, using “rock
culture” as a vehicle not only aims to promote education and
social awareness among the youth but fight poverty as well.
Rock Ed has a ten-year timetable for a series of
alternative education projects. “Without a deadline there is no
urgency for people to join,” Badoy explains the rationale of
declaring a specific time frame for the movement.
When asked to name Rock Ed’s accomplishments
so far, Badoy admits, “I’m not quite sure of the progress. At
the onset of Rock Ed, I already knew that we will not have bar
graphs of success that says, ‘16,000 teenagers are now more
patriotic.’ I guess I can’t have those numbers and I probably
never will.”
However, she named the program’s expanding
area of coverage as something she is truly proud of. “Rock Ed can
now be heard in schools and far-flung provinces. We accomplished
this without soliciting money, without major sponsors and without
influential people backing us up. All these - no seed money, no
capital,” Badoy announces proudly.
Rock Ed rocks. It’s the Filipino artist in
action initiating positive change through creativity and sheer guts.
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