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BY RHODA GARZON CAMPILLAN
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COMMUNITY broadcasting and development-oriented radio programs are examples of Development Communication.
Development Communication, as defined by Zarate, is using media to bring about meaningful social change that should benefit majority of the people in the society. The quest for change is anchored on the belief that low-and middle-income societies continue to be plagued by deep-seated poverty and income inequality.
The original definition of Development Communication was coined by Dr. Nora Quebral who is considered to be the mother of Development Communication. She defined devcom as the art and science of human communication applied to the speedy transformation of a country and the mass of its people from poverty to a dynamic state of economic growth that makes possible greater social equality and the larger fulfillment of the human potential.
It simply means that in development communication, we use media to bring change and to improve the lives of the people.
Development Communication practitioners utilize traditional media to influence the community. There are different types of traditional media – drama, street theatre puppetry, dance, storytelling, song, music, painting, motifs and symbols. Some create wall news and utilize community radio in order to disseminate information among the people in the community.
I have taught this subject for several years and my approach is always immersion in the community. I assign students to form into several groups. Each of the group is assigned with media to which they will endeavor to teach in the community.
As far as I can remember, there is a group assigned to teach Community Theater, radio, journalism, television and wall painting. For every media, a sector of the community is assigned. They will serve as the recipients of the training to be conducted by the students.
Every week the students visit the barangay and meet their assigned sector. They will then introduce their assigned media and they will teach them how to utilize the media to make a difference in the community.
At the end of the semester, there is a culminating activity. The people in the community and the students gather. The sectors of the community showcase their knowledge of the different media which was taught by the students.
At the end of the activity, I could always see satisfaction in the eyes of the people in the community. They are empowered because of the information they have learned. In the short period that students stayed in the community, they would always write in their reflection papers, how much they appreciate the activity. They were able to go out their comfort zones and see another aspect of their lives.
Moreover, Zarate reported that the rise and accessibility of digital technology also enhanced the modalities of creation, production, and distribution of media using the framework of development communication. They have turned to the use of digital film making to create training videos to empower farmers and other marginalized sectors, to upgrade skills in various occupations so that they can increase their income and improve on their lot, to prepare communities for man-made and natural calamities, and to develop resilient communities.
To end this article, I would like to leave a quote from Audrey Hepburn: As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other helping others./PN
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