IT’S all systems go for the 5th National Communication Research Conference scheduled for Nov. 23-24 this year in the University of the Cordilleras, Baguio City.
The NCRC recently released its list of accepted abstracts for presentation at the only conference ever for communication researchers and practitioners.
A “record-breaking” number of abstracts were received earlier this year for consideration. According to an official communication, “Only 68 percent of the 132 abstracts submitted this year have been accepted…90 were endorsed for presentation by the Screening Committee, after a rigorous deliberation process, for this year’s conference.” Last year’s event was attended by over 600 participants who viewed 30 presentations.
This year’s conference theme is “Filipino Communicative Experience,” an exploration of how Filipinos communicate, particularly as creators and audiences of content in traditional and new media.
The event is spearheaded by the University of the Philippines-Diliman College of Mass Communication’s Communication Research Department, a Commission on Higher Education Center of Excellence, in partnership with the UP Baguio Department of Communication, University of the Cordilleras, and Philippines Communications Society.
The NCRC has been recognized at the Philippine Quill Awards as a “model for communication training and education.”
Research papers will be presented by students, scholars, and practitioners. “Since 2012,” an informational video goes, “NCRC has served as a venue for disseminating research, showcasing lectures by international scholars and experts… and [building] networks among students, scholars, and professionals, contributing to a dynamic research culture in the Philippines.”
According to UP-CMC Dean Elena E. Pernia, PhD., the conference aims to “spread the culture of research [and] to provide a venue for people who conduct research.”
Over 23,000 people viewed the list of this year’s accepted abstracts on the NCRC’s Facebook page, an indication of high interest in the event.
Here’s a selection of topics to be presented this year: “Appreciating the Role of Folk Media in Rural Development,” by Jude Vincent E. Parcon; “Recording Igorot-ness through Igorot-made Music Videos,” by Domingo, de Velez, and Landicho; and “#MarcosPaRin? The Marcos Myth in the 20th Century,” by Areola, Bonifacio, Evora, Maranan, and Maximo.
The two-day conference will be bookended by three pre- and post-conference workshops. On Nov. 22, “Pagpapahayag” comprises seminars on research dissemination and research presentation, while on Nov. 24, “Paglilikha” is a day-long activity that covers the conceptualization of qualitative and quantitative research.
The conference is open to the public for a fee of P300 that gets you a badge, a book of the abstracts, and a certificate of participation.
I’m excited to be presenting my PhD dissertation “Kulturang Karera: Communicating Philippine Horseracing Culture” at this year’s NCRC.
I’ll be sharing my model framework for studying subcultures and other special interest groups. It will be my first time to present a research paper and I look forward to learning from my colleagues in the discipline.
Having a venue to share findings and insights is every research geek’s wet dream. I used to run my fingers over the spines of the theses and dissertations shelved at the UP-CMC Graduate Students lounge, thinking it was a pity that all the interesting knowledge inside them was locked up in their pages, far from the eager eyes of appreciative readers.
Now the results of months, even years, of study will now see the light of day and be shared with others who could learn and benefit from them. Although pure research has no need to justify itself with a practical purpose—“knowledge for knowledge’s sake” is my mantra—imagine if a practical use or application were found for the research conducted by patient and dedicated scholars. That would make the research even more rewarding and meaningful.
And with the NCRC as a venue to disseminate the work of Filipino communication scholars, the world of research is made much more vibrant and relevant.
Dr. Ortuoste is a California-based writer. Follow her on Facebook: Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @jennyortuoste, Instagram: @jensdecember, @artuoste