School: Saint Louis Laboratory High School
    Baguio City, Benguet, Philippines

4 students, ages 14-15 worked together to complete this Doors to Diplomacy project on March 15, 2012. They have participated in Doors to Diplomacy in the following year(s): 2011

Classes and Teachers: Vincent Tabor, Florida Martin, Edgar, Isaac, Harvey, Paul

E-Mail contact:

Our School's Web Site: http://www.slu.edu.ph

1. Description of Our Team

Our team is composed of four different kinds of people in our classroom and we have been group mates most of the time during the school year.

a. Isaac Brillo – Isaac is known to be a black sheep to our classroom. Nevertheless, he is still a student who still does his work. He gives creative ideas and helps in other members of the team in their work. b. Paul Datuin – Paul is a son a local councilor in our city. He gives perspectives to our project that is somewhat petty, and somewhat important. He gives information regarding the topic and has a good sense of connecting ideas. c. Edgar Dirige – Edgar is the team’s backbone. He does mainly all the work for the project making him an asset. Without him, the team would fall to its knees. d. Harvey Hulipas – Harvey is beneficial to the team. He gives some creative ideas for the project. Although some may be irrational, some of the ideas he makes are rational in a sense it is important to our project.

2. Summary of Our Project

Our project presents the RH Bill, which is a major issue in the Philippines, which is aiming to solve the problems of the country. It is an issue because of such strong opposition. It has brought difficulties to the country itself affecting all kinds of relationships between the two bodies fighting. The status of this bill has not changed and we, members of this project, would like to discuss the topic. The main purpose of our project is to express the importance of diplomacy and how it affects the lives of the masses by linking our topic to the idea. We aim so because we want to tell the readers how beneficial and crucial diplomacy is in everyday life that would develop or enhance relationships between others. Our project also entails to present to the readers the idea of solving problems peacefully and immediately as possible. It is, in fact, our theme for our project is to foster peace in solving problems.

3. Our Computer and Internet Access

A. Percentage of students using the Internet at home:more than 50%

B. Number of workstations with Internet access in the classroom:more than 6

C. Connection speed used in the classroom:dedicated connection

D. Number of years our classroom has been connected to the Internet:2-3

4. Problems We Had To Overcome

Perhaps the most difficult problem we have to overcome are the following:

1.) Time – the project has limited time. In fact, this is the biggest problem. Estimating the time we have to work for the project, we had two weeks only, not to mention that we have also requirements to submit in other curriculum. It has been so since there were complications of the schedule in our school. Some of our group mates have also things to do. Sacrificing time has solved this problem.

2.) Facilities and Tools – All computers are linked to one Internet source, and since multiple groups work together in the computer laboratory, resulting in a very slow Internet speed. However, it is fast only when few computers are only using the Internet. That is why we say our Internet connection varies. To solve our problems, we do the project individually at home, in a sense one group mate will do this and another will do that.

5. Our Project Sound Bite

To define our project: “Amidst all the problems, they are all meant to be solved no matter what force may bring”. This project is no ordinary project because we have already encountered several problems already from the start but no matter what, all of these problems are to be solved. No matter how big or small, easy or difficult, or covers a long time to solve, it does not matter because it needs to be solved. This idea became our basis also for our project and how can we present diplomacy in our project.

6. How did your activities and research for this Doors to Diplomacy Project support standards, required coursework and curriculum standards?

This project supported the standards of our coursework because it helped us become an asset to the society since for us, coursework and curriculum standards aims to promote the identity of an individual, therefore concluding that our project, in its own little ideas and our actions towards it, is not a liability but an asset. This project has made us more aware of the current situations happening here in our country. It made us see a clear perspective what is happening in our society and how we can live and apply solutions to such certain problems. It made us become more active members of the society. Aside from the content, this project made us rely and trust each one another to achieve greater heights in our everyday activities in home, in school, and in our community. It enhanced our relationships with other people in short.

With our topic, it helped us to promote the rights of others through the use of this website. It helped us to see that problems are meant to be solved peacefully and we would like to influence this to others through this website. We believe that this website is more than just improving our identity but improving the lives of others also.

1) What information tools & technologies did you used to complete your Doors to Diplomacy project?

Hardware:

1.) Desktop Personal Computer (PC) (Operating System: Windows XP) –This tool is used to help us communicate and to find information through the use of the Internet through articles and stories. 2.) Camera (Nikon D300s) – It is used as our apparatus to create a video.

Computer Software:

1.) Adobe Photoshop CS5 (Demo) – It is used to edit some of our images and to bring color to the eyes of the viewers. 2.) Microsoft Movie Maker – This is our video editor for the video. 3.) Microsoft Word 2003/2007 – It is used to hold all our content that we got from different sources and it is used to write our draft for the website. 4.) Web Browser (Google Chrome) – It is the web browser that we primarily used when accessing to the Internet. a. Weebly.com – It is used in our project as our website-creator. Originally, we intend to create a website out of our knowledge of HTML and CSS but with the limited amount of time, our coach has allowed us to use website-creator sites.

The school provides some of the technologies we will be using. All of them can be considered as our valuable tools. Absence of one can bring issues to us. These tools are helpful enough in achieving our idea.

2) In what ways did you act as "ambassadors" and spokespersons for your Doors to Diplomacy project both on-line and in person.

To represent our project is an opportunity for our project. It is indeed a privilege since we want to express diplomacy through the Internet.

ON-LINE: In this modern age, people have relied the use of new and advancing technologies. One technology that helped man is the Internet; many people, worldwide, are being induced of its capabilities. Therefore, representing our project on-line has strong effect especially to the youth. Representing our project on-line calls us to express our project in our ways in communicating through others through the Internet.

IN PERSON: As persons, we represented this by becoming a model of our idea. Becoming a model is not being hypocritical. We can become model to our idea, that is that diplomacy is strong and crucial to the society, by solving ideas peacefully. This advocacy of ours, we certainly believe, is strong. This advocacy of ours, and becoming a model for it, can induce beneficial effects by protecting the dignity and rights of others. It is a way of respecting the viewpoints of people and not induces war. Becoming a model, for us, is a way to represent our project because we see its beneficial effects to all.

3) What has been the impact of your project on your community?

With this project, it has made more people aware of the current situations in the community; we have made them aware of the things that would help them improve their status in life and the things that would deteriorate them in their everyday activities. In this way, the community can prepare itself over the issues and the situations that will happen in future time and be able to respond so as not to avoid disparity and distress. This project, when read, can influence others to respect the dignity and rights of others. It can promote and enhance the identity of person towards interaction between others, thus improving relationships that can have beneficial effects to the parties involved for the sake of the society. This project is indeed beneficial to the members of the community who have been confused with the issues, who have been in poverty, who have been abused, and who are trying to make an effort to change the status of the community.

4) How did your project involve other members of your community as helpers and volunteers?

Along the road when searching for information, we have discovered several websites giving self-opinions to the issue. There were blogs about the issue at the same time stories of people being confused regarding the issue. Their experiences through these references have given a point of reference for us the need of the masses for the issue to be solved. They gave us an idea the scale on how big the society wants this issue to end. It was certainly big and with this information gave us the idea on how should we relate the issue to the society and therefore make the project more concrete in nature that will to get to our point. In these references, they have helped us to connect the issue to them.

5) Discoveries, Lessons and Surprises (Optional)

This project made us see and become aware of the current situations happening in our community and see the degree of the issue. We have discovered a surprising fact of the people’s desire and need for issues to be solved in a very big scale. This fact enabled us to take part and to express our points on what should be the solution to this issue. Indeed, this project we could say made us aware of our situations in this country.

Another thing we have learned is the dignity of others, that each person has a dignity to be respected and not be owned by a force because we are free people living in a sovereign world. We have learned that rights indeed define the identity of the individual and thus not to abuse it.

The most important thing we have discovered is the power of diplomacy in our daily lives. In our website, we have indeed proven a fact that diplomacy is important at the same time crucial to humanity. With diplomacy, we can improve our interaction with others and relationship for the sake of the community and to improve or enhance and to gain more benefits for all.

We have discovered that “War is the result of failure of diplomacy”.