A Review of my SSP GE Courses in UP Diliman

Last Updated on December 17, 2019 by Ran

At dahil tapos na nga ang aking unang taon sa pinakamamahal kong UP Diliman… (sentence ends there)

I still remember when I was enlisting for classes last semester. I did research about my subjects and professors beforehand, but since I cared more about getting a “perfect” schedule rather than a “perfect” class, I wasn’t able to apply the tips I read about choosing which subjects to enlist in. Still, I’m happy that I got quite lucky with the classes I got in the CRS. Yes, I love you CRS. =)

Do note that I don’t want to “rate” my classes based on how “unoable” they are, because getting an uno really isn’t my goal when I enlisted in these classes. My goal was to learn and to have fun in the process, period. Of course, it’s fun to get an uno, but I don’t worry too much if I don’t get one. Actually, more of “revisiting my GE courses” ang post na to and not “rate my professors”. =) AND WARNING LANG, kung gaano ako kadaldal in real life, ganun ako kadaldal in writing. Haha. I apologize in advance.

UP Subjects/Professors, A.Y. 2014-2015 (SSP Classes)

Subject: Geog 1
Professor: Garcia, Emmanuel
Comments: If you backread this blog a bit, you’ll see how much love I have for this class. That is, so much love. Hahaha. As a class, Geog 1 is really interesting. It’s actually a block subject for me because it’s required for my course, but I sure am glad that it is.

Basically, Geog 1 tackles the principles of Geography. I’ve never been particularly interested in Geography when I was in high school, but this class really made me appreciate it.

Not to mention, I got one of the coolest Geography profs ever, Sir Eman. I swear, this guy rocks. He teaches in a really fun way (giving anecdotes and jokes which are related to the lessons), making the class a really interesting and learning-inductive environment. Actually, at the beginning of the semester, I was always late in this class because I still had to come from CHK (PE2), but as I learned to love it along the way, I also started leaving PE2 earlier so that I won’t be late for class. =) That’s because I didn’t want to miss anything in the discussion (and who am I kidding? This is a block class, so most of my friends are here.) Also, the geog camp was… well, an awe-mazing experience! Practically one of the best– if not the best– experience in my whole first year in UPD. 🙂

Requirements: Quizzes, long exams, reports, activities, GEOG CAMP. Optional yung camp, pero kung di ka pumunta, ay… regrets nalang pare. Haha, joke. Pero sama ka. Masaya. 🙂

If I could, would I enlist again? Well, if I could, I definitely would. (With the same classmates please?) =)

Subject: Philo 1
Professor: Marquez, Leander
Comments: Ah, this is also one of my favorite classes in my whole first year of college! I think Philo 1 is a really, really interesting class, and I honestly think that Sir Marquez is one of the best professors you could ever have for Philo. This class is all about Philosophical Analysis, so you’ll learn how to analyze logical statements, formulate your own arguments, identify logical fallacies, and so on and so forth. It really does help with critical thinking, as I realized that I learned to be more conscious of how sound and logical my arguments are because of this class (yes naman! hahaha). One of the most important things I learned is that we should not “accept the truth of any statement or belief without sufficient evidence” (Acuna, 2014). In other words, wag maging assuming kung walang ebidensya. Oh diba, very relevant in today’s world. =)

Even though I’m shy when it comes to public exposure (char!), I’m usually very social, but surprisingly, I loved this class even though I knew nobody from the class (for like, the first half of the sem). You know why? Because Sir Marquez is awesome, that’s why. Hahaha. 8:30AM yung class namin, and lagi akong late ng 15 minutes (he starts after 15 minutes, so I always arrive at the nick of time), pero never rin akong inantok sa class na to. Not even once. I had fun just listening to him discuss, because he always related our philosophical lessons to real life scenarios. He also had a lot of “quotable quotes” to give, which I am very fond of. Ah! One other thing. He allows students to eat in class. As someone who eats 10x a day… I approve.

WAIT. Alam ko mahaba na. Hahaha. Pero warning lang. And yes, be warned. Sir Marquez’s exams/quizzes are very difficult. And when I say difficult, I mean really difficult. As in may iba akong classmates nun na naiiyak na raw after ng exams. Ako rin, umiiyak na, pero deep inside lang, ayoko namang iyakan ang exam lang. Hahaha. Kung GC ka… ipagpatuloy mo ang pag-aaral ng mabuting mabuting mabuti. Ayokong sabihin na wag i-enlist to kung GC ka, kasi you’ll be missing out on one of the most fun GE classes(+profs) around.

Requirements: Exams, quizzes, philosophical journal (easy lang to, don’t worry), attendance. Marami rin siyang incentives na binibigay, btw. Honestly, I think nabuhay ako sa incentives. =)

If I could, would I enlist again? Most definitely.

Subject: Philo 10
Professor: Caslib, Bernard
Comments: First of all, sasabihin ko na. Kung ikaw yung klase ng tao na nabobore kapag nagkkwento yung kaibigan mo tungkol sa every day life nya (I’m not judging you… really, I’m not), maaaring hindi ka mag-enjoy sa class na to. Bakit? Kasi yun lang ang ginagawa ni Sir Caslib every single meeting. Basically, our classes went like this: short quiz for 15 minutes, then listen to Sir ramble about his daily life for the next 55 minutes. You might think, “Ay, ganun? Hindi ba waste of time?” Well… yun nga. It depends. Kung mas gusto mo yung technical, maybe Sir isn’t the best prof to teach Philo 10 for you, because you’ll probably dismiss his stories as a waste of your time… na maaari mo sigurong magamit sa pagma-Math (ayaw ni Sir may ginagawang iba), paglalakad sa Acad Oval (ayaw ni Sir ng palabas labas), o pakikipagtext sa bf/gf mo (ayaw ni Sir may nagphophone), who knows.

But for me, it wasn’t a waste of time. You see, lahat ng stories niya about his day to day activities, nirerelate niya sa lessons. As in. Ang fun lang makita na yung philosophical lessons na nakuha namin sa works ni Plato, narerelate niya sa isang random na pangyayari sa buhay niya. For me, that’s honestly one of the best ways to “teach” philosophy, because what use will you have for it other than to experience it in your own life? And sa class na to, sobrang daming realizations. Minsan siya yung nagkakaron ng realization  habang nagkkwento siya, tas mapapaisip ka na rin. Oo nga noh? I personally like that. Tapos, he’s very open for discussion, so sa class namin, marami talagang critical thinking na nagaganap. Ang fun lang.

The best part about this class is the field trip, imho. As in naging super close yung class namin dahil sa field trip na yun. 1st sem pa tong class na to, pero yung Philo 10 classmates ko yung kasama kong nag-dinner nung last night ko sa UP nung 2nd sem. Hahaha. Ganun ka-close. That was partly because of Sir, kasi he really promotes bonding between his students. Unforgettable class, it sure is.

Requirements: Quizzes (every day), readings (wag iwawala), field trip (optional, pero may super hassle syang ipapagawa kung di ka sumama, kaya sama ka nalang, since sobrang saya naman), final paper.

If I could, would I enlist again? YES. Actually, I got Philo 10 before Philo 1, and I really wanted Sir Caslib to be my prof again for Philo 1. But then I got Sir Marquez. =) No regrets though, I’m happy I got them both as my professors.

Subject: Kas 1
Professor: Camagay, Ma. Luisa
Comments: To be honest, I’m super torn about this class. I’ve always loved history, but I never really liked discussing it in class. For me, history is better learned through reading, and not being told about it in a room with a bunch of other students who may or may not enjoy it. Basically though, okay naman tong class na to, lesson-wise. Binigyan kami ni Ma’am ng syllabus (more like a list of readings), at nag-enjoy ako sa pagreresearch at pagbabasa sa Main Lib ng mga readings na yun. And okay rin namang prof si Ma’am, kasi she’s very motherly and considerate. Not at all a terror prof. Hindi rin siya hassle sa mga requirements.

Yun nga lang… eto talaga kalaban ko sa lahat ng classes e: madalas, boring yung discussions ni Ma’am. As in hindi ko na mabilang kung ilang beses kaming na-interrupt kasi may naghihilik sa room. Swear, may mga naghihilik talaga sa class namin. And joke lang pala, mga 3-4 times lang naman nangyari yun. Pero just imagine, huhu. Yung feeling na inaantok ka na nga, tapos may maghihilik pa. Kuya, sarap naman ng tulog mo. Ma’am is kind enough not to scold them too much, but… hay. Kung sana mas fun yung discussions. But I guess mahirap nga naman kasi i-present yung History in a fun way? Ewan. Oh, and her exams get progressively harder, kasi puro chronology na. How hard? 89 ako sa first LE, 49 ako sa second. Oh diba. Ganda. May mga chrono na yung 2nd e. Hahahahaha, saklap.

Requirements: Papers, long exams, attendance. In short, di hassle si Ma’am. Just show up on time everyday (10 minutes lang grace period nya), submit papers, and really internalize the readings and handouts she gives and you’ll get a high grade. 🙂

If I could, would I enlist again? Hehe, sa totoo lang, mej ayoko, pero oo, sya ulit. Kasi may three friends ako na under ng two other profs sa Kas 1, and apparently, sobrang hassle daw ng Kas 1 nila. As in sobra daw. Nakita ko nga, yung friend ko grabe yung reviewer, puro terms talaga, so nagiging memorization lang. Pero sa class ni Ma’am Camagay, hindi na nga hassle, may matututunan ka pa (na maraming kwento haha) kasi hindi lang basta memorization (except dates) ang tinuturo niya. That is… kung di ka makakatulog sa class. 🙁

Subject: Kas 2
Professor: Bernal, Michael
Comments: I wasn’t lying when I said I’ve always loved History. Hahaha. Kas 2 is Asian history, which is very interesting for me, so I took it. Actually, I was expecting to get a prof named Jely Galang (or something like that), so I was very surprised when Sir Bernal introduced himself to us. As for Sir, well, he’s a new graduate, and it’s obvious that he’s very interested in History, which I totally admired about him. How could you not? He always looked so happy whenever he discussed. Hahaha. Parang ang saya-saya niya sa ginagawa nya.

Sa harap kami lagi nakaupo ni Nicole, yung Archi bff ko sa class na to, and tuwang tuwa talaga kami sa reactions ni Sir. For example, kung malungkot yung pangyayari sa kasaysayan na kinukuwento niya, bakas na bakas talaga sa mukha niya yung kalungkutan. Parang damang-dama niya, ganun. Yun nga lang, eto na naman, hindi maiiwasan na may boring parts. Lalo na kasi nakaupo lang naman si Sir na nagdidiscuss. Nakatulog nga ako sa class na to e. First time kong nakatulog sa class, ever, as in sa buong buhay ko. Nanaginip pa ako! At nag-sleep talk, sabi ni Nicole. Huhu, nakakahiya talaga.

Ah, at lahat ng exams ni Sir, majority essays lang. Kailangan malaman yung essays mo, since hindi sya ganun ka-generous sa points. I-straight to the point mo lang, tutal History naman. =)

Requirements: Exams, (bonus) papers, group reports, group quiz bee (incentive). Super fun ng group quiz bee na yan. Enjoy talaga. Nakakausap ko pa rin hanggang ngayon yung groupmates ko. Hahaha.

If I could, would I enlist again? Kas 2 under Sir Bernal, yup. Pero siguro, yung earlier time, like, 11:30, if meron. Nakakaantok yung 2:30-4PM e.

As you can see, tapos na ako sa SSP classes. =) Pero gusto ko pa mag-take ng iba in the future, like Philo 11 and Soc Sci 3 haha! Kahit di na ma-credit, basta payagan ako ng adviser. To be honest, I think UPD is giving us an awesome opportunity to learn more about social sciences and philosophy. Why not grab the opportunity, right? 🙂