For the first time, four internal students from St. Paul Seminary Foundation (SPSF) defended their thesis proposals under communication degree, online via Zoom meeting, November 27, 2021.
Jean Carl Nathaniel Supan, Mark Louise Maraan, Francis Sandig, and Kerence Fritz Faderanga who were all fourth-year students presented each pre-recorded video explaining the titles and aims of their proposed studies. After which, the members of the panel made the revisions for them.
Supan’s thesis proposal, “A Content Analysis of Media’s Rhizomatic Framing of Duterte’s State-of-the-Nation Addresses,” was changed to “Framing of News on COVID-19 Response: A Comparative Study on Manila Bulletin and Rappler.”
Maraan had his proposal “Katotong Paolino: Analyzing Pakikipagkapwa in the Narratives of SPS Seminarians in a Non-intact Family Setting” but it was revised to “Analysing the Communication Aspects of Pakikipagkapwa in the Narratives of SPS Seminarians.”
Likewise, Sandig proposed his thesis entitled “Applying James Alberione’s Concept of Communication and Mission in the Publishing Apostolate during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” This was changed to “Applying James Alberione’s Concept of Communication through Social Media During the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic.”
Faderanga’s proposed thesis “The Presentation of Filipina Single Mothers in the Selected Philippine Films: A Comparative Content Analysis” was replaced with “The Representation of Filipina Single Mothers in the Selected Philippine Films: An Analysis using Pierce’s Semiotic Model.”
The members of the panel were Dr. James Piscos, social science professor; Ms. Kathryn Salvan and Ms. Michelle Sto Tomas, communication professors; Mr. Jomar Redubla, research instructor; and Fr. Norman Melchor Peña, dean of studies.
I always believe the center of all this defense is the ideas of our students. The best advice is one that really helps in making their thesis better.
-Rev. Fr. Norman Melchor Peña, dean of studies
Aside from the panel and advisers, present also in the event were the students’ relatives and some SPSF alumni.
Mr. Redubla thanked all the participants in the defense while calling it “for learning of the future communicators and future scholars.”
“Hindi pa po tapos ang kanilang laban. Kailan pa pong i-revise ang kanilang mga papel. (Their battle is not yet over. They still need to revise their papers),” Mr. Redubla added.
Likewise, Fr. Norman, in his closing remarks, expressed gladness regarding the event.
“I am happy. I always believe the center of all this defense is the ideas of our students. The best advice is one that really helps in making their thesis better,” Fr. Norman said.
Thirty participants joined the zoom meeting which was facilitated by the SPSF third-year students. A projection on screen was made available in the SPSF library so that other students in campus may have watched the defense.
This communication thesis defense was held years after the SPSF institutionalized Bachelor of Arts (AB) in Communication as the major course for all internal students or seminarians.