Former NHCP chair Maria Serena DioknoKnowledge Channel Foundation Inc. (KCFI) recently conducted a two-part workshop that aims to provide Araling Panlipunan teachers with knowledge and skills that are useful in teaching a vital topic in Philippine history.

“Martial Law for the Millennials” advocates better understanding of the subject among Filipino youth. Seeing that the lack of knowledge could have stemmed from how the topic was taught in the basic education curriculum, KCFI developed a way to address it.

The initial run on September 21 at the Lopez Museum was attended by almost 80 teachers from different school divisions.

Using a clip from the Knowledge Channel-produced “Kasaysayan TV,” then National Historical Commission of the Philippines chair Maria Serena Diokno explained the common misconceptions that the young grew up believing in. Diokno’s father, former Sen. Jose Diokno, was detained with former Sen. Ninoy Aquino and newspaper publisher Chino Roces during martial law.

The second workshop on October 27, with more than a hundred teachers and Department of Education (DepEd) division representatives in attendance, featured director Jose Javier Reyes, who is also a senior professional lecturer at De La Salle University.

KCFI president Rina Lopez- Bautista also shared the Lopez family’s struggles during martial law. When the government seized ABS-CBN, among their many other businesses, the broadcasting network was shut down while its chairman, Eugenio Lopez Jr., was imprisoned.

Doris Nuval, KCFI head for Access and a freedom fighter during martial law, presented a documentary produced by Film Australia entitled “Fearless: Stories of Asian Women,” a narrative of her life as the longest female prisoner of the era. The film is now being used as a learning resource in some Asian schools.

Former secretaries Br. Armin Luistro and Dinky Soliman also imparted their experiences and thoughts on the subject.

The talks were followed by a workshop with former DepEd OIC-Sec. Dr. Fe Hidalgo. (Story/Photo by:N. de Sagun)