REGIONAL MEMORANDUM

No. _113_, s. 2014

REGIONAL SCHOOLS PRESS CONFERENCE

(Elementary & Secondary)
To

Schools Division Superintendents

Education Program Supervisors/Coordinators (Campus Journalism)

1.

Pursuant to Republic Act No. 7079, otherwise known as the Campus Journalism Act of 1991, this
Office announces the conduct of the Regional Schools Press Conference (Elementary & Secondary) at
Daet Elementary School and Moreno Integrated School, Camarines Norte Division on January 12-15,
2014.

2.

With the theme, Empowering Resilient Communities Through Campus Journalism, the
Conference aims to:
a. demonstrate understanding of the importance of journalism by expressing it through different
journalistic endeavors and approaches;
b. sustain advocacy on social consciousness;
c. provide a venue for an enriching learning experience for students interested in pursuing
journalism as a career;
d. promote responsible journalism and fair and ethical use of social media, and
e. enhance journalistic competence through healthy and friendly competitions.

3.
a.

b.

c.
d.

The Conference activities shall include the following:

Individual contests (English and Filipino)
- Editorial Writing
- News Writing
- Feature Writing
- Sports Writing
- Editorial Writing
- Photo Journalism
- Copyreading and Headline Writing
- Science and Health Writing
Group contests (English and Filipino)
- Scriptwriting and broadcasting contests
- Collaborative publishing contests
- School paper contests
Search for outstanding school paper advisers and campus journalists
Concurrent Sessions

4.

The guidelines for the Individual and Group Contests, Program of Activities and Working
Committees are contained in the attached enclosures.

5.

Participants to this Conference are the TOP THREE WINNERS in the individual contests and the
BEST TEAM in radio broadcasting and collaborative publishing contests in the division level, both in
English and Filipino categories. Student writers should be accompanied by their school paper
advisers, and supervised by the division campus journalism coordinators. All participants are advised
to bring their own beddings that include mats/foams, pillows and blankets.

6.

Five winners for the individual contests, and top three for radio broadcasting and collaborative
publishing, both in English and Filipino categories, shall be declared; but only the top three (for

individual contests) and the best team (for radio broadcasting and collaborative publishing) will
represent the Region in the National Schools Press Conference at Taguig City and Pateros, National
Capital Region (NCR)on April 6-10, 2014.
7.

8.

Likewise, the top three winners in the Search for Outstanding School Paper Advisers and
Campus Journalists will be announced, together with the top ten winners in the school paper
contests, both English and Filipino categories.
All divisions should strictly follow the No School Paper, No Student Contestant policy.

9.

Schools which have collected journalism or subscription fees from their students should submit
school paper entries (hard copy) and not e-document entries in PDF files. Schools that did not collect
journalism or subscription fee from the students are the only institutions allowed to submit their
campus publication in e-document format (pdf). Schools that will submit entries in this format
should include a certification from the parents association, duly noted by school principal, that no
publication fee was collected from the students. This certification should be included in the
documents submitted to the Region before the regional judging of the school papers.

10.

The entries to the School Paper Contest in print (15 copies, for schools with journalism fees) or
electronic/portable document format (PDF, placed in a compact disc, with Certification), and
pertinent papers for the Search for Outstanding School Paper Advisers and Campus Journalists must
be submitted to the Curriculum and Learning Management Division (CLMD) (Attention: Nora J.
Laguda, Education Program Supervisor) on or before January 5, 2015, 5:00 in the afternoon. No
extension of due date/time will be allowed.

11.

A registration fee of One Thousand Five Hundred Pesos (Php 1,500.00) shall be charged each
participant, which shall cover the cost of meals and snacks, honorarium for speakers and facilitators,
accommodation, supplies and materials and other incidental expenses. All expenses relative to
participation in this Conference shall be charged to school MOOE/local funds/SEF or the school
campus journalism funds, subject to the usual accounting and auditing rules and procedures.
Participants from the private schools shall make their own arrangements to source out funds to
cover the costs relative to their participation in the aforementioned activity.

12.

A pre-registration (payment of registration fees) of all division participants will be made

through the Division Coordinators on or before January 5, 2015 (see attached registration form).
Registration fee can be paid in cash, or check payable to DepEd Division of Camarines Norte.
PAYMENT OF REGISTRATION FEES WILL NOT BE ENTERTAINED/ACCEPTED DURING THE ACTUAL
CONDUCT OF THE RESPC.

13.

The annual membership fee (Php 60.00 for school paper advisers, Php 30.00 for student-writers)
shall be paid directly to the Treasurers of the Bicol Association of Elementary School Paper Advisers
(BAESPA) and BOSPI on January 11, 2015 upon arrival at the host venue.

14.

The delegates are expected to be at the venue before 1:00 in the afternoon of January 11, 2015
(Sunday) and leave in the afternoon of January 14, 2015 (Wednesday). The first meal will be dinner
on January 11, while the last meal will be afternoon snacks on January 14.

15.

The list and number of official delegates (in separate lists for elementary and secondary) from
each division should be submitted to the Curriculum and Learning Management Division (CLMD) at
secondaryrov@yahoo.com or fax at 4820592, Attention: Grace U. Rabelas, Education Program
Supervisor on or before December 10, 2014 (see attached format).

16.

Immediate and wide dissemination of this memorandum is desired.

Encl.: As Stated
Enclosure No. 1 to Regional Memorandum No. _________s. 2014

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE SELECTION OF WINNERS

IN THE DIFFERENT INDIVIDUAL WRITING CONTESTS
The competition in the Individual Writing Contest is designed to showcase the competencies of campus
journalists, demonstrate their holistic journalistic skills and proficiency through media exposure,
immersion and press conferences, and promote free responsible journalism.
Only learners from schools with publications, both in English and Filipino, for the school year and who
won the top three spots in each category in the division level are allowed to compete in the various
individual contests.
The following will be strictly implemented and complied with:
A. General:
1. To facilitate proper identification, the participants are required to wear their school uniform
with their valid school ID especially during the contest proper.
2. Should there be questions and assistance needed, the participants can only raise their
concerns to the assigned proctor. The proctor shall refer them to the Regional Committee
for appropriate response to their queries or concerns.
3. Contestants should not put any identifying mark on the contest entry or answer sheet.
4. The top five winners per medium shall be recognized and the points they will garner will be
included in the computation of the overall scores.
5. Any violation of the stipulated guidelines will be grounds for disqualification of the
participant.
6. The decision of the members of the Board of Judges in all aspects of the contest shall be
deemed final and irrevocable.
B. Specific:
1. Sports Writing:
a. The Contest Proctor shall orient and provide final instructions to the campus
journalists before the contest proper.
b. A pre-game conference shall be conducted for the introduction of the players,
coaches, and tournament officials. Consequently, a post conference shall be held for
further interview and data gathering.
c. Contestants shall be made to watch an actual game where they can gather
appropriate data and/or interview officials and athletes before and after the game.
2. Copy Reading & Headline Writing:
a. The contestants shall use the standard copyreading symbols and follow directions
given in the contest piece.
b. The contestants will also provide two headlines for the article that they have edited
and include the appropriate printers directions.
3. Editorial Cartooning:
a. Only pencils with erasers shall be used.
b. The cartoon must reflect the elements of editorial cartooning.
c. The cartoon should be, at all times, compliant with the professional and ethical
standards of media.
4. Photojournalism
a. Preparation:
1) Participants should be at the contest venue thirty (30) minutes before the
orientation.
2) The photojournalists are allowed to use any Digital Camera (point and shoot
only) with a maximum of 16 megapixels. Contestants who shall be bring any

DSLR and other high-end cameras will not be permitted to join the photo
shoot.
3) The student contestant should bring his own camera cable for uploading of
pictures.
4) Cellular phones, extra digital cameras, extra storage card or any additional
materials/equipment are not allowed in the contest area.
b. Memory Card Loading:
The contestants will load the storage card in front of the
examiners/proctors.
c. Photo Shoot
1) After announcing the contest theme/topic, the first shot (control shot) by all
contestants should be focused on one subject as determined by the
examiner/proctor.
2) Every contestant is given one (1) hour to take pictures, which does not
include the loading and unloading of the storage card in front of the
examiners/proctors.
3) During the actual photo shooting, the advisers, trainers, and parents of the
contestants are NOT allowed in the venue.
4) The contestants are allowed to take ten (10) photos, but only six (6) shots
(including the control shot) will be submitted as official entries.
5) Five (5) best photos and the control shot will be uploaded by the contestant
to the assigned laptop/desktop for judging.
6) Captions per picture should be encoded by the contestant upon uploading
of the photos to the laptop/desktop.

Enclosure No. 2 to Regional Memorandum No. __________s. 2014

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR GROUP CONTESTS
(SCHOOL PAPER and e-DOCUMENT)
A. The group contest is open to elementary schools whose school papers belong to the top/ best in
the division.
B. Only those school papers that have won in at least four sections/category shall be declared as
one of the Best School Papers in the Region.
C. The top five winners in each section per medium (English and Filipino) will be chosen; while the
top ten school papers per medium will also be announced, and will represent the Region in the
School Paper Contest in the national level.
D. The decision of the members of the Board of Judges in all aspects of the contest shall be
deemed final and irrevocable.
E. The School Paper may be submitted in any of the following format:
1. Paper-based (print) or E-document (pdf) Since the school paper and e-document
entries will be evaluated using the same set of criteria, each division is supposed to
submit ten (10) entries per category, which are composed of school paper and edocument regional qualifiers combined. The requirements for the e-document are
the same as those of the paper-based entries except that they will be in the
portable document format (pdf). E-documents must be placed in a compact disc
(cd).
2. Schools that did not collect journalism or subscription fee from the students are
the only institutions allowed to submit their campus publication in e-document
format (pdf). Schools that will submit entries in this format should include a
certification from the parents association, duly noted by school principal, that no
publication fee was collected from the students. This certification should be
included in the documents submitted to the regional office before the regional
judging of the school papers.
F. The different SECTIONS/ CATEGORY to be judged for the group contest are as follows:
1. News Section / Pahinang Balita
2. Editorial Section / Pahinang Editoryal
3. Feature Section / Pahinang Lathalain
4. Sports Section / Pahinang Pampalakasan
5. Science & Technology Section / Pahinang Agham at Teknolohiya
6. Layout and Page Design Category / Kategoryang Pag-aanyo at Disenyo ng Pahina
G. The Technical Specifications are as follows:
1. No. of pages: minimum of 12 and maximum of 20
News Section at least 3
Sports Section at least 2
Feature Section at least 3
Editorial Section at least 2
Science & Technology Section at least 2
2. Process:
Offset
3. Paper stock:
Book paper or C2S 60lbs-70lbs
4. Color:
Front and back cover in full color
Inside pages in black and white
5. Size:
9x 12 (Elementary) and 12x18 (High School)
H. Each section will be judged according to the guidelines/criteria set for the section/category.

Enclosure No. 3 to Regional Memorandum No. ________s. 2014

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE SELECTION OF THE BEST SECTIONS AND LAY-OUT AND PAGE DESIGN
CATEGORY
A. Editorial Section
1. The editorial section should have at least two (2) pages and should include the following:
main editorial, editorial cartoon, columns, letters to the editor, and commentaries. Opinion
polls or surveys may be included, but are not required.
2. The treatment of the issues must demonstrate fair and balanced presentation of both sides
of each issue tackled, clear moral purpose, logical reasoning, and proper
citations/attributions of sources.
3. Topics found in the section should tackle various international, national or local issues that
may directly or indirectly affect the school or the community the school serves.
4. The decision of the members of the Board of Judges shall be deemed final and irrevocable.
B. News Section
1. The news section shall consist of at least three (3) pages.
2. The content and scope of the news stories should include a balanced coverage of
international, national, regional, community and school-based news stories.
3. The content of the section may include straight or spot news, advance/follow up report,
news bits, news feature, news analysis, in-depth news/investigative news and survey news.
C. Feature Section
1. The Features Section should have at least three (3) pages.
2. The feature articles should display unique and creative presentation of topics, logical
organization and progression of ideas, writers facility of the language and proper
citations/attributions of sources.
D. Sports Section
1. The news section shall consist of at least two (2) pages.
2. The content and scope of the news stories should include a balanced coverage/scope of
international, national, regional, community and school-based sports news stories.
3. The content of the section may include straight or spot news, advance/follow-up report;
news bits; news feature/news analysis; in-depth news, survey news, features and
editorial/column concerning or pertaining to sports.
E. Science and Technology Section
1. The Science and Technology Section should have at least two (2) pages and should include
environmental, scientific, technological and innovative stories written in news, feature, or
scientific commentary style. This should also include the economic impact of Science and
Technology on the lives of the Filipinos.
2. The articles should be well-researched and should observe proper citation of sources,
pictures and graphics.
F. Lay-out and Page Design Category
1. This category shall conform to the principles of layout and design.
2. The lay-out and page design category should include any or a combination of the following:
balanced coverage/scope of stories about the community and school-based events,
including those of international, national and regional significance which document or are
related to the school or its members involvement and participation. Proper evaluation or
grading events based on their importance should be evident in the lay-out.
3. The layout and page design should include headlines, body text, cuts/captions, balance,
harmony, and proportionate to length of articles and the entire page.

Enclosure No. 4 to Regional Memorandum No. _______s. 2013

GUIDELINES FOR THE COLLABORATIVE PUBLISHING CONTEST
A. The competition in collaborative publishing is designed to encourage teamwork among campus
journalists and simulate the workplace of an editorial department in a publishing house.
B. Each division shall organize a team of seven-member contestants who shall not be competing in
any of the regional individual writing contest. There will be one team for English and another for
Filipino. Contestants shall wear their uniform with identification cards.
C. All contestants are required to attend the orientation before the actual competition.
D. Once the contest has started, members of each team shall no longer be allowed to go back to
their quarters nor report to their respective advisers.
E. A mini press conference will be held to become the basis for the actual writing of the editorial,
feature and news articles. Either a video of a sports event will be shown or coverage of an actual
sports event shall be attended by the sports writers. Pictures of the mini press conference shall
be taken by the photojournalists and editorial cartoons will be produced while the rest of the
team are doing write-ups, lay-outing and editing.
F. Sports writers and photo journalists must be ready to watch an actual game where they shall
gather appropriate data and/or conduct interview before and after the game. A pre-game
conference shall be conducted for the introduction of the players, coaches, and tournament
officials. Consequently, a post conference shall be held for further interview and data gathering.
G. The team will be given two (2) hours for data gathering and writing and another two (2) hours
for lay-outing and editing.
H. Each team will be required to bring a maximum of (4) laptops installed with Microsoft Publisher
for elementary and Adobe In-Design for secondary, for the lay-out the groups final output. The
laptops will be checked by the Regional Committee for any other official applications and prewritten documents or references therein.
I. The host division will provide three (3) scanners for the editorial cartoon.
J. Mobile phones and other electronic gadgets shall not be allowed except for digital camera and
laptops with disabled internet connection.
K. Each group will be required to convert their output into pdf format, print and submit it to the
contest committee. The collaborative publishing team shall submit both hard and soft copies (in
compact disc) of their entries. They should ensure that no identifying marks about their school
or division can be found on their output.
L. The output of the contest is an A4-size four-page publication. The output will be uploaded to
the designated computer by the Regional Committee for judging.
M. The top three teams shall be recognized and the points they will garner will be included in the
determination of the overall scores.
N.
The decision of the members of the Board of Judges shall be deemed final and irrevocable.

Enclosure No. 5 to Regional Memorandum No. ______2013

GUIDELINES FOR RADIO BROADCASTING & SCRIPT WRITING CONTESTS
(FILIPINO AND ENGLISH)
A. General Guidelines
1. Each division shall have two separate teams composed of seven (7) members for the
English and Filipino categories. The members should not be participants in any
individual contest.
2. No team member is allowed to wear anything that may identify his school or division.
3. Individual awards include best anchor and best news presenter, while group awards
include best in technical application, best infomercial and best script.
4. In getting the overall results for best radio production, accumulated points from the
individual and group awards shall be considered.
5. The decision of the members of the Board of Judges in all aspects of the contest shall be
deemed final and irrevocable.
6. Any breach or violation of the stipulated guidelines shall be valid grounds for
disqualification.
B. Scriptwriting
1. The students will be given 1 1/2 hours to prepare a script for a 5-minute radio
broadcast, that includes an infomercial, which may depict health, environment, politics
and social issues, and four (4) news articles, which may be based on press releases, raw
data, or any other option given by the Regional Committee. The infomercial shall have a
maximum length of (1) minute and shall use the language that the group is competing
in. Another 30 minutes will be allotted for the printing of the output.
2. Each team may use up to three laptops and an inkjet printer in preparing and printing of
the script. The team should ensure that the laptops they will use for the contest should
not contain any document that they may use as reference or model during the conduct
of the contest. All laptops should be submitted to the contest committee for inspection.
Each team is required to bring its own extension wires and other equipment, such as CD
player for rehearsal.
3. Once the script writing has commenced, the contestants will no longer be allowed to
leave the contest rooms. For personal necessities, a member of the contest committee
shall accompany them to the rest rooms.
4. The script should not bear any information that may identify the school or division, but
it should include the names of the members of the team with their job
assignment/contribution (i.e. anchor, news presenter, etc.)
5. Scripts should be :
encoded using Arial font size 12
with directorial instructions in capital letters
double-spaced with normal margin
printed in a letter-sized bond paper (8.5 X 11)
6. Each team should submit four (4) copies of the script. Three (3) will be submitted to the
judges and one (1) for the chairperson. The team may print extra copies for their own
use.
C. Broadcast Simulation
1. A broadcast room for the presentation shall be identified in the testing center or contest
venue. Only the contestants, judges and the members of the contest committee shall be
allowed inside. The student broadcasters shall be concealed from the judges all
throughout their presentation.
2. The organizers/host division shall commission an independent sound system provider to
ensure quality audio output. The technical operator shall only set the sound system
before the simulation. A jack/auxiliary cord will be provided for the CD player, laptops
and other sources of sound effects, except mobile phones.
3. Except for the volume meter, contestants/technical director shall not be allowed to
change, adjust and manipulate the main control board during their presentation.
4. Mobile phones and reference books shall not be allowed in the contest area.

5. In case of power failure, the affected team shall be allowed to perform again.
6. The order of presentation will be identified through drawing of lots by the directors
before the script writing.
7. Each team shall be given eight (8) minutes: two (2) minutes of which for preparation,
five (5) minutes for the actual broadcast and one (1) minute for exit. Provided running
time shall be applied.
8. The organizers shall provide a wall clock or a timer, which will serve as the official time
that can be seen by the contestants and the judges. There will be an official time keeper.
9. A yellow flaglet shall be raised to signal the team that they have one (1) minute left for
preparation. The green flaglet shall then be raised to signal the team to start. The yellow
flaglet shall be raised again to warn the team that they only have one (1) minute
remaining and followed by the red flaglet to indicate that their time is up.
10. The entire production schedule shall be governed by the zero (0) or perfect score for the
time scoring requirement.
11. The contestants shall leave the broadcast room right after their presentation.

Enclosure No. 6 to Regional Memorandum No. ________s. 2014

NOTE: due on or before December 10, 2014
OFFICIAL DELEGATES TO THE REGIONAL SCHOOLS PRESS CONFERENCE
Division: _________________________

DELEGATES

StudentWriters

Advisers

TOTAL

Individual Contests
Ranks 1-4 in 8 categories, 2 mediums
Group Contests
Rank 1 in Radio Broadcasting and Collaborative Publishing, 2
mediums
Oustanding School Paper Adviser/Campus Journalist
Division Coordinators for Campus Journalism
Division Delegates TOTAL
LIST OF STUDENT CONTESTANTS AND DIVISION SCHOOL PAPER ENTRIES
A. The List of Ten Division Entries for School Publication per Category
Division: _________________
Category: _________________
Name of School Publication
Publication Adviser
Principals Name
1.
2.
3.
10.
B. List of Contestants for the Individual Contests
Category: _____________________
Complete Name of
School
student

Name of School
Publication

Publication Adviser

1
2
3
C. List of Script Writing and Radio Broadcasting Contestants
Complete Name of
Role/ Assigned
School
student
Task

Team Coach

1
2
3
7
D. List of Collaborative Publishing Contestants
Complete Name of
Role/
student
Assigned Task

School

Team Coach

1
2
3
7
___________________________
Head, Division Delegation Team
Signature over Printed Name

Enclosure No. 7 to Regional Memorandum No. ________s. 2013

NOTE: Due on January 5, 2015 at Camarines Norte Division

REGIONAL SCHOOLS PRESS CONFERENCE

Pre-Registration Form

Division: ________________________________
Name of Delegate

Category (SPA or CJ)

School

__________________________
Head, Division Delegation Team
Signature over Printed Name

WORKING COMMITTEES

Executive Committee
Ramon Fiel G. Abcede
Gilbert T. SadsadHaydee S. Bolivar
Grace U. Rabelas
Nora J. Laguda
Arnulfo Balane

- Regional Director
Assistant Regional Director
OIC Chief, CLMD
- EPS, English
- EPS, Filipino
-SDS, Camarines Norte

Contest Committee
EPSs of CLMD
BOSPI Inc.
BAESPA Inc.

Registration Committee: Camarines Norte Division and BOSPI/BAESPA Officers

Ways and Means

: Camarines Norte Division

Holy Mass, Program and Accommodation: Camarines Norte Division

Awards Committee

: Grace Rabelas, Nora Laguda, Marilou Tubongbanua, Minerva Gayte,

Angelica Moral

IT

: Rodel H. Lim