Seeking to empower future graduates with the values of “Pause, Ask, Choose,” Wesleyan University-Philippines (WUP) launched its seven-month Critical Thinking Convocation with the theme “Critical Thinking in an Age of Noise” on September 12, 2025, at the University Ecumenical Chapel.Gathering graduating students from the Colleges of Education, Arts and Sciences, and Criminal Justice Education, the first batch of the series of convocation began with a prayer led by Rev. Dr. Francis V. Fajardo, University Chaplain, and was followed by an insightful opening remark from Dr. Lucille Grace C. Hilario, Dean of the College of Education, who emphasized that critical thinking should not remain only in the mind, but must be lived out through the heart and the work of one’s hands.“Walang critical thinking kapag nandito lang sa utak. You should go down your heart and you should be seen by the work of your hands,” she said.
Subsequently, Dr. Gladys P. Mangiduyos, Critical Thinking Scholar at the Foundation of Critical Thinking, delivered the keynote presentation, Critical Thinking in an Age of Noise, where she urged students to practice “thinking about our thinking” by pausing, asking, and choosing before responding to information.

“Whenever we view something on Facebook, on TV, or read it in the newspaper, we need to pause, then ask, and then choose,” she stated.

She also highlighted the paradox of having access to abundant information while remaining vulnerable to misinformation and disinformation, stressing that questioning empowers people and sustains genuine critical reflection.

“So, how can we practice critical thinking if we are not asking questions? Questioning will empower the people,” she said.

Following the session, students took part in a solidarity walk, carrying a white hand-stamped cloth as they moved from the chapel to the high school building and pocket garden to participate in the Pahayag ng Pagtuligsa sa Malawakang Katiwalian sa mga Flood Control Projects.

The statement, issued by the Board of Church and Society – Philippines Central Conference, The United Methodist Church, condemned systemic corruption, drawing inspiration from the biblical call for justice and righteousness.

The declaration, signed and written by Pastor Thaad Kolin Samson, Chairperson, PCC BCS, Rev. Glofie G. Baluntong, Executive Director, PCC BCS, and Bishop Israel M. Painit (PCC BCS), proclaimed:

“Kung meron mang pagbaha na mariing niloob ng Diyos, ito ay ang pagbaha ng katarungan at katuwiran… Ayaw ng Diyos ng katiwalian at kinasusuklaman ng Diyos ang korapsyon, kaya’t nararapat na tayo’y magkaisang tumindig, kumilos at tutulan ang mga ito!” written in the opening of the statement.

University President Dr. Irineo G. Alvaro, Jr., expressed solidarity with the statement, urging the academic community to defend justice, equality, and human dignity.

He also presented a song he composed, portraying the struggles of the everyday Filipino worker whose hard work is exploited and corrupted by the powerful.
“Isang komposisyon dito sa Wesleyan, na tungkol sa—related dito sa nabasa, at related din sa masusing pagsusuri sa mga bagay-bagay, at pagtatanggol sa karapatan at kapakanan ng bawat nilalang na may karapatan na mamuhay ng matiwasay; may karapatang mamuhay ng pantaypantay.” he said.
“Sa ngalan ng katwiran, sa ngalan ng hustisya. Salamat” Dr. Alvaro concluded after the song played.

The event marked both the intellectual beginning of WUP’s seven-month convocation series and a moral call to action, blending scholarship with prophetic witness for truth, justice, and integrity. The complete text of the statement is available at the following link: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1204772158345784&set=a.460417786114562

by Ayumi San Cai Valerio
Photos courtesy of John Carlo Dauz