Research arm to play big in SUGPAT Tres
As part of preparations for the development of a resource center, SUGPAT this year will be employing a detailed situational analysis of out-of-school youth (OSY) in Zamboanga City.
The research will soon be an integral document as part of the establishment of SUGPAT’s Resource Center for Adolescent Development, Leadership and Participation which envisions itself to be a resource and training center dedicated to the creation and management of knowledge resources and training programs on adolescent development.
Ateneo Research Center (ARC) Research Associate Gerald James Ebal, the project leader for the research, said that this project has given him a chance to not just create conclusions, but help transform lives.
“This is a continuation to advocate,” Ebal continued, “and a chance to see that values are still important, that the concern of the youth are not just on an academic level and we’re hoping for good things [for our OSY].”
He said that the more work is done for our OSY, the more immersed we are with their situation which would lead to even more engagement beyond the research angle.
Situational analysis research
The research, which is in its initial phase of data gathering, aims to produce a comprehensive consolidated set of data on the OSYs of Zamboanga City, examining the social, economic, and political environments surrounding them.
The project will also explore the joys, predicaments, and the responses taken by OSYs through in-depth research via case studies.
“Employing a case study is easy to analyze, economical, and fits the purpose of producing a highly descriptive research where issues and predisposing factors would eventually emerge from our OSY themselves,” Ebal said.
The research will run for 10 months as one of the four components of this year’s SUGPAT Adolescent Development and Participation Program, a flagship program of the Ateneo Center for Culture and the Arts with support from UNICEF Philippines.
John Mayo Enriquez, Assistant to the President for Social Development, and Jose Francis Llenado, professor of the Psychology Department, will join Ebal as co-authors of this research project.