the eye Singapore American School
www.saseye.com
March 8, 2011
“As long as we don’t get caught” For some, interim presents an opportunity to dare, not in bungee jumps, leaps of knowledge, but in testing the boundaries of tolerance and outwitting sponsors.
Staff editorial and opinions, Page Four
In the Eye Online at www.saseye.com Superintendent Dr. Brent Mutsch announces decision to leave SAS at the end of the 2011-2012 school year.
Vol. 30 No. 4
Interim Semester 2011
All home safe from journeys to four corners of Earth
NO FEAR. Nikki Muller enjoys an adrenalin rush while bungee jumping in New Zealand. Photo by A.J. Hackett Co. Bungee
“New AP” revisions coming College Board says it favors application over memorization in “New AP” program. Teachers, students voice mixed reviews. By Viraj Bindra Starting next school year, College Board’s planned changes to its Advanced Placement curriculum will affect students at SAS and around the world. The 2011-2012 school year will see changes in AP German Language and Culture, AP French Language and Culture and AP World History. The last two are offered at SAS. The changes planned for these courses are relatively minor, but begin to reflect the general theme of the College Board’s “New AP” program – conceptualization and application rather than memorization. In a phone interview, The Eye spoke with Trevor Packer, the Vice President of College Board who pioneered this new initiative. We asked him what motivated the changes. “The trend shows that AP students are doing better in college, which is great,” Packer said. “But colleges have voiced that they would like students to have stronger abilities to practice or apply their knowledge.”
Mean AP Exam Scores 2011:
The Road to Change Packer said that In 2002, the National Research Council released a report criticizing the current state of AP Biology. Working together with the National Science Founda-
info from SAS student profile 2010
4.5 3.5
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2.6
Who’s...Who? Students victimized on anonymous Website
U.S.
SAS
AP United States History
U.S.
SAS
AP Biology
tion, College Board then confirmed criticisms that the curriculum depended too heavily on rote memorization of facts and meglected adherence to practical portions of biology, were legitimate concerns among colleges and high school teachers. After committee meetings, College Board began the difficult process of determining which components of the course to cut. The procedure was similar for many of the courses, and the courses with the most change were AP Biology and AP United States History, both of which are among the most widely-taken Advanced Placement classes and tests. Continued on Page 2
by Tyler Stuart There was more chatter than usual during lunch in The Caf on Wednesday, Jan. 12. The chatter was not verbal, it was cyber. A new website was up, supplying a new source of drama that would fuel high school gossip for over a week. The website listed about 20 couples, some were dating, others who were not. Supposed relationships were categorized in code. Abbreviated column headings specified if ‘couples’ were dating, involved in sexual relations, or if one student was interested in another.
“It was the category with the codes that was a complete and utter invasion of privacy,” Deputy Principal Lauren Mehrbach said. The site included a comment page. An online offer of anonymity encouraged students to post anything on their mind, unfiltered. Comments encouraged further postings and discussion on the site. Many saw it as a source of entertainment rather than a harmful situation. (28 minutes ago) Anonymous said: the creator of this site didnt do anything malicious or wrong, maybe they were incorrect about a few facts but all he did was create another place for the insecure people at our school to b**** about others. the users of this site (the ones who are malicious) are the ones who should be in trouble by admin Continued on Page 3
www.saseye.com • 40 Woodlands St. 41, Singapore 738547 • www.sas.edu.sg/hs • (65) 6360 6005 • MICA (P) 130/04/2010
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theeye
March 8, 2011
THE NEW
AP
College Board 2011
German, French, World History
2012 Spanish, Biology Latin
2013
United States History
2014 To be Announced
AP’s Packer says that SAS scores indicate students will find little to fear in course revisions graphs by Viraj Bindra and Leonel De Velez
New APs cont. from page 1
et cetera. You just have to know 4.4 the overall process, which gives 4.0 3.9 kids the ability to fudge the FRQ portion of the exam.” ------------------------------------- 3 “Though it’s a lot of work to 3.0 2.9 2.9 learn all of the small details and facts, without it you don’t really get to know or understand as much as you need,” concurred senior Alexandria Couch, a current student. “Dr. Melsom comThe New Curriculum: pared it to an onion. Though we Improvement or Step are not that far into the onion U.S. SAS U.S. SAS U.S. SAS Backward? that is biology, if the curriculum AP Physics B AP Calculus AB AP Language But while the intent of the changes is cut down in anyway, we’re of content reasonable. I can’t imagine seems to be to provide teachers with only going to get past the first few recently been pushed back an addi- students not excelling, given the track tional year. layers.” a better opporrecord of teachers at your school,” AP U.S. History teacher James Grace and A lot of how this change tunity to help Packer said after being briefed on Couch both Baker said that the curriculum for the students master SAS’s performance on AP exams thus will turn out depends said that giv- class has to be made more rigorous, material, AP far. en the choice, and has to be remodeled in a way that Bio teacher Dr. Packer claims that the exams will on the teacher. For me, they would reinforces application. He likened the Kim Melsom not see a “dumbing down” effect as a prefer to take exam in its current state to a game of does not necesresult of the changes, and that the rigif the standard of the AP Biology Trivial Pursuit, requiring regurgitasarily embrace or of the courses will be maintained. under the cur- tion of facts. the new curDr. Melsom said that even if other new curriculum falls too rent “Almost anything would be betcurricuriculum. schools see a slight improvement in ter than the system they have in place “I don’t far below my standards, lum. AP Biology scores, SAS’s results Dr. Mel- now,” Baker said. think [the new would be largely unaffected, given its Sophomore Sachith Siriwardane som made it my students will still curriculum] is students’ already strong performances clear that she is glad that College Board is making an improveon the exams. be taught Dr. Melsom’s would not the changes. ment; it’s sim“According to college board, the “I think it’s a welcome change,” sacrifice the ply a change,” AP scores are not expected to imDr. Melsom biology – a collegiate level integrity of Siriwardane said. “This year, there’s prove in AP Biology by having this her curricu- just so much to take in, like dates to said. change, but the teachers will be able biology course. remember, events and names. It’s just lum. Current and to slow down the pace which is tre“A lot so much content and material. The past AP Biology Biology Teacher, Kim Melsom of how this only thing is, I wish [the curriculum mendously fast at this time. I feel the students tend to change should improve scores for the agree. Senior Serena Grace, who took change will turn out depends on the change] came a year earlier.” U.S., and that needs to occur since the class last year and has briefed her- teacher. For me, if the standard of the SAS not likely to change last year 36.6% of the students who self on the changes, disapproves of new curriculum falls too far below much, but US scores may took the AP Biology exam in the U.S. the manner in which College Board my standards, my students will still scored a 1, the lowest score possible. benefit is modifying the course requirements. be taught Dr. Melsom’s biology – a Obviously that doesn’t occur at SAS The most important question is for any of our AP courses.” “It seems they are inappropriately collegiate-level biology course,” Dr. how the changes will affect students trimming down the material,” Grace Melsom said. Students will see the updated AP at SAS. Undoubtedly, they will re- Biology curriculum in the 2012-2013 said. “Instead of taking out the Ecol- Teacher says AP U.S. History duce the quantity of information in- school year, when new AP Spanish ogy unit so more time can be spend changes long overdue dividuals will be required to process. Literature and Culture and AP Latin on difficult material, they are trimTeachers and students at SAS But how will they affect test scores? ming every unit down, and taking out Courses will also be introduced. might be slightly more accepting of “[SAS] teachers seem to be so efimportant key terms and ideas. For a more thorough examination For example, you no longer have the changes to AP United States His- fective teaching the courses in their of the changes in each course, visit to know the words that define the pro- tory, which were originally slated for current state, being able to teach them http://advancesinap.College Board.org/. cess of mitotis: interphase, prophase, the 2012-2013 school year, but have in such a way that makes the amount bindra41049@saseagles.edu.sg “It is a move from simply learning huge amounts of content to being able to apply knowledge either through science practical situations or historical thinking skill,” Packer said. “This frees up time for teachers to really help students apply their knowledge, which required reducing the material for some courses.”
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Rise in Sophomores taking APs SAS sophomores take advantage of freedom to choose more challenging courses, continuing the trend from past years. by Felicity Dunbar, Eye Online College level courses were once only meant for and taken by college students, and even upperclassmen. Now though, increasing numbers of sophomores and and even a couple of freshmen are joining the ranks of the AP students. “The majority of sophomores aren’t ready,” counselor Dale Ford said. “AP courses are designed as university level courses, so sophomores are taking something that is meant for students three years older than the level they’re in.” Sophomores account for 150 of the 1,465 AP seats occupied by SAS high-schoolers. A seat refers to a place taken in an AP class, so a student tak-
ing two AP courses, would occupy two seats. Social studies claim the most sophomores with 89 seats; the rest are spread over languages, arts, statistics, math and a science course. “They need to be motivated,” AP Human Geography teacher Mike Stagg said. “There’s a lot of reading to be done. I think there are some sophomores who are very well suited for these courses. From what I’m hearing, universities are not keen on students taking a ton of AP courses.” Students push themselves to prove that they can get into the prestigious top-ranked schools. Sophomores are
mainly looking at APs to boost their college applications, even if the AP has nothing to do with their imagined degree or field of interest. The GPA increase that AP courses bestow gets more students attention than the actual subject matter. “I would find it difficult to understand why a student would take an AP that wasn’t relevant to something that would help them during or after high school,” science teacher Dennis Steigerwald said. dunbar30802@saseagles.edu.sg
theeye
March 8, 2011
Formspring ghost returns to haunt student body
What Does the SAS Student Body Think of WhosWho?
Who’s Who cont. from page 1 While some defended the creation more potentially libelous information of the site, describing it as harmless, was posted, the site’s creator decided Mehrbach said the site’s categoriza- to shut it down. tion of the couples was wrong. You guys are so sad. Must you “The comments were bad, clearly, pervert everything? I’m shutting this but I think that the chart itself was down for a little bit, so all of you can equally as bad if not worse,” she said. think about what you’ve done, and so Not all I can put the comsome conments on trol in it. the page Sincerely, were inCreator s e n s i t i v e . - Counselor Dawn Betts (comment A c R e a s o n - posted on whos.who.beep.com) cusations able voices about who joined the created the discussion as well. Who’s Who site surfaced in the days (41 minutes ago) Anonymous said: following the websites demise. That haha you have no idea how close they conversation moved to Formspring. are to finding you, hope it was all “It turned into a full-fledged arguworth it when you get expelled! ment,” sophomore Sachith SiriwarThe administration was aware of dane said. “Anonymous people were the traffic the site was generating and arguing with anonymous people.” decided to block access to it through This incident mirrors the Formthe SAS servers. spring incident last year. While Who’s “We had to throw some water on Who fizzled out quicker than that one, the fire,” it was Mehrevidence b a c h that cysaid. berbulA s l y i n g students hasn’t conting o n e ued to away. access “ I t ’s Anonymous the site an issue (posted on whos.who.beep.com) outside that perof school, inserting more false and vades society now,” Mehrbach said. malicious comments, SAS faculty be- “It’s the bathroom wall of your gengan to intervene. Both Mehrbach and eration. When I was a kid you had to counselor Dawn Betts posted com- go to the bathroom to see what was ments on the website. written. It didn’t come into your livBetts remembered posting on the ing room, it didn’t come into your website, “I have kids crying in my of- bedroom, and you could clean it off.” fice, please stop.” stuart42156@saseagles.edu.sg When the drama escalated and
“I think people need to get a life.” -Liz Conklin, senior
kids crying in “Imyhave office, please stop.“
“I just think that it shows how immature and insecure people are.” -Pamela Chan, freshman “I think that it was something stupid and that it was blown out of proportion.” - Ed Thome, junior
you have no idea how “haha close they are to finding
“The Who’s Who issue was only made serious by the inappropriate comments that were made by viewers.” - Isabella Speciale, sophomore
you, hope it was all worth it when you get expelled!
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Doomsayers predict end of world in nine months If Mayan calendar interpretations correct, there will be no winter break next year By Emily Nelson In nine months 2012 arrives, and some people are growing more nervous by the day. They believe that the world will end in December of next year. According to the ancient Mayan calendar, 2012 is the end date of the Mayan Long Count calendar. New Age writers and doomsayers say the calendar predicts the end of 2012, actually, December 21, will be the end of the world as we know it. For decades, popular writers and New Age thinkers over-analyzed this event setting in motion a string of predictions for 2012. Many believe that 2012 will mark the date for the Earth’s collision with
another planet known as Nibiru and thus ending the world. “The initial impact was supposed to happen in May of 2003, but when that didn’t happen, the date was merely pushed to December, 2012, because of the ancient Mayan myth,” a NASA scientist said. NASA scientists say that the Nibiru legend and similar ones are all creations of the Internet and “have no substantial facts to support it.” In 2009, action film director Roland Emmerich popularized the myths even more in a catastrophe drama titled “2012” which dealt with the most popular apocalyptic predictions. This film depicts a family struggling to find their way to safety while surrounded by massive tidal waves, devastating earthquakes and more.
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Posed Photo by Leonel De Velez
Before the natural events and destruc- the result of a series of volcanic eruption occur in this film, the viewer is tions from Mount Merapi in Java. In shown a worsening climate through October, residents noticed ash comthe years. In 2009, the earth’s core ing from the top of the mountain and begins heating up, and in 2010, earth- warnings for an eruption followed. quakes occur more frequently. Final- Off-and-on eruptions continued for ly, in 2012, the large events occur and a month causing several hundred deaths and nasty weather. the end officially begins. Calendar seudoscience says that December 21, 2012, is the day the Earth is going to end. Three days into Christmas vacation, and all life on Earth ends. There is a bright side for freshmen and sophomores, who won’t have to take finals or labor through college apps. While it is just a myth, last year, sevMEGA-MYTH. Believers of the 2012 prophecies say that on eral natural disasters that day a planet called Nibiru will crash into Earth. They say occurred one after an- that the Mayan calendar ends in 2012 and that the sun might other seemingly sig- launch a calamitous electromagnectic force at the Earth. nalling a calamitous event for some. In Christmas of this year, usuIn October of 2010, many cities ally drought-stricken Queensland, in Java, and even here in Singapore, Australia, was struck by a series of were experiencing wet, hazy weather. floods, as unprecedented rains sent This was not because of the usual water over the river banks. The wa“slash and burn” technique that Sin- ter overtook an area about the size gaporeans commonly experience, but of Germany and France together and
caused near irreversible damage. These floods have continued on into the new year, and according to the Australian “Herald Sun” costs for the damage done reaches just above 30 billion dollars. Adding more fuel to the myths, winter brought sudden death. Literally. On New Year’s Eve 5,000 starlings fell dead from the sky, littering the streets of Beebe, Arkansas. Scientists said the birds all experienced identical physical trauma but could not identify the cause. The earthquake that devestated Christchurch, New Zealand, killing as many as 300 people will certainly be sited as additional evidence. AP Physics teacher, Fred Crawford characterized the predictions as “myth.” While Crawford does not believe the end is coming, he does not deny that there is science supporting the myth “surrounding the gravitational forces” and alignment of the Earth and other planets. “It is a well known fact that the alignment will occur,” Crawford said. “It is also a fact that this alignment has occurred literally millions of times before and nothing has happened.” nelson14475@saseagles.edu.sg
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theeye
March 8, 2011
An Eye Staff Editorial
“As long as we don’t get caught...” On the Monday back from Interim, students swap stories of nasty falls, angry animals, and off-kilter tour guides. But the stories that pervade the most, the ones that pass from mouth-to-mouth as the day winds on tell of drinking, of smoking and of late night debauchery. By third period, we all know. Students can rattle off five trips that got caught, and ten that should have. We know, before the administrators, which trips behaved and which partied. And in many cases, we students will be the only ones to find out. No teachers will hear word, no administrators will be informed, no counselors will be told, no parents put in the loop. It’s as if we sign a collective pact to cover each other’s backs instead of a contract to not misbehave. Students sign a behavior contract before leaving on Interim, but, the truth is, many break it. And many figure they will break it before they step onto the plane that will take them around the world. Most dutifully sign their name to paper without a second thought. Of the 415 respondents to an Eye survey; 15 people, or four percent, admitted to drinking over interim. Another 14 people confirmed they had smoked cigarettes or shisha. Apparently, six people smoked Spice and 33 people conceded they had sneaked out. And those are only the ones who fessed up. Why is the breathtaking view from the mountain peak not enough? Why doesn’t the historic ruin suffice? Why do kids seek out the thrill of a sip, drag or fling? The thrill we take from interim should not be alcohol, nicotine or narcotic induced. But too often it is. And it is not all our fault. Sure, some of the blame should fall on those of us who drink. After all, we make the choice to break contract. We could resist. If peer pressure builds we could use that elementary school advice and just walk away. We could be stronger and we should. But we are not alone in our deeds. It is not only the youngest students who get up to trouble. At times, our follies are inspired by the follies of our elders: our sponsors. Reports of sponsors drinking and smoking in front of kids or choosing to ignore the actions of students who did so, surfaced this year. Often students were unsupervised for long periods of time. With too many unfilled hours, students found alternative activities. When parents put their child on a plane with 19 other students and two sponsors they have to assume that the sponsors will act professionally. Just as they have to hope their kids with act maturely. This was a year of irresponsibility on both sides. But the weight of punishment seems to fall unevenly on students. In the 2010 interim handbook a list of applicable punishments preface the “Interim Semester Behavior Expectations” which pertains to students. But after the “Faculty Responsibilities”: zero. Nothing. The 2010 handbook reminds teachers to “Refrain from the use of alcohol while participating in an Interim Semester course.” The online student handbook for 2011 does not list any faculty responsibilities. And neither handbook deals with what steps the administrators will take if a teacher participates in objectionable behavior. Dr. Stuart said that there are consequences for teachers who cross the line but that they are confidential personnel issues. He admits that things happen on Interim that will never come to his attention because just as students protect each other, teachers protect their colleagues. Interim behavior guidelines for teachers should be listed in the handbook with a simple statement acknowledging the serious consequences for infractions, especially those that jeopardize the safety of students. It would assure parents that teachers are being held to the same high standards as their children. Teachers, undoubtedly, should be held as accountable as students for their behavior. In reality, they should be held more accountable since they are adults being paid to “conduct the course in a professionally ethical manner.” (2010 handbook, page 3) Reports of misbehavior may be forgivable in a naive student. They are inexcusable for a teacher.
Campus ‘toons
by Erica Huston
Hello, Tumblr. It’s me and my bad habits A satiric look at one addict’s struggle with interim temptations I’m an alcoholic. It’s embarrassing really - the sneaking out, the late night drinking in hotel rooms, the lying, and worst of all, Jennie Park the Asian glow. It’s not even like I can hide it. If I tried to convince you I hadn’t been drinking, you’d roll your eyes as if Pam Anderson had just told you that her well-endowed chest was au naturale. It just wouldn’t happen. When I think about my predicament, I can’t help but feel dejected. I resort to taking shameless selfies of myself in my hotel room with my other underage, alcoholic comrades. It’s my only source of comfort. My favorite looks include peace signs and various poses of me holding bottles of alcoholic beverages suggestively. The kissy-face is a classic. Oh, how it hurts me to see those photos posted on Facebook. The comments! The “likes!” I hate the at-
tention. I never asked for this, I just wanted to relieve my insatiable thirst for alcohol. I don’t drink to be cool; I do it strictly out of necessity. I say to heck with undulating pastures of green and crystal waters and rare fauna and famous architecture! The Eiffel Tower is dumb anyway. A week of looking at a giant phallus in the “City of Love?” Like I said, the alcohol was necessary. Then there’s the smoking. I tried to kick the habit. The nicotine patches, pills, even the gum. I tried it all. I was holed up in my hotel room during free time, shaking, fumbling around for my pack of Camels. I did everything necessary to get rid of the smell. I combined every scent to convince my roommate I hadn’t been smoking. I opened windows, borrowed AXE from the boys, and sprayed the furniture and drapes. I blasted the air-conditioning. But shucks, I forgot to hide my pack of Camels. Busted. I sure hope she doesn’t expose me, because that’s not what I want. I don’t want people to know what a mess I am. Because I don’t smoke pseudo-inconspicuously in hopes that someone will start gossip
about me. I just want to be left alone. I want to fade into the background. No one understands. I’m just thankful for my Internet “anonymity.” Thank you Tumblr for listening to me. I don’t want the rumors or drama and most of all I don’t want the spotlight shining on me. But somehow, someone always finds out. How did they know that XxMisunderstoodgirl123xX.tumblr. com was me?! Now everyone knows what I did. They know about my drinking, my smoking, and my spicing. Oh yes, I got real spicy over interim. Rolling and rolling and rolling of the lovely faux-weed, getting higher than Kanye in Dark Fantasy (so high) till the off-putting landscape of exotic foreign countries and faces of dirty, malnourished, children melded into a soft blur. I must be the unluckiest girl in the world. Travelling to foreign lands, meeting people who don’t even speak English (ew). It’s hard. That’s why I do it-- because I have no other choice. I drink because I have to, smoke because I need to. park32567@saseagles.edu.sg
Trolls find pleasure in online anonymity Physical bullying declines, but bullies find new home in cyberspace T h e traditional image of a bully is that of a large, testosterone driven human-gorilla with an imminent alcohol abuse problem and Phil Anderson 1.0 GPA. A bully’s main source of entertainment is gathering the other knuckle-draggers to steal lunch money from small kids. Thankfully, because of selective breeding, there aren’t many of these bully-types left in the school population. With the top predator now an endangered species, another type of bully has climbed to the top of food chain: the troll. A troll is defined by Urban Dictionary as a person who deliberately writes inflammatory posts in the Internet to cause maximum disruption and argument. It seems that with the near disappearance of the missing link campus, cyber bullies seek to fill the void.
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Last year SAS went through a physical violence morally acceptable Formspring craze phase, where anon- or right, but those bullies stand by ymous, often libelous profiles were their actions and so they have somecreated entirely for purposes of gos- thing that trolls dont’: courage. sip. So many students were harassed Bullies have the courage to throw by these profiles that the administra- a punch and take the hit for it. They tion got involved. accept the consequences, while trolls But what inspires people to go out hide from the public eye and attack of their way to abuse, insult and as- from under the veil of anonymity. sault their peers? What satisfaction is Why else would anyone remain there in hurting other people? When anonymous about their opinions? It bullies, cyber or would be physical, cause counter. . . what inspires people to emotional and productive physical pain, go out of their way to abuse, to write do they feel insult and assault their peers? a n o n y nothing? mously on What satisfaction is there in a website With the anhurting other people? onymity of the if you want Internet, anyone people to can be a bully, listen to and anyone can be a victim, which in- your opinion. An opinion should not creases the chances of bullying. be taken seriously if it is not connectWe’ve all seen the movies where ed to an identity, since the weight of the knuckle-dragging buffoon terror- your opinion correlates to what peoizes a school by shoving kids into ple think of you. lockers or beating them up in the hallWho would you trust over comways. But those buffoons should both puter advice? Bill Gates or “Anon”? be reprimanded and commended. So, to all the trolls and Anons out Even though physical violence is there, take your mother’s advice: if deplorable, bullies are not afraid of you don’t have anything nice to say, backing their beliefs, in this case that don’t say anything at all. violence is necessary. In no way is anderson33674@saseagles.edu.sg Editor-in-chief: Sophia Cheng, Managing editors-in-chief: Phil Anderson, Gretchen Connick, Anbita Siregar, Op/ed editor: Becky Kreutter, A&E editor: Olivia Ngyuen, Sports editor: Hannah L’Heureux, Layout editor: Jennie Park, Photo editor: Leonel De Velez, Design chief: Leonel De Velez, Reporters: Phil Anderson, Viraj Bindra, Sophia Cheng, Gretchen Connick, Leonel De Velez, Erica Huston, Rachel Jackson, Becky Kreutter, Hannah L’Heureux, Emily Nelson, Olivia Ngyuen, Ash Oberoi, Jennie Park, Anbita Siregar, Tyler Stuart, Megan Talon, Michael Too; Adviser: Mark Clemens The Eye is the student newspaper of the Singapore American School. All opinions within these pages are those of their respective writers and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Singapore American School, its board of governors, PTA, faculty or administration. Comments and suggestions can be sent to the Eye via the email address, eye@sas.edu.sg. At the author’s request, names can be withheld form publication. Letters will be printed as completely as possible. The Eye reserves the right to edit letters for reasons of taste and space.
theeye
March 8, 2011
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BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING. Actual images from security cameras. There are 73 surveillance cameras in high school alone, not including the performing centers and theaters. Since 2010, 55 lost items have been reported - mostly handphones and wallets. However, 109 items have been returned to the office - including 26 handphones, 42 wallets and 16 laptops.
Pattern of irresponsibility among students blamed for thefts By Michael Too and Savannah Wingo Following the theft of $250 – $300 in cash from the theater office before the Winter Break, Theater Engineer and IPAU sponsor Paul Koebnick closed the Jam Room and cancelled a Jan. 21 break gig. Koebnick said that he first noticed the IPAU cashbox missing Dec. 9 from a desk drawer where he kept it. Most IPAU funds are locked up in the the High School Office, but the petty cash taken was the members’ equipment fees used to fund the upkeep of the Jam Room. The lock on the desk drawer was broken at the time of theft. Koebnick’s wallet and camera were in the same drawer. They were untouched. Koebnick said he suspects the thief was an IPAU or Technical Theater member, the only people familiar with the theater office. “We’ve got a room to be responsible for with thousands of dollars worth of equipment, so if they want to use that room they have to be re-
sponsible,” Koebnick said, “We’re all one community, you’ve got to be responsible.” While the student population is largely an affluent one, one of the most affluent in Singapore, theft of cash and electronics on campus continues to be a problem. The most recent victim was senior Liz Conklin whose BlackBerry was stolen from the girls locker room sometime between 4:15 and 6:00 pm on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day, during track tryouts. Most stolen items are taken in locker rooms. A common misconception is that thefts occurring inside the locker rooms involves breaking locks, but according to physical education department chair Charles Shriner, “thefts occur when students do not lock their belongings inside their locker.” Students who use the locker rooms are warned multiple times of the danger of leaving items unsecured. At the beginning of all PE courses, teachers inform their students about locker
room safety. Signs located in all locker rooms remind students to lock up any valuables. “Some students either lose their locks or forget to properly lock their lockers creating opportunities for thieves to ransack their stuff,” Shriner said. There have been five recent thefts in the Primary School, an area few would expect to see thefts occuring. In the first theft on Dec. 16, a primary teacher’s personal camera was taken. “They set [the camera] down in the room, left to talk to another teacher, came back, and the camera was missing,” primary school Deputy Principal, Ken Schunk said. After Winter break, three laptops were discovered missing on Jan. 10. They could have been taken anytime between the start of Winter break and the time of discovery of the missing laptops. One more laptop went missing due to a theft that could have occurred any time between the 28th and 30th of Janurary. “The teacher went out on Friday,
came back on Monday, and the laptop was missing,” Schunk said. Schunk said the costs to the school is considerable. “The four computers add up to $8,000. With the camera, it all adds up to $10,000.” Though there are no suspects so far, Schunk said that firm action has taken place. The police have been notified, CCTV footage has been analyzed, and security, cleaning, and contract workers have all been questioned. Neihart suggests that thieves are not the main problem at school, but students’ irresponsibility is. “We don’t have issues so much with the type of theft that occurs when someone deliberately takes something out of another student’s bag or purse. Our theft issues occur when someone leaves their phone or wallet on the table and it gets picked up and not turned into the office.” “We caught two boys doing this [in the past], and they are longer with us at SAS,” Neihart said.
For a majority of students, their only source of spending money is the allowance they get from their parents, an allowance that may not be enough for some. And the number one reason for theft, according to Neihart, is to obtain expendable cash without “raising any red flags with their folks.” “Whether it’s five dollars or two hundred dollars, stealing is stealing. It’s not [about] amount so much as it’s about intent,” Neihart said. The consequences for students caught stealing are the same, no matter the item or amount of money stolen. Consequences involve: suspension, restitution, and a pre-expulsion hearing. Whether the thief gets expelled depends on his or her previous discipline record. “It’s the type of character we are looking at. Is [theft] what we want to subject our students to? If their conscience allows them to do that, are we the right place for them?” too15433@saseagles.edu.sg
Graphics by Viraj Bindra
theeye Egyptian Ratscrew. Awesome. Crazy. Hummus. Enlightening 6 weird food. Cold. Breathtaking. Shopping. Going on an adv At interim journeys end, students boast of new skills, ing camping for the first time. Sightseeing. Jaw-dropping. O great adventures along with usual tales of misadventure the bus. Peeing in the wilderness. Love. Bonding. Red bull. Humiliating. Playing with kids. Educationally stimulating. Sq time opportunity. Smelly. Luscious. Insane. Cool. Sleeping in carious bridges that could break at any point. Camping in t lightening. Learning about different cultures. Spectacular. E an adventure. Exhilarating. Meeting new people. Shopping ping. Overcoming fears. Wild animals everywhere. Singing bull. Holiday. Sun. Rain. Snow. Tanning. Hot chocolate. Fun. Squatty potties. Planes. Trains. Automobiles. Once in a lifet tents. Egyptian Ratscrew. Awesome. Crazy. Hummus. Shop lar. Eating weird food. Cold. Breathtaking. Shopping. Spend ing for the first time. Sightseing. Overcoming. Wild fun. eve Love. Bonding. Red bull. Holiday. Sun. Rain. Snow. Tanning. cationally stimulating. Squatty potties. Planes. Trains. Auto Insane. Cool. Sleeping in other people’s homes. Visas. Jetla point. Camping in tents. Egyptian Ratscrew. Awesome. Cra tures. Spectacular. Eating weird food. Cold. Breathtaking. S new people. Shopping. Going camping for the first time. Si everywhere. Singing on the bus. Peeing in the wilderness. L ning. Hot chocolate. Fun. Humiliating. Playing with kids. Ed Automobiles. Once in a lifetime opportunity. Smelly. Luscio Jetlag. Tiring. Cross precarious bridges that coulfood. Cold hilarating. Meeting new people. Shopping. Going camping break at any point. Camping in tents. Egyptian Ratscrew. A tures. Spectacular. Eating weird food. Cold. Breathtaking. S break at any point. Camping in tents. Egyptian Ratscrew. A Breathtaking. Shopping. Going on an adventure. Exhilaratin Overcoming fears. Wild animals everywhere. Singing on the never thought I’d do. Sleeping under the stars. Listening to Eating the same food but not getting sick of it. Moment wh March 8, 2011
FIELD OF DREAMS. Junior Ciaran Ross basks in the Hawaii sun on the Hawaii Island Biogeography interim. Photo by Toby Ringheim
By Hannah L’Heureux and Becky Kreutter This year there were a total of 43 different interim trips available to high school students. Students could pick from trips in Africa, Asia, America, Singapore, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand. Egypt was a popular choice, but that trip was cancelled at the last minute due to political unrest in the country. The students got to choose instead from either Italy, Greece or Vienna-Budapest. Apart from some minor illnesses and injuries everyone came back to Singapore safe and with unforgettable stories to tell.
Trouble in Tanzania
In Tanzaniak 20 students sat around a campfire telling stories. As chatted, their guide pointed to an elephant standing by a tree. Because it was dark, the guide shined a flashlight in its direction. Elephants tend to be very territorial animals, and something as little as as a flashlight can seem threatening to these massive creatures. The elephant started making its way towards the frightened safariers. As it got closer, they could tell that t his elephant had only one tusk, an indication she had been in many fights and was more aggressive than most elephants. Fearing the elephant migh charge, sponsors shuffled students aboard a nearby bus. “ Mr. early got very stern and kept
saying ‘back up, back up, back up,’” senior Taylor Baildon said. “ I was scared and the first one on the truck!”
A Queen’s Greeting in Bhutan
Across the Indian Ocean in Bhutan, students were touring a fertility temple when they bumped into one of the four queens of the country. She was there to have her first niece blessed. “She was exactly what I expected a queen to be like - humble but authoritative,” senior Kelsey LaBranche said. “I can definitely see why the people of Bhutan look up to her so much.” All the students got the chance to shake her hand and have one-on-one conversations with her.
Unexpected Guests in India
The rain and hail proved to be a plan changer for the Interim group in Dharamsala, India. After a few hours of delay they were told that their hiking would be canceled for the day. By nighttime, their tents began to flood, some almost an inch deep in water in some places, and their clothes were getting wet. They asked a local family if they could stay in their three bedroom house. “We all crammed into their three room house, which now contained our 22-person group and the normal family which was large to begin with,” sophomore Brett Nelson said.
Bag Trouble in Australia
The 30 minute flight delay from Australia to New Zealand proved to be a much bigger problem for the Routburn Trek interim when they landed in New Zealand only to find that all 22 bags were lost along the way. For the people who packed all their trekking material in their suitcase, a lost bag could really put a damper on the next few days of hiking. Luckily for the students they were reimbursed 200 dollars per hour the bag was not returned to them. The maximum amount of money anyone could receive was 1,500 dollars. Those students who never got their bags returned, rented hiking gear and clothing so they could continue with their trip.
Sickness in Syria
Students on the Syrian trip passed around a stomach flu that affected 15 or 17 students and one sponsor over the nine days of the trip. Senior Viraj Bindra was sick for the last three days of his trip. When his plane stopped over in Dubai, Bindra chose to leave the flight and stay there with his father, who was on a business trip, to recover. He rested for two days before returning to Singapore.
Stalked in South Africa
Along with lions, elephants and
giraffes, baboons were a frequent sighting for the travelers on South Africa’s Kruger National Park interim. While most of the group found the encounters exciting, senior Haani Mazari’s was a frightening one. As she was going to the bathroom, one of the curious, but potentially dangerous, baboons followed her in. The baboon scratched on her locked stall for 15 minutes before it went away. “I thought it would jump in, but I didn’t know what else to do,” Mazari said.
Some students have a little too much
As always, some interim travelers this year participated in drinking, smoking and sneaking out. In a survey sent out by the Eye a total of 16 people, or four percent of the 426 participants, admitted to drinking on interim while 18 percent confirmed that someone on their trip drank. But if the rumors floating around school are to be believed, the actual number of people who drank is much higher. New this year was the introduction of Spice as a way to misbehave over interim. Spice, a type of synthetic cannabis, is currently legal in the United States although the FDA is debating its legality. In survey responses, four people said they smoked Spice over interim. When asked if someone on their trip smoked spice
11 people, or three percent, responded affirmatively. Eight percent said they sneaked out and three percent said they smoked smoked cigarettes or shisha. As always, the number of seniors who admitted to drinking on this survey outweighed the number of students from other grades - 11 seniors compared to a combined 5 students from other grades. Freshmen claimed the number two position according to the survey, with the junior class winning best behaved spot with 91 out of 98 respondents, or 93 percent, saying they did not drink, smoke or sneak out over Interim. When talking with students who participated in these activities about why they did so, many commented on the wealth of free time and availability of alcohol and tobacco. Lax enforcement of contracts may also have contributed; 18 people said their sponsors did not care if they broke contract. Smoking rooms in hotels also helped students break contract. Some students hid their activities in rooms that already smelled of smoke from past inhabitants. But not all students escaped detection. Administrators caught at least nine participants, three from an Asian trip and six from a European trip. Most received in-school suspension and loss of next year’s Interim. kreutter13269@saseagles.edu.sg
theeye g. Learning about different cultures. Spectacular. Eating 7 venture. Exhilarating.Digital Meeting new people. Shopping. GoRevolution Overcoming fears. Wild animals everywhere. Singing on spoils interim for 20, but inspires Hot chocolate. Fun. . Holiday. Sun. Rain. Snow. Tanning. millions in cry for quatty potties. Planes. Trains. Automobiles. Once in a lifeend to tyranny n other people’s homes. Visas. Jetlag. Tiring. Cross pretents. Egyptian Ratscrew. Awesome. Crazy. Hummus. EnEating weird food. Cold. Breathtaking. Shopping. Going on g. Going camping for the first time. Sightseeing. Jaw-dropon the bus. Peeing in the wilderness. Love. Bonding. Red . Humiliating. Playing with kids. Educationally stimulating. time opportunity. Smelly. Luscious. any point. Camping in pping. Humus. Learning about different cultures. Spectacuding time. Meeting new people. Shopping. Going camperywhere. Singing on the bus. Peeing in the wilderness. Great Playing Interimwith Moments . Hot chocolate. Fun. Humiliating. kids. Eduomobiles. Once in a lifetime opportunity. Smelly. Luscious. ag. Tiring. Cross precarious bridges that could break at any azy. Hummus. Enlightening. Learning about different culShopping. Going on an adventure. Exhilarating. Meeting Third time’s a charm Denied a Syrian passport, Shalabi opts ightseeing. Jaw-dropping. Overcoming fears. Wild animals for Egypt only to encounter revolution Love. Bonding. Red bull. Holiday. Sun. Rain. Snow. Tan“Never have I ever seen a cock fight before. It was pretty gruesome.” ducationally stimulating. Squatty potties. Planes. Trains. -Sophomore Christopher Couch ous. Insane. Cool. Sleeping in other “Abseiling people’s homes. Visas. was probably the most thing I’ve ever done.” d. Breathtaking. Shopping. Going ondaunting an adventure. Ex-Junior Stephen Long for the first time. Sightseeing. Jaw-dropping. rshat could “I’ve never done a hike like that before, it completely changed my view culof how I Awesome. Crazy. Hummus. Enlightening.ning different see the world.” Klara Auerbach Shopping. Going on an adventure. eting new-Sophomore people. Shd Awesome. Crazy. Hummus. Enlighten differeird food. Cold. ng.g new hopping. Going camping for ime. . Jaw-dropping. e bus. Peeing in the wilderness. Abseiling. Doing thing’s I “I wrestled an elephant, saving our entire trip from the wild ferocious beast.” Riding ostriches. o music on busrides. Making best friends. -Senior Nate Roberts hen you’re at the top of the mountain. Love. Awesome March 8, 2011
CAIRO, EGYPT - FEBRUARY 03: An anti-government demonstrator holds a sign during clashes on February 3, 2011 in Cairo, Egypt. Initial protests against the government were organized on internet social media. The Egyptian army positioned tanks between the protesters during a second day of violent skirmishes in and around Tahrir Square in Cairo. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
By Leonel De Velez
It was Saturday morning, Jan. 29, the weekend before interim semester, and an email from the the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), sat in deputy principal Doug Neihart’s inbox. It relayed information from the U.S. State Department in Cairo that the internet and phone lines were down in Egypt. It was at this point that the decision was made to cancel the Egypt interim trip. The school would not send a group of
students to a country without reliable means of communication. This wasn’t the first time an interim trip was cancelled due to security issues. In the past, interim trips to Sri Lanka, Nepal, and India have either been cancelled or came close to it. What is unique about this year’s cancellation is that it was the first one caused by a Digital Revolution. Digital Revolutions aren’t new and some of the earliest did not in-
volve the social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter. Instead, popular uprisings, such as those in the Philippines and Spain during the early 2000s, were organized via SMS or text messaging. Not until the Myanmar protests in 2008 was there significant use of internet when bloggers posted photos and videos of the monks as well as the military response to the protests. Twitter gained recognition when Ira-
nians protested alleged election fraud by President Ahmedinejad. Both of these revolutions, however, failed as the governments in Myanmar and Iran responded using force and disrupting the internet. On January 28, it was thought that the protests in Egypt would also end when the military replaced the police in the street and when the government severed the country’s internet connections, depriving protesters of Facebook – a tool they had used to organize and coordinate their movements and activities The protests continued, however. The military remained neutral, content with defending Ancient Egyptian treasures in the National Museum and serving as entry guards to Tahrir Square, checking for knives, firearms, and explosive devices. Five days later, Egypt was back online. Many of the protesters were techsavy youths who knew how to use Facebook to mobilize groups of people. Organizers, still unsatisfied by President Mubarak’s promise to not seek re-election, launched a Facebook event called the “March of a Million”, vowing to continue until Mubarak resigned. Not only did Facebook help organize the protesters but, as The New
York Times reported, Egyptians also used these social media sites to defend themselves from tear gas and rubber bullets, receiving advice from Tunisian contacts who just weeks earlier also ousted their President. Though there were a handful of deaths, it was a peaceful protest by most accounts and by February 11, Mubarak had relinquished control to the military, ending over 30 decades of rule. Egypt was euphoric. News networks soon debated the true role of social networking and their contribution to the protests. Facebook was widely praised for helping the revolution but Facebook itself downplayed its part in the protests, saying, “technology was a vital tool…but we believe bravery and determination mattered most.” In postMubarak Egypt, one couple named their newborn daughter Facebook Jamal Ibrahim, underling the role of the site. Other Middle Eastern and North African countries are now using the Tunisian and Egyptian examples as models for their own protests. Citizens of Libya, Algeria, Yemen, and even wealthy Bahrain are protesting in the streets also calling for the reform and democracy. develez30514@saseagles.edu.sg
Western Australia
TWICE SPURNED. Senior Iby Shalabi rides an ostrich during the South Africa Cape and Coast interim. Shalabi lost two interim spots before landing this one. Photo by Ali (trip guide)
By Anbita Siregar Senior Iby Shalabi signed up for Syria. He was later moved to the Egypt trip. Three days before Interim Semester began, the Egypt trip was cancelled and Shalabi was given three choices of trips. He could not go on any of them. Instead, on Feb 3, he boarded a plane to Capetown. A few weeks after interim semester registration on Oct. 20, Syria interim co-sponsor Ian Coppell told Shalabi the embassy in Kuala Lumpur would not accept his Maldivian passport. “Mr. Coppell called the embassy, but they wouldn’t tell him why they denied me a visa to Syria,” Shalabi said. In November, Shalabi was sent to Deputy Principal Doug Neihart and was reassigned to go to Egypt. Riots broke out in Egypt in January, and that interim was cancelled. The 20 students signed up on that trip attended a meeting where they were given their alternate choices of trips: Greece, Italy or Vienna-Budapest. All of those countries required preapproved visas. There was no time to apply with the departure date just around the corner. “It takes five days to get a visa [for
a Maldivian passport holder], and we were leaving in three days,” Shalabi said. Shalabi was sent to Neihart again and was given three more choices of trips: Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and India. Shalabi said he did not like any of those, and Neihart went to work to find one he did. “He convinced [Dr. Kim Melsom] to add me on the South Africa: Cape and Coast trip,” Shalabi said. The first Thursday back from Interim, Coppell told Shalabi why the Syrian Embassy would not accept his passport. A question on the visa request form asked ‘Have you ever been to Occupied Palestine?” meaning Israel. Shalabi had visited had visited relatives in the West Bank and checked the “Yes” box, which is unoccupied Palestine. “If I had checked the ‘No’ box instead, I would’ve gotten into Syria,” Shalabi said. After returning from South Africa, Shalabi said he didn’t mind not going to Syria. “I guess all bad luck turns into good luck.” siregar14018@saseagles.edu.sg
Cebu, Philippines House building
Tanzania
New Zealand’s Routebourn Trek
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MONKS WITH GUNS. Young monks playfully point toy guns at passers by during the Punakha Festival in Bhutan, but hide them quickly as elder monks approach them. Simplicity is the key to Buddhism so even the little boys are not allowed to play with material goods. Photo by Emma O’Connell
In Pictures: 31 Countries, 168 Hours, 1154 Memories
DROP AND ROLL. Senior Alex Amstrup tumbles down a sand dune after loosing his balance while sandboarding in Oman. Photo by Tom Fenton
LIKE HUMAN, LIKE OSTRICH. Senior Klevrin Sitohang rides a reckless ostrich in South Africa. Klevrin and his new feathery friend sport matching facial expressions. Photo by Jennie Park
SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE? Break dance troop leader shows his audience how to “break it down” in the streets of Austria. Photo by Forrest York
HIGH AND WILD. Junior Maya Kale abseils down a cliff in Western Australia. Photo by Lucy Howard
ARABIAN DAYS. Seniors Caroline Barrett and Kisha Carpio get dressed in traditional Bedouin garbs to pose with a Bedouin family. Photo by Tom Fenton
CLIMBING HIGH. Sophomore Katie Lewis rebels against the guides wishes and climbs this towering tree with the village children in Dharamsala. Photo by Erica Huston
CAMELING DOWN MEMORY LANE. Members of the Syria Interim trip take a camel ride through ruins in Pamyra. The sceneic stop was the final destination on the Middle Eastern excursion.Photo by Viraj Bindra
theeye
March 8, 2011
Separating Dreams From Reality Students search for talents, skills that offer chance of turning the things they enjoy doing into careers by Ash Oberoi
“Dreams are different from reality. And being a doctor is what I’m going to be. And that’s [the] reality. But it would be really cool if I could be a pianist,” Jayakumar said. Figuring out who you are and what you want in life can be an arduous and timeconsuming process; high school students face the brunt of having to answer the question “Who am I?” Some students find relief in having one particular talent or passion that they transcend, while others link themselves to various activities - junior Katy Thieneman that they enjoy. “I enjoy doing a Realistically, Jayakumar said that she lot of different things, and I’m but I would like to be a doctor because she likes bi- not the best at [any of] them, still like doing them,” junior Nastassja Suri ology, is an extrovert and can relate to people. “I started playing the piano when I was five years old, and I love it because I can completely immerse myself in it and I feel so free when I play,” junior Shruti Jayakumar said. Jayakumar said that she had a three-month long period during which her dream was to be a pianist; she attended a summer program where she studied music and said she enjoyed it immensely. But, Jayakumar said that it is not a career that she would ever approach, because of the instability and low compensation that she believes go hand-in-hand with being a pianist.
I’d rather make a thou“sand dollars less doing something I love, than try to make a million.
“
said.
Suri, who is currently on the varsity tennis team, loves swimming and horseback riding; she is also the president of the service club HOPE. “I enjoy playing certain sports and partaking in clubs, but I’m not planning on doing any of these things professionally in the future,” Suri said. Unlike Suri, however, some students focus all or most of their attention and energy on one acquired skill that they aspire to make a career of. Junior Jacqui Geday said her love for theatre has helped shape her interest in show business. “It’s not really drama per se, it’s more of the entertainment industry that I really want to excel in,” Geday said. Geday said she has been fascinated with drama since she was very young. She attributes her passion to hours of movie-watching which explains her fascination with movie facts. Geday is a member of Thespians, and has played roles in the high school productions: “Complete Works of Shakespeare
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Graphics by Sophia Cheng
(Abridged)” and “Scenes and Monologues”. Senior Alex Couch, who is in the same position as Ge- d a y , said her love of music was inspired by her father, who played the piano and guitar for her when she was a little girl. Couch said she loves listening to the calming sounds that are fashioned by a few effortless keys or chords when she plays. Geday and Couch represent a small number of high school students who have one clear talent and one clear passion. Filled with countless opportunities and choices, most students struggle to find their niche in a school like SAS. Junior Katy Thieneman said that since she doesn’t have a single talent that she surpasses others in, choosing a career is difficult. “I don’t really think that I have one good skill and, yeah, it does [bother me],” Thieneman said. Thieneman said that her career path is consistently changing, but at the moment she’s considering a profession in business or finance. “At school the only subject [that] I really like is math, and I know there’s a lot of math involved in business,” Thieneman said. Thieneman also enjoys dabbling with science, tennis, dance and reading. However, she said that none of these pastimes will make for a pragmatic career in the future. “For me, [the most important factor when choosing a career path], is being happy with what I’m doing. I’d rather make a thousand dollars less doing something that I love, than try to make a million,” Thieneman said.
In a school full of creativity and competitiveness, most students struggle to find a talent they can call their ‘best’. “I don’t think that being the best matters. [You should] do it because you love to do it,” senior Issa Antonio said.
oberoi16616@saseagles.edu.sg
Two Teachers, One Big Job Dance teacher’s early maternity leave causes a premature switch in teacher and coach
Torrenters targeted By IT Department IT department not content with banning students from internet access, forces students to delete any found P2P sharing program on personal computers POINT YOUR TOES. Seniors Karisa Sukamto, Courtney Poli and Sophomores Melody Suzuki, Naina Mullick pay close attention to dance teacher Karen Lacey on how to execute their next dance moves. Photo by Gretchen Connick.
by Gretchen Connick
With the earlier than expected absence of high school dance teacher, Tracy Van der Linden, two substitutes have large shoes to fill. Karen Lacey, dancer and friend of Van der Linden, has taken over teaching the high school dance classes while middle school teacher, Heather Rodocker, has taken on the challenge of coaching IASAS Dance. “The IASAS dancers are a strong group and will do really well with Mrs.R, and my DP class are also a wonderful and experienced group who will lead the second semester dance show with ease under the direction of Ms.Lacey,”Van Der Linden responded in an email. Lacey has been dancing since the age of four and has been a dancer, teacher and choreographer in the UK and Europe. She said the differences in her and Van der Linden’s backgrounds is what makes them different teachers. Despite this, the course content for this years remains the same and the students are doing the same work they will do with Van der Linden. While not coaching the dancers involved in IASAS Cultural, Lacey assisted Rodocker by being a part of the audition panel that selected this year’s dancers. Lacey said that she was able to be involved in helping the team decide what they would like to say with their piece. “From a talent point of view, they are a team of strong technical dancers and they are
strong choreographically and creatively,” Lacey said. Along with Lacey, Rodocker is helping the high school dancers during the time of Van der Linden’s absence. Rodocker fell in love with dance after an injury ended her gymnastics career in middle school. It is her first time coaching IASAS Dance and she said that she loves it. “I’m a middle school teacher at heart, but it’s really nice to work with high school,” Rodocker said. “The level of technique and language for the art form and level of responsibility is much higher.” Rodocker said she has seen many of the same students in middle school and that she enjoys seeing them in high school and witnessing how they have grown. Rodocker admits that she would love to jump in and help the team with their choreography, but says that it is really about letting the students find and create their own piece. So far the team’s dance is a “rough skeleton,” but they are doing a great job considering their change in themes after one week of work, according to Rodocker. “I am really proud of the kids. They have handled a lot of challenges with Mrs.V being gone early. They have done a great job just jumping in and rolling with it. It is a tight team effort.”
connick35814@saseagles.edu.sg
by Alex Wong, Eye Online With the increased use of laptops on campus, students and the administration are questioning where the line should be drawn about student misuse of the Internet. According to Technology Coordinator Jay Atwood, the most significant issue, by far, is peer-to-peer file sharing (P2P). As of November 27, Atwood reports over 114 cases “in addition the the four today.” Sharing via Bit Torrent, colloquially known as “torrenting,” alludes to a torrential rain. Torrents work by connecting a user to thousands of others online, sharing bits of files from seeders – those who have the file – to leachers – those who are downloading it. Atwood said that when a student torrents, he or she connects to thousands of others all over the world, clogging the school’s bandwidth. He said that the difference between downloading from a single host site such as iTunes is exponentially smaller than that of torrents, simply because of the high number of connections torrents make. Because users are downloading media protected by international copyright laws, torrenting is illegal. Although not all media or software is copyrighted, the main purpose of torrenting is to acquire media and software without paying for it. Atwood said that the IT department is aggressively targeting torrenting because it is illegal and it slows down the school’s network. He said it is important, too, that students understand the ethical issues involved. “You wouldn’t even think of walking into a shop, picking up a DVD and walking out because that’s theft; that’s stealing,” Atwood said. “Torrenting and downloading the
latest episode of ‘Gossip Girl,’ or movies, or music, or software is the same thing. It feels different, but it is theft.” Monday, or the day after a break or day off is the busiest day for students using torrents. Atwood said the most common excuse he hears from students is, “I forgot to turn it off.” Once notified that a P2P sharing program is in use, Atwood immediately blacklists the user, cutting off all Internet privileges. Next, an email is sent out to the student, his or her counselor, the principal and the teacher whose class he or she was in at the time. Asked about the irony of sending an email to someone without Internet access, he replied that the email is “a digital paper trail,” more for documentation than for notification. When a student violator walks in, Atwood begins by showing a visualization of the system output when the student began torrenting. Most cases involve between 2000 to 5000 connections, which makes for an extremely long list. Next, he explains the implications of downloading copyrighted material. Finally, he deletes the student’s torrenting program. Atwood believes that he has the right to remove the student’s program. “While you’re at school you give up certain rights because you should be doing school related things.” Since the program was free to download, it is of no financial loss to the student. After the second offence, a student is banned from the network for two weeks. A third offence results in a five week ban, a fourth gets a semester ban. wong19410@saseagles.edu.sg
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Monsoons & Medals
Tennis players copes with monsoon deluge, bag a bronze, rugby teams search for tries, bag a bronze, swimming brings home gold and silver, basketball a double gold
Rugby/ Touch Girls
Boys
1. ISM 2. ISB 3. TAS 4. JIS 5. SAS 6. ISKL
1. JIS 2. TAS 3. SAS 4. ISKL 5. ISB 6. ISM
Tennis Girls 1. ISM 2. ISB 3. SAS 4. TAS 5. ISKL 6. JIS
Boys 1. ISKL 2. JIS 3. ISM 4. ISB 5. SAS 6. TAS
Basketball Girls 1. SAS 2. JIS 3. ISB 4. TAS 5. ISM 6. ISKL
Boys 1. SAS 2. ISKL 3. ISM 4. ISB 5. TAS 6. JIS
Swimming Girls
Boys
1. SAS 2. ISKL 3. ISM 4. TAS 5. JIS 6. ISM
1. ISB 2. SAS 3. TAS 4. ISM 5. JIS 6. ISKL
SECONDS TO SPARE. Sophomore Atikah Scott celebrates as senior Becky Kreutter focuses on scoring the try. In the last 30 seconds of the game Scott passed to Kreutter to score the girl Eagles only try against Bangkok’s Panthers. Photo by Holly Kreutter
by Hannah L’Heureux Singapore’s monsoon season proved to be a bigger problem than expected during the three-day IASAS tennis tournament held at the United World College (UWCSEA) campus in Singapore. The rain was relentless and the only refuge for players and coaches was under awnings set up around the courts, where they huddled to keep dry. On Saturday, the final day, after constant interruptions due to rain, the finals and consolation matches were canceled. The scores from games played were added, awarding first place to the International School of Manila (ISM) girls and International School of Kula Lumpur (ISKL) boys. The Eagle girls ended with bronze, while the boys took 5th place. IASAS teams were doing their best to knock the Eagles girls’ and boys’ basketball teams off the first place pedestal they had occupied together for two years, but to no avail. Both teams won all five of their tournament games at ISM and moved onto the finals. The girls crushed the Jakarta International School (JIS) in their final game, 63-39. The boys’ game against ISKL was close, but SAS won 69-60. The Eagle girls took double gold for the third year in a row,
the boys for the fourth. The Eagles swimmers competed at ISKL placing in the top once more. The boys’ team took silver with 341 overall points. Freshman Kei Hygo broke an IASAS record for the boys’ 800 meter freestyle. The girls took gold with 372 overall points, making this the 15th year in a row that girls have won gold. Over in Taipei, Rugby and Touch IASAS was being played. The girls finished in fifth with a 2-2-2 record though they let in less total tries than the first place team, ISM. After losing more than half their team, the boys’ rugby team was one of the youngest in tournament. Nonetheless, they finished strongly in 3rd place. After two losses the first day, the boys won their next four games, beating ISKL 12-0 in the consolation game. SAS did not host a single IASAS sport on campus this year. Tennis was held at UWC because SAS does not have the 8 courts required by IASAS rules. SAS will not host another IASAS sport until first season next year, the 30th anniversary of IASAS, where they will host all three sports (soccer, volleyball and cross country) at one campus. lheureux10891@saseagles.edu.sg
A STRONG SUPPORT. Junior Ciaran Ross lifts junior Scott Rozen-Levy into the air to catch a inbound pass over the KL Panther’s outstretched arms. The boys played KL twice on Saturday beating them both times to take 3rd place. Photo by Erma Huston
SQUEEGEE TIME. SAS boys varsity player Kartik Das and SAS girls varsity captain Sophia Cheng dry the courts after being delayed by intermitent rain that day. Photo by Leonel De Velez
HEAD IN THE GAME. Senior Matt Crema and junior Jack McCabe fight for the ball during a game against ISB in Manila. Photo by Maria Crema
GO GIRLS GO! Ten percent physical, 90 percent mental. Senior varsity captain Therese Vainius finishes a race in ISKL. Vanius wrapped up her IASAS career with two golds, two silvers and a bronze.