January 2014

The Highlander

January 2014, Vol V Issue IV

Feminism’s true colors

By Shira Stein Scotscoop Editor-In-Chief

“Maybe women deserve better than propaganda and lies. Get… out of our decisions and give us back our voice. Women do deserve better.

Women deserve choice,” said National Poetry SLAM-winning performance poet Sonya Renee.

Everyone has their own opinion of what a feminist is and what a feminist believes.

“I believe in gender equality and I believe our society has achieved it.

Feminism used to be a legitimate movement where women fought for civil rights,“ said junior Eden Gutkin.

When asked what they believe a feminist is, a large amount of students responded that they thought that it is a person who stands up for women’s rights.

Gutkin said, “I feel that feminists are trying to get better treat-

ment than men which is why I am not a feminist. They don’t want gender equality, feminists believe women should be treated superior to men.”

Many feminists call themselves feminists because they want equality for people of all genders.

Today, men and women are more equal than those of the early 1900s, but there is still a gap.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, women earned 77 cents for every dollar that men earned in 2012.

Additionally, out of the top 250 grossing films, only 10.8 percent had a female lead.

Although controversy over the way women are treated occurs often, there are also steps being taken towards equality.

Licia Ronzulli, a member of the European Parliament, has been taking her daughter to the Parliament sessions for two years. Throughout the course of her doing so, she has

been accused of bringing her daughter for political reasons, but she has been outspoken about the reasons being maternal.

Ronzulli said, “I wanted to stay with my daughter as much as possible, and to remind people that there are women who do not have this opportunity [to bring their children to work], that we should do something to talk about this.”

In America, some people would question a woman’s capacity to do her job when her intelligence is supposedly compromised by having her child there.

Pantene recently released a commercial where a man and women were shown in similar positions, such as speaking to a crowd. In this commercial, words were shown within the background that described the man and woman in similar positions as two different things, such as boss and bossy. The viewer ~Continued on pg. 24~

Photo illustration by Veronika Dvorakova

www.scotscoop.com

Feminists are more than just angry women

Chocolate’s dark side: child labor The art of fitting in

By Sarah Schisla Staff Writer

By Gabriela d’Souza Scotcenter Editor-In-Chief

Although biting into that Snickers bar may satisfy you, the very same chocolate is preventing some children from getting a basic education in other parts of the world.

In West Africa, child laborers who harvest cacao beans for chocolate have never even tasted the sweet treat that is so popular around this time of year.

Until the past decade, consumers have paid little attention to the human trafficking and enslavement of West African workers who harvest their cocoa (cacao beans).

The Ivory Coast and Ghana supply close to 75 percent of the world’s cocoa. The Hershey Company, Nestlé, and Cadbury are three of the leading importers of Ivory Coast cocoa.

Psychology teacher and founder of Carlmont’s new Freedom Fighters club Michelle McKee said, “There’s slave labor going on in most major industries. If we’re willing to pay just a little bit more for these [products] while letting the companies know we’re against slave labor, the message will get across to the

There are names that have certain connotations, certain ideas, and certain images linked to them. It is these perceived notions that fuel the desirability of the items.

There are a few items that almost every high school student is said to need. These items are used as a way to fit in and to boost social status.

For girls these items include: a North Face jacket, yoga pants, leggings, and UGGs. “Leggings and yoga pants are really comfortable, specifically most girls have begun to wear Lululemon brand pants within the past few years,” said senior Sarah Fecher Created in 1998 by Vancouver’s Chip Wilson, Lululemon apparel began to make its nationwide appearance in 2011.

Since then it has become the biggest trending athletic apparel.

Many girls have some type of item from Lululemon, whether it be a bag, head band, pants, or shorts. “[People purchase Lululemon items] because they are cute

Photo by Veronika Dvorakova

Piazza’s Supermarket in San Mateo sells both the conventional and fair trade version of a Kit-Kat. The fair trade bar costs nearly twice that of a regular Kit-Kat. It’s up to buyers to decide if the extra money is worth it.

~Continued on pg. 24~

~Continued on pg. 24~

Brand name colleges don’t make much difference

By Claudia Leist Staff Writer

Students seem to be expected to get the highest GPA possible and get into every Ivy League school in existence in order to succeed.

Going to a junior college or even a Cal State University seems to be looked down upon or shrugged off as if it doesn’t take much effort to get there.

“The education system in America has become corrupted with people trying to be superior and get the better grade, get into the better college and have the better [higher paying] career,” said senior Marissa Pereira.

There are stories of people who graduated colleges such as Harvard and Stanford with a bachelors degree or even a masters that are unemployed and have been since they gradu-

ated. In contrast, there are stories of people who received their state school diploma and made it big.

“From what I can see, a bachelors degree doesn’t stand out anymore. It is becoming expected for college students to eventually get masters,” said Carlmont teacher Martin Turkis.

According to the United States Department of Labor, “The unemployment rate for 20- to 29-year-olds who had graduated from college in 2011 was 12.6 percent. The rate was 13.5 percent for those who recently had earned bachelor’s degrees and 8.6 percent for those who recently had earned advanced degrees.”

The real thing to think about is whether or not it is worth the money for students to attend a more prestigious university if they have no solidified knowledge of succeeding in a

higher- paying or more prestigious career.

“I believe it depends on what type of job one is applying for and whether or not the job is in high-demand,” said Turkis.

Many parents tell their children that college is the road on which students “find themselves” and “get a feeling of what they are passionate about.” As cliche as this is, one of the main concerns for students is to figure out if passion trumps payroll.

Most people seem to have heard of a situation in which two students decide to major in, say, journalism, one attending San Francisco State and one attending UCLA, and the UCLA graduate ending up unemployed while the SFSU graduate, such as Ken Bastida, goes on to become a successful local news anchor.

According to a study done by the Federal Reserve Bank, “Recent graduates are increas-

ingly working in low-wage jobs or working part-time, if they’re lucky enough to find work at all.”

It is because of this that it is becoming more common for students to choose their college and major based on its expected return investment.

Because of the difficulty to find jobs in given fields, only 8 percent of students now major in the humanities, down from a peak of more than 17 percent in 1967, according to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Colleges are getting ranked by the salaries of their graduates rather than the quality of their programs.

“It seems that a masters degree is more attainable than it was in the past and that the same rigor isn’t there in masters courses. Back then “master” meant “professional” or “expert” ~Continued on pg. 24~

Opinion New year, same problems Caffeine obsession

Page 2

The Highlander

January 2014

Failed new year’s resolutions

By Dominic Gialdini Entertainment Editor

Another year, another list of failed resolutions that you intended to live by.

For some odd reason, every time January rolls around, people brainwash themselves into thinking that when the clock strikes 12, they will undergo a miraculous transformation, allowing themselves to redefine who they are, cut out troublesome vices, and essentially become totally different people.

What is it that makes people believe that the new year will motivate them to change themselves for the better? In short, they are delusional optimists. While I contend that it is better to be a delusional optimist than a delusional pessimist, I believe that the former is merely the lesser of two evils.

There is no cosmic phenomenon, no supernatural force that enables people to work hard in following their New Year’s resolutions. Unfortunately, most are doomed from the start without ever realizing it.

If you are that person who tells yourself that you will cut down on sweets starting New Year’s Day but indulge in a gluttonously lethal dose of assorted sweets and pastries in addition to gallons of soda the night before, it is inevitable that you will not have the fortitude to last the year. In a Mardi Gras-esque fashion, you try to shove a year’s worth of sweets down your throat like a rabid squirrel with a hoard of nuts in order to feel like you have made up for the entirety of the year that you spend mourning the loss of the top of the food pyramid. Of course, this pattern transcends food and applies to all aspects of life. From homework to relationships, breaking the bad habits is no easy task.

The vast majority of us seem to fall into the deathly trap of failing our New Year’s resolutions.

We may go a week or two strong, but we know all too well that it is all for naught. The less motivated of us may not even make it through the first day of the year without giving up; I, for one, can attest to that. Making it to February is practically unheard of, let alone the whole year.

In reference to New Year’s, many people like to use the cliche about how one begins the first page of a 365 page book. However, what they fail to mention is that writers abandon their work all the time to pursue new stories. Why don’t we?

Sure, you may have failed, but why wait until next year to try for your goals again? Perhaps you haven’t noticed, but waiting for New Year’s hasn’t really done you any good before.

If you happen to mess up on whatever your resolution was, start over again. Make that day your personal new year for a new you. Whether it is the first of January or the 18th of whenever, it doesn’t really matter; you have the opportunity to try again, so quit sulking around and make today the first day of the rest of the life that you would like to live.

By Angelina Castillo Staff Writer

Many teens wake up everyday but cannot function until they have had a cup of coffee.

Junior Donna Ghaemi said, “I literally could not focus or concentrate without a cup of coffee. I have stopped drinking it to try and become more healthy. Now that I have stopped drinking it I feel more energized.”

Caffeine can be good in moderation and has positive effects on people but may also be risky for those who experience anxiety or are more sensitive because they might find that it makes them feel worse according to fda.gov.

People experience a withdrawal and believe that without a cup of coffee they can not make it through the day. In a survey of 118 Carlmont students, 65 percent do not drink coffee, 22 percent drink one cup a day, nine percent drink two cups a day, and three percent drink four or more cups a day.

Several high school students wake up every morning to a cup of coffee to start their day.

Most if not all college school campus have a coffee shop or an area where their students can go and purchase a cup.

High schools like Carlmont also provide food and drinks for students, but they do not offer coffee.

Junior Pierre Llorach said, “It is addicting.

Personally I don’t have any problems of addiction with it, but I know people who cannot live without it. They’ll be exhausted and if they don’t drink it they will have migraines until they drink some.”

According to WebMd, problems that can occur with the intake of caffeine include the increase in heart rate and uneven heart rhythm, insomnia, feeling shaky, headaches, and nervousness.

Caffeine comes from over 60 different

plants worldwide. It is considered to be a psychological addiction. People may have to have several cups of coffee because after ingesting caffeine, it is completely absorbed within 30 to 45 minutes, and its effects substantially diminish within about three hours.

Caffeine is a stimulant to the nervous system and is considered to be a drug. It can affect mood, stamina, the cerebrovascular system, and gastric and colonic activity. It has become the most commonly used drug by teens and adults. Ninety percent of people in the world use caffeine in one form or another. In the U.S., 80 percent of adults consume caffeine every day.

57 percent of the students would like Carlmont to sell coffee while 43 percent do not believe Carlmont should sell coffee.

According to PubMed, drinking caffeinated beverages can improve a person’s awareness, ability to perform a task, and reduce fatigue. However, caffeine can also harm those who do not have the tolerance to endure their effects.

Sophomore Davis Schmitt said, “I can’t really get up without it. The school should sell coffee because the days I don’t have it, I don’t have the energy to stay awake in class or focus.”

It comes down to personal opinion as well as how caffeine affects your body. While some students do not drink coffee they would like the option to purchase coffee on campus.

Editorial: Student schedules reflect values

Courtenay Tessler, a counselor at Davis High School met with representatives from elite schools like Harvard, Stanford and Georgetown who said when it comes to AP classes, “There is no number. That’s not what we’re looking for. We’re looking for their contributions, and what their high school experience was like. We’re looking for problem-solvers, people who could be leaders. We’re looking for special talent...Those schools aren’t saying they’re going to take a student because that student did one more AP class. It’s about who you are, and what you are interested in.”

As Amber Mills, Carlmont’s AP AB calculus teacher and graduate of University of California Riverside, explained to her 3rd period class, students are becoming engulfed in the race to attend the schools that are considered “elite” and are killing themselves in the process.

Every year, juniors and seniors enroll themselves in every AP and honors class possible for the sole purpose of how it looks on their college applications. This reckless behavior leaves students without any regard for personal health and enjoyment; many of these honors and AP classes entitle hours upon hours of homework and studying along with the general stress of taking a hard class. Is all of this really worth it? Do colleges even reward this Photo courtesy of Creative Commons behavior as much as students seem to believe?

The root of this idea is realizing what colleges actually look for in a student’s schedule. Steve Farmer, a part of the enrollment team at UNC weighed in on course selections, ““Interesting course? Great. Wanna stay out of trouble? Great. Don’t have anything better to do? Great, take more...But if you’re doing it because you’re assuming you’re going to get bonus points with us, you’re making the wrong decision. You won’t.”

The perfect situation for any academic institution is someone who takes classes solely based on their interests and desire to learn, without any regard for how their GPA looks. Of course, this is a bit unrealistic as without a grading system, incentive disappears. However, the concept

is not too far off.

Although the elite colleges are looking for students who look to challenge themselves, a student who takes AP Biology and AP Chemistry along with many other AP classes but is looking to be a business or humanities major is uselessly grinding themselves into the ground. There is no point in taking two AP sciences if your intended major and career path have nothing to do with them.

Students who attempt to take on ominously overloaded schedules have a misguided view of what colleges are really looking for. Colleges are absolutely looking for kids who have strong schedules and are exploring different areas, but in general they are looking for students who are aware of their interests and strengths and are pursuing them. As demonstrated by many applications, colleges aren’t looking for students to come in with undeclared majors.

These class choices are illogical for the future, but the present is where they reach the extremes. Being a high schooler is hard enough when one has to balance family obligations, a social life, some hard classes, sports and other extra-curricular activities. Some students take on one or two more AP classes leaving them overloaded with work that they have to fit into their already overflowing schedule.

This forces decisions to be made like sleep versus homework and having to choose between classes. A student can get away with choosing an AP class over a regular class and not fall behind, but when it comes to AP classes, falling behind is no simple matter. There is really only one outcome of these situations: stress. And all for what? For a college to see that you are dedicated and a hard worker? Or will they see through it all and see peoples actual motives?

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Opinion

The Highlander

Page 3 January 2014

The implicit self-glorification of America

By Josh Fagel Staff Writer

At a fundraiser in Greensboro, N.C. in 2008, Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin famously said, “This is real America,” where one finds “patriotic,” “pro-America” Americans. She was essentially describing a small country town: white, Christian, Republican.

Many conservatives suggest that urban, liberal areas, populated by people other than conservative Christians and by a more diverse racial mix, are somehow less American and less patriotic.

While flag-waving and adherence to old-fashioned values is one way of showing one’s pride, there are many other approaches to patriotism that Palin and many conservatives have neglected to recognize.

The Merriam-Webster definition of patriotism is “love for or devotion to one’s country.” Recognizing the faults in the United States and trying to remedy them through progressive reforms, an action most frequently associated with liberals, is a perfectly valid way of demonstrating devotion to one’s country.

“For me, criticizing the government is one of the most patriotic things you can do because you are hoping and helping to make something you love even better,” said social studies teacher Karen Ramroth.

What many traditional patriots fail to realize is that the United States is a world power because we have adapted so well to change. For example, the Industrial Revolution essentially began here and we are constantly credited as world leaders in technological advances.

Solely basking in its past glory disallows the country to adapt to shifting global issues in the future.

Thus, activists around the country aren’t necessarily unpatriotic, they just understand that even a powerful country like the United States has its imperfections.

Senior Kalila Kirk, a prominent feminist and gay rights activist in the Carlmont community, said, “Activists love America just as much as anyone else, and we don’t take for granted the freedoms of living here.”

Patriotism also has the connotation of following the principles of the United States Constitution. However, Americans must understand that there are many precepts that become obsolete.

For example, the original Constitution said that black men are three fifths of white men and that they didn’t have the right to vote. It took 80 years in US history for black men to vote. Even then, blacks weren’t given the same social rights as whites for another 100 years.

The men and women pushing for what now is perceived as justice were progressives, who unsurprisingly were often dubbed as unpatriotic.

The Constitution also didn’t give women the right to vote and if it weren’t for the “unpatriotic” progressives in the early 1900s, female enfranchisement could still be a problem today.

The United States must not let tradition deter justice and common sense; arguing that gay couples should enjoy the same federal benefits as straight couples isn’t an attempt to undermine American tradition, but rather to reflect that a majority of Americans support gay marriage.

“Blind adherence to principles can be counterproductive to

the best interest of the country,” said Rebecca Lubetkin, Professor Emeritus at Rutgers School of Planning and Public Policy.

Loving one’s country is also coupled with understanding how it functions. That is what is ironic about a 2006 Zogby poll, in which only 42 percent of Americans could name the three branches of the federal government.

What’s even more ironic is that immigrants, who some conservatives seek to oust from the country, have to pass a naturalization test containing basic United States history and government questions, which these conservatives probably would not be able to answer.

Brandon Moyle, a conservative senior, said that patriotism also involves “showing respect to the people that protect us.”

While Republicans are often portrayed as more sympathetic to soldiers and veterans, both parties honor the soldiers and veterans’ service, but in different ways. According to the Advanced Placement United States Government curriculum, while Republicans generally want to increase the military budget, Democrats typically seek to abstain from wars.

Lubetkin asked, “Were the members of Congress who voted against invading Iraq in 2003 unpatriotic?”

Patriotism is a word packed with mixed connotations, but one thing is for certain: there is no one best way to show love for one’s country. Americans must maintain the mindset that John F. Kennedy advocated in his 1961 inaugural address: “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.”

The connotations of the word feminism

By Claire Porter Staff Writer

If the word feminism is simply about gender equality, why does it have a stigma?

The lack of understanding of the word leads people to lean on media interpretations to define the term, but the media feeds viewers with angry feminists, neglecting the equality-fighting reality.

Feminism is “the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities; the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes,” according to the Webster online dictionary.

But the media’s negative portrayal of stereotypical radical feminists leaves many hesitant to call themselves feminists.

Its depiction also leaves some with contradictory beliefs, being both swayed by what they see on TV and what they see in real life.

Senior Jack McDowell said the word feminism “makes me think of women -- I don’t think of men as being feminists. A lot of people say that feminists are angry, but I don’t know any that are angry. All the feminists I know are really nice.”

Many movies and television shows support the idea of radical feminists, feeding the skewed image into viewers’ minds. For example, the movie “The Dictator” mocks many serious topics, including racism, politics, and feminism. The misogynistic ruler Haffaz Ala-

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deen refers to his short-haired, hairy-armpitted female feminist friend as a boy, and constantly questions her authority and motives.

The movie portrays feminists as radical activists who don’t care about appearance, which isn’t the least bit surprising to viewers. Society has become so accustomed to seeing feminists in this manner that it would be shocking to see feminists any other way. Due to the negative image engraved in the minds of many, it’s difficult to imagine a feminist as anyone other than an earthy, overbearing activist.

Junior Daryush Shahid agrees that women should be treated equally, and said “the concept makes sense, but there are a lot of feminists who push it too far, giving it a negative connotation.” He believes that “feminists take the meaning of feminism past the desire for equality and instead toward the desire of superiority.”

Unfortunately, pop culture feeds this stereotype and belief, leaving little room to believe that feminism can be anything else. Even public figures aren’t clear on the definition of feminism due to the misrepresentation and misconstruction of the connotations derived from pop culture.

It’s even worse when celebrity role models don’t understand the definition and instead attempt to explain their humorously incorrect reasoning.

In an interview with TIME, Kelly Clarkson

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said, “I love being taken care of, and I love that I have a man that’s an actual leader, so I’m not a feminist in that sense.”

Unfortunately, average citizens won’t bother checking celebrity rationale and will simply nod their head in agreement.

Lady Gaga, a celebrity who is known for being liberal and an advocate for equality, ironically said in an interview, “I’m not a feminist — I hail men, I love men. I celebrate American male culture and beer and bars and muscle cars.”

Unfortunately, the media has wrongly construed the beliefs of feminism into an image of men-hating, matriarchy-yearning activists.

But feminism is not anti-men, nor is it about demolishing “male culture.”

Feminism is simply about equality of the sexes. Nonetheless, the definition seems to somehow be incomprehensible, and thus it is molded to fit whatever image and belief many wish to disagree with, due to it’s negative appeal.

Ellen Page, however, is not fooled. In an interview with “The Guardian,” she said, “How could it be any more obvious that we still live in a patriarchal world when feminism is a bad word?”

Though men tend to shy away from the word, there are thankfully male public figures who support feminism.

In an interview on “The Ellen DeGeneres

Justin Raisner

Show,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt explained that his mom taught his brother and him feminist ideals at a young age, and said, “We see these images on TV, in the movies, and on magazines all the time. And if you don’t stop and think about it, it just sort of seeps into your brain and that becomes the way you perceive reality.”

Though Gordon-Levitt’s insight is inspiring, the media continues to blind its viewers with twisted representations.

Only one out of the seven Carlmont males interviewed called himself a feminist.

“I don’t really see why anyone isn’t, really.

It’s funny to me that people think that women aren’t as powerful as men. It’s so prehistoric,” said junior Andrew Wach.

Two other males changed their minds on feminism after being reminded what the definition is, but remained passive on the belief.

When searching the phrase “feminists are,” on Google the assisted searches are as follows: feminists are stupid, feminists are annoying, and feminists are hypocrites.

Students grow up learning and believing in equality at a young age, but seem to forget what it means as they grow up. The stigma and connotations of the somehow frightening word “feminism,” stemming from years of historic backlash against equality, is appalling. Feminism is about equality and only that - not about angry misandrists burning bras.

The mission of The Highlander is to accurately and honestly cover communal as well as school events. As a student run open forum newspaper, we strive to incorporate multiple views and represent the diverse community at Carlmont.

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Opinion

The Highlander

Friend groups influence you

By Iris Berber Staff Writer

Whether they choose to be or not, everyone is in some way affected by their friends. While some people are aware of this, others are influenced subconsciously.

People’s friend groups--especially in their younger years--tend to play a large role in shaping the person they become. This could be due to the fact that in some cases, imitation is a form of flattery.

At a young age, children are always looking to define themselves by engaging in certain friend groups. According to Psychology Today, level three friendships-- those between the ages of eight and fifteen-- are “mutually shared,” which suggests confessing feelings to each other and helping one another solve confidential problems.

Even with each individual quest for self-discovery, conformity ironically becomes the biggest product of the journey.

For many, high school is where people struggle the most in their search for acceptance. A person is constantly affected by those that he or she surrounds him or herself by, through means of fashion, social life, and even manners, Some believe that they are positively influenced by the people they

surround themselves by through certain mannerisms, habits, or skills.

Carlmont senior Michael Aldanese said, “Before I met my current friends, I was more held back. My friends taught me how to enjoy the little things in life and they influenced my ways of not caring what people think.”

In contrast, some do not believe that their friend groups hold the ability to impact their actions. Simone McCarthy, Carlmont senior stated, “Honestly, I don’t think that your friends influence you. I think some people who are insecure and don’t have a mind of their own might be easily influenced because they will do anything to be accepted.”

McCarthy continued to explain that her friend groups have various habits but their friendship is not strongly affected by their differences. She stated, “I hang out with people who do things that I would never do, but they are still my best friends because of the friendship that we share.”

Yet, most high school students seem to disagree with this opinion and believe that in at least some way or another, their peers have modified their actions.

Often, friendships are formed around seeking acceptance from one another.

Because of this, people easily catch on to others’ habits while attempting to gain approval from friend groups. As a result, friendships are eventually able to develop further upon these now-shared

characteristics.

Senior Tristan Gasperian said, “Friends influence you in a lot of different ways without you even knowing it. Sometimes it’s saying the things that they say or even changing the way you act if you want to be more like them.”

However, these relationships are run on two-way streets. Those who are shaped by their peers are often unaware of the molds they create for their peers in return.

As a senior, Jenny Chen has maintained her current friend group for much of her high school career. Having shared relatively long relationships with her current friends, she agreed that they’ve both been influenced throughout the friendship.

Chen stated, “Your friends are individuals who have different ideas and experience, and through everyday conversations you are constantly learning their ways or picking up the littlest things they do, and vice versa.”

She also added, “I’ve noticed my closest friends would say certain things like I would say them and I would do the same without realizing.”

Ultimately, whether one is consciously or subconsciously aware of it, friends become molding tools for one another.

Despite certain disagreements or various opinions, some things are bound to catch on because peers will indubitably influence one another in various ways.

The craze for online attention

By Justine Phipps Staff Writer

“Like for like? Follow for follow?”

Social media websites such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook have led to a series of people desperate for online attention.

When Facebook first came out in Feb. 2004, it was a website designed for people to connect and keep in touch with friends and family.

Now, Facebook is a competition. People don’t consider you “cool” unless you have over 100 likes on your profile picture, and they don’t consider you “pretty” unless 20 people comment on it saying you are.

Aside from Facebook, Instagram is one of the many social media destinations where people fight for follows. On the app, people can share photos and videos with friends and keep a profile of their pictures.

When Instagram first came out in 2010, gaining likes was hard work. Likes were earned through dedication and communication with other users.

Now, there are ways to buy followers and likes through foreign websites and companies willing to promote your account. Matthew McEachen, an Ads team member for Twitter, works to promote Twitter users’ online status.

“We promote trends, we promote tweets, and we promote accounts,” said McEachen. His job, along with others, is to get people noticed. “Some people will pay [as much] as eight dollars a follower.”

Along with the new followers, a person will gain a sense of comfort knowing they have more people “liking” them.

A possible explanation for why people strive to be accepted is societal pressure.

Society has created the idea that if you are accepted online, then you will be accepted everywhere else just the

Photo courtesy of Creative Commons

same. People have come to believe that a “like” is a stamp of approval from the people around them.

“The amount of likes and followers you get does have some sort of effect [on your social status,] because you get more attention from other people,” said junior Jasmin Reidel.

In a recent poll out of 118 Carlmont students, 53 percent said they did not care about many likes and followers they had on social media.

“The obsession over getting likes is definitely an attempt to gain self-confidence,” said junior Elise Dimick. “[But] the numbers sort of have the opposite effect. They make you feel less confident about yourself.”

Society has presented people with the idea that if they aren’t “liked” online, then they aren’t accepted offline either.

Teenagers are self-conscious enough as is without the worry of not being accepted online. One should not need 10,000 followers and 3,000 likes to be considered “pretty” or “cool.”

“All people want to be accepted and connected in the world,” said school therapist and SOS (Students Offering Support) coordinator Shelley Bustamante. “People get different things out of it. As a human being, we all want to feel appreciated. It’s uplifting.”

One should keep in mind that these websites were not created to gain popularity or create an online competition to see who people like more. They were created to stay in touch with people. Although gaining followers and likes may make one feel more “accepted” in the world, users of social media should try to post for themselves, not for others.

January 2014

Pros and cons of block schedule

By Zoe Wildman Junior Editor For some, school can feel like a vicious, unending and tedious cycle, going to the same classes every day, in the same order for 50 minutes. A block schedule may be a welcomed alternative for those who want a change.

“A block schedule would be beneficial because there would be more time to study and do homework, since we would be taking less classes in a day,” said sophomore Julia Iman.

Two of the most common forms of block scheduling are an alternate day schedule (A/B) where students and teachers meet every other day for longer periods of time, about two hours, instead of meeting every day for shorter periods.

Another option is the “4x4” semester plan, which is where students meet for 4 90-minute blocks every day, and get a new set of classes each quarter.

Administrative Vice Principal Ralph Crame said, “We are doing well. We have good test scores; people are learning and getting into college, so why change something that isn’t broken?”

Some benefits of a block schedule are teachers see fewer students per day and get more time with each individual student, making it easier to give one-on-one help, if necessary. Also, students would have an extra day to complete their homework. This type of schedule would make it easier for students to finish all of their work and give them more time to get help if they need it.

“For science it is nearly impossible to do a lab in 50 minutes. It just doesn’t work, and I can imagine with in-class essays and things of that nature the students need that extra time to process,” said math teacher Laura Robeck.

However, there are also some drawbacks to block scheduling.

One of the main issues that comes with block scheduling is that it is a challenge for teachers to teach AP courses.

With the “4x4” system a student may take an AP course in the fall and not be able to take the test until May, when they are held.

“If we had a block schedule and I was trying to teach a double math lecture that would normally be done it two days, it wouldn’t be absorbed as well,” said Robeck.

Furthermore, if a student misses a day of class it may be more difficult for them to make up the work since they won’t have the class for another day or so. This may also be an incentive for students to refrain from skipping school unnecessarily.

“Longer periods can be tiresome and boring for students.

I believe 50 minutes is enough time to do any activities or for lessons to be explained, and also enough to do homework during class,” said sophomore Mario Venezuela.

According to the School Superintendents Association, the A/B schedule is simpler to implement than the “4x4” semester schedule because a majority of the time there has to be an adaptation to the “4x4” schedule to allow for some year-long classes.

Other schools in the area such as Sequoia High School, Woodside High School and Menlo-Atherton High School have implemented various forms of block scheduling.

“Every school has the discretion to do what they want [with the schedule], and we don’t just make blanket decisions by administration… some of the staff are for it, but some are for the traditional schedule as well. It’s always a discussion with the staff, and how far those discussions get varies from time to time,” said Crame.

Simply changing the school bell schedule will not ensure better student performance. However, it may appeal to students who are unsatisfied with traditional scheduling and allow for a more in-depth and detailed learning experience.

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Page 5

Opinion

The Highlander

January 2014

Desirable image for college admissions

By Arianna Bayangos News & Opinion Editor

It’s undeniable. Students are obsessed with being perceived a certain way, especially when it comes to the college application process.

It’s not our fault entirely; we are constantly reminded of that desirable image and are pressured to fit it.

We hear about that kid who got into an elite university because he or she had straight A’s in six AP classes, was a member of five clubs offered on campus, and on top of that, was involved in athletics and music. We hear about that classmate who won a scholarship because he or she had over 500 hours of community service through volunteering at an animal shelter multiple times a week and helping out at soup kitchens every weekend.

But since we are so caught up in that image, we have disregarded what we truly want for ourselves.

Most of our primary motives for joining a club, volunteering, or doing a certain activity is for college.

This image of being well rounded or a good person is on the minds of most high schoolers rather than what they want for themselves especially with the pressure of getting into their dream college.

Sure, we’ve all done it. We think back on that competition we won in debate, that solo performance during the winter concert, or that summer we spent building houses and we thought to ourselves, “Wow, colleges would be so impressed by this.”

It’s not bad to do activities for college, but it shouldn’t be the only reason why you are participating in that activity. You should do it because you want to.

There are no specific clubs or activities that students should participate in; the college admissions

Photo Illustration by Veronika Dvorakova

process isn’t based on a step by step manual that you must follow.

In reality, the college admissions process is based on some things that are entirely not in our control such as our family’s income or a legacy at that college.

Nowadays, it seems that the things we do aren’t for ourselves anymore. Some of our achievements aren’t for our self satisfaction; we merely see them as a step or two closer into fitting that image we are told would be most desirable.

We have become so focused in our goal to get into a university that we begin to question if we are truly good enough. We wonder if what we are doing is the “right” thing that will help us achieve that image of a model

student that all universities seem to love.

Being focused in that image can mold you into someone that you truly aren’t and can ultimately cause dissatisfaction in what you do. Take for example that student who is on the debate team, the chess club, and the math club not because they want to, but because they feel that they need to in order to get into a prestigious university. The student mainly joins these activities to fit a certain standard that he thinks he has to meet.

That’s not what the student truly wants for him or herself. He or she merely feels obligated to do these things to meet the expectations of the perfect image molded into the minds of teenagers.

Contrary to what many students believe, colleges prefer to see involvement and achievements in a few activities rather than an overload of extracurricular activities that aren’t important to them.

According to the website of University of Michigan, “Being involved in a few clubs continually and taking leadership roles or reaching certain levels of accomplishment are much more impressive than being a member in 10 clubs or groups.”

In high school, we are trying to find ourselves and figure out who we truly are. We should be uncovering what we are truly passionate about through participating in clubs or sports that spark our interests. But it is difficult for us to find our passions when our main focus throughout high school is to fit the certain image that we think will get us into that one college.

The activities, clubs, and sports that we participate in high school should be things that we are genuinely interested in; they should be things that we intend to pursue during our years at college or even for our future career.

Our interests and passions are what make us unique from the others and make us stand out from a pool of thousands of applicants to a university.

Students can succeed through pursuing their passions. I’ve heard this countless times in college admissions presentations from New York University, UC Berkeley, and Northwestern University: “Do activities that you love and excel at them.”

So throughout this process, you should make decisions based on what you want to do and create an image for yourself.

Cheating at school: guilty by accusation

By Kristen Friis Business Manager

“I need to see you outside. Now.” The student is confused about the teacher’s stern request.

Both the teacher and student move outside of the classroom, while the other students work on an activity inside.

“Why did you cheat on the test that we took yesterday?”

The words came out of the teacher’s mouth like a sharp knife.

The student stares in disbelief. “What are you talking about? I never cheated on anything.”

At Carlmont, cheating is strictly prohibited. If a student is caught cheating, they could suffer many consequences. Not only is there the risk of suspension, but also the students’ reputation. Their teachers are contacted and notified of the offense, which can make it more difficult to get recommendation letters for college.

If a student is caught cheating during a test, some teachers may try to handle it themselves, while others send them straight to administration.

“If it’s the first time a student is caught cheating, I take the test away, and give them a zero,” said Carlmont teacher Georgiana Kruse-Silva. “Of course I do so quietly, I don’t want to make it a whole ‘shaming’ situation. I’ll call the parents and talk to them about it, and depending on the severity, I determine whether I should bring it to the administration or not.”

According to Carlmont’s Academic Integrity Policy, “The teacher’s professional judgement will determine whether a student has cheated or plagiarized. It is the responsibility of the student to avoid any action or situation that may cause teachers to believe this policy has been violated.”

“Very rarely does a teacher send a student to the office for possibly cheating in a classroom,” said Instructional Vice Principal Ralph Crame.

What happens if the student is accused of cheating but didn’t actually cheat?

The phrase “I didn’t do it,” is not enough to convince a teacher of their innocence.

In court, one who is accused of a crime is deemed innocent until proven guilty. For many high school students, they are deemed guilty until proven innocent. Although teachers have

the right to deal with cheating in their own way, many responsible students don’t know how to plead their innocence.

“It’s not fair for a teacher to strictly punish a student who they are falsely accusing of cheating,” said junior Komei Wang. “I think if the teacher heard from another source, they should take the student aside and give them a warning, tell them that they might keep a closer eye on them, and obviously if the student is innocent then they wouldn’t care.”

In cases like these, all the teacher can do is trust the student. But some teachers can bring in parents for a meeting, others make them retake the test altogether.

Crame said, “They’re going to have to do investigation themselves; was this student cheating or not? Then from there are usually classroom consequences and each teacher may have different consequences.”

Although the teacher is responsible for how they handle the situation, very rarely does the cheating result in involving the administration.

Crame added, “They don’t get immediately sent to the office unless there’s a defiance issue, where the student starts to argue their case and it becomes a disruption to the class.”

Page 6

Features

The Highlander

January 2014

Valentine’s day isn’t just for couples Valentine’s Day by the Numbers

By Sarah Adams Staff Writer

$73

142 million

is the cost of one dozen long stemmed roses

Valentine’s Day cards exchanged Infographic by Sarah Klieves

For years, Valentine’s Day has been a couples day, but not anymore. These days, friends share almost every Valentine’s treat. Candy, cards, seasonal gifts, and even roses are shared student to student, not just between those in a relationship.

Some students buy or make a large amount of small Valentine’s Day gifts to hand out to their fellow classmates. Some bring bags filled with lollipops, classic sweethearts boxes, or other miniature gifts.

Close friends celebrate Valentine’s Day in a variety of ways, like giving gifts and hanging out together or somewhere special. Cards, baked goods, and candy are common Valentine’s Day gifts among the teens celebrating Valentine’s Day. Junior Danielle Al-Abed said, “I get little stuff for my friends. I mainly just celebrate with them.”

Those students who spend Valentine’s Day with friends celebrate by doing many things such as giving sweets to social media messages and hand-picked cards. Some students use school to give to friends and receive special gifts.

Schools help facilitate festivities in this manner with treats like candy grams or roses, sold and delivered by the school. It’s not just boyfriends or girlfriends who buy such items, friends also buy for one another.

Every year, the student government delivers many of these student-bought gifts. Students can receive many items. These gifts not only come from admirers, but also from students’ closest friends and those with whom they

60%

is spent by the average person on gifts

of gifts are purchased during the five days leading up to Feb. 14

share valued friendships.

Sophomore Sam Pipkin said, “I give my friends presents to show that I care. Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be just for couples.”

People with valued relationships show their appreciation for each other on Valentine’s Day. The celebration is shared between couples and close friends alike. Valentine’s Day is evolving, however, the valentine tradition is still alive among many teens and high school couples.

Senior Franklin Rice said, “On Valentine’s Day, I just hang out with my girlfriend, and she only hangs out with me.”

Many couples still celebrate Valentine’s Day together. In addition, other couples split time between friends and their significant other.

$130

4 million

expect to propose or be proposed to

Fifty-three percent of students said that they still by gifts and celebrate with their boyfriend or girlfriend, with only 14 percent of students saying that they do not celebrate at all, not even with their boyfriend or girlfriend.

Celebrating Valentine’s Day with friends is a fast-growing trend at Carlmont, with 28 percent of students celebrating Valentine’s Day with their closest friends and more students with all of their friends and classmates. However, this new trend is found mostly among the girls on campus. The guys pay some mind, however celebration is not as elaborate or common as the girls at Carlmont.

Sophomore Sam Levy said, “Most of my friends don’t really celebrate beyond the occa-

sional ‘Happy Valentine’s Day.’” Valentine’s Day is widely celebrated among the guys on campus who are in a relationship.

However, for those who are not, celebration doesn’t usually go beyond a sarcastic or humorous greeting. The girls on campus have changed Valentine’s Day for Carlmont. Many students like Pipkin and Al-Abed take the opportunity to have a celebration with friends and “show how much they care.”

Valentine’s Day has evolved into a holiday where couple celebrations are not the sole purpose of the day. Those in valued friendships have engaged in Valentine’s celebrations too.

Friends and couples alike spend time with and appreciate one another.

Fairytales aren’t real: the truth behind relationships

By Elena Mateus Staff Writer

Today, love is the only thing that matters.

That is, according to the media. Media encourages this overemphasis on love with stories, songs, books, and movies about love conquering all and bringing eternal happiness.

“The media portrays love as an obligation, something that you need to spend your life looking for, like it’s the main focus,” said junior Elise Dimick.

According to a study done by the research firm eMarketer in 2012, the average American spent 693 minutes a day browsing through media. Studies also show that the average American takes in 3,500 to 5,000 marketing messages a day.

With such statistics, media clearly has an influence over consumer’s perception of things, including romance.

“If you’re bombarded with something, and see an image every time you look at a screen, which is quite often, it has exacerbated effect on the subconscious mind,” said sophomore Matthew Trost.

An increasing number of people are spending less time “con-

necting” with people face to face, and more time “connecting” with people via social media.

It is challenging enough to decipher real love from the deluded ideas of romance from Hollywood.

Carlmont English teacher Martin Turkis said, “If I think back to the way I thought in high school, and in parts of college, I was just kind of delusional thinking about what it would be like to sustain a long term relationship; I imagined it would be much easier and more Hollywood aspect than it actually is.”

Media’s portrayal of love leaves little wiggle room for reality to meet expectations. Senior April Smith said, “Media makes people believe that love should be one way, and that it’s not something that can be perceived differently through everyone else’s eyes.”

Even from a young age, people are bombarded with the media’s ideals for relationships.

“When I was a kid, I used to hope that Prince Charming would sweep me away from reality, like he always did in the movies. I thought that’s what love was,” said sophomore Veronica Eghdami.

Though most people realize in time that real love isn’t quite

like it is in the movies and media, it doesn’t mean that those tantalizing images don’t affect people’s expectations for love.

According to sophomore Ella Reich, “People try and have the perfect relationship they see in the movies, and a lot of people compare personal relationships to celebrities’ relationships too.”

As more and more people buy into the media’s ideals of love, it’s becoming habitual for marriages and relationships to be based on personal fulfillment. When these feelings subside, people begin to think something is wrong, and move on from one lover to the next.

“There are plenty of divorces and split ups not because there is any real inability to continue the relationship, but because there is no willingness, because it’s harder than people imagine, and I think that’s the problem with Hollywood,” said Turkis.

While kids eventually learn that pumpkins don’t transform into glass carriages and Fairy Godmothers don’t grant wishes, many girls never entirely grow out of the idea that one day they will be rescued from reality by some fictitious perfect prince.

And some little boys never live up to the fantasy of being that prince, and the thought that their spouse may be an all fulfilling princess may not ever leave their mind.

Spending the holiday of love without a love

By Becca Fradkin Staff Writer

Being alone on Valentine’s Day, quite the pensive thought.

Raging hormones, romance on steroids and high emotions all lead to the inevitable, Feb. 14. How can one not feel alone while surrounded by an abundance of couple’s public displays of affection and the constant reminder of their own single status?

While walking down the halls one can overhear singles searching for sympathy while labeling their empty status as “forever alone.”

While that thought might be cheesy and dramatic, many question why they are left alone on Valentine’s Day. Some question their appearance, while others dig deeper and wonder what might be wrong with them to not have a special some-

one. Overwhelming fear and anxiety of being left alone can lead to a vicious cycle of self pity.

“V-Day puts a spotlight on couples and increases their amount of PDA,” said junior Mariko Kondo. Kondo commented how she is reminded of her single status while overwhelmed by the amount of “stupid couples.”

Valentine’s Day was originally a Christian tradition, honoring Saint Valentine who performed loving wedding ceremonies. During the Dark Ages, Valentine’s Day first became a symbol of expressing love and courtship for a significant partner. However, since that time, Valentine’s Day has become an annual “Hallmark holiday” dedicated to the mass production of chocolates, greeting cards and red roses.

Junior Nico Camerino said, “It frustrates me that Valentine’s Day’s purpose is showing someone you love them. Shouldn't every day be Valentine’s Day? I don’t understand why there needs to be a reason to express your love

for a friend or special someone on one specific day of the year.”

Valentine’s Day is frequently addressed with mixed emotions by both who are single and in a relationship.

Freshman Ilana Hamer said, “I don’t hate Valentine’s Day, I feel sad seeing all the loving couples while I don’t have a special someone.”

According to a recent Carlmont poll, 70% of students have never had plans on Valentine’s Day. With such a large majority left without dates, how are teens continually pressured into needing a special someone specifically for Valentine’s Day? While singles are left pressured, miserable and lonely, couples seize the day and live Valentine’s Day to it’s fullest potential.

Junior Alessandro Di Paola has been in a committed relationship for two years and has noticed how around the time of Valentine’s Day he becomes more “affectionate” and plans

to be more romantic. He said, “I will probably take her (his girlfriend) out for a nice date.

Maybe dinner and a movie.”

Singles may wonder how they can avoid the typical Valentine’s Day slump without a date.

Luckily, a light can be found at the end of the tunnel. Valentine’s Day teaches that showing love and compassion toward anyone is good for the soul and emotionally fulfilling.

Hamer said, “A great way to feel better [on Valentine’s Day] is to spend time with friends and maybe send yourself flowers.”

While celebrating one’s love for him/herself sounds borderline crazy, it definitely lifts spirits. Additionally, spending a day full of love with adoring friends and family makes one forget about wanting a date.

Watching a romantic comedy while eating decadent heart shaped chocolates may sound pathetic, however with friends it can be hilarious and become an annual tradition.

Page 7

Features

The Highlander

January 2014

Couple’s expectations on Valentine’s Day

By Sonia Paulo Staff Writer

Valentine’s Day, whether it be a Hallmark holiday, or a day to prove how much one another love each other, the fourteenth of February comes with pressures on all those in a relationship to provide the best for their significant other.

Obviously high school students can’t afford to spend thousands on a Tiffany ring for their girlfriend, or go out to a luxurious dinner on a school night. So what kind of pressures, if any, are put on teens to prove their love for their partner?

“I feel as if the biggest pressure comes from society, not my girlfriend,” said junior Brandon Cuschieri.

Boys are often faced with the most pressure in a relationship because of the way society portrays a male’s role. It is his duty to ask the girl out, buy the flowers, pay for dinner, etc. This only increases on Valentine’s Day, when everything is expected to be over the top.

“I don’t really expect anything from her,” continued Cuschieri, “I just want to provide the best for her, which is really the only pressure there is.”

Even though boys are expected to spoil the girl on Valentine’s Day, girls also want to provide the best for their significant

other. It is not traditionally the female’s role in a relationship to be the one standing on the doorstep with flowers. However everyone in a relationship wants to show how much they care.

“Both of us are really bad at planning,” said junior Morgan Manter, “I just know I want to do something for him, and spend time with him at the very least.”

With all these ideas of a perfect Valentine’s Day in place, one would expect crazy, over the top surprises. However it looks as though high school students keep the plans less about extravagance and more about spending time.

“The only thing I could say I want on Valentine’s Day is to see him,“ said junior Maddy McGee, “Just being able to spend time is good enough, it’s just another day to me.”

Even those who can’t be together on the holiday still hold expectations. “My girlfriend lives in Oregon,” said senior Kurt Hilderbrant, “So the only thing I really expect is a text letting me know shes thinking of me.”

The only thing people expect from their significant other on Valentine’s Day is their time because of the way Valentine’s Day is portrayed as being shared by the couple together. The pressure comes more into play when talking about what to give.

“I think I’ll go over to her house, make her breakfast and buy her some flowers.” said Cuschieri.

Spending time on Valentine’s Day applies to those even in long distance relationships. Hilderbrant said, “We have a long distance relationship so I can’t really go over to her and surprise her like I would like to, so I plan on just texting her or maybe facetiming.”

People want to give the best to their partner in order to demonstrate how much they love them, which is overall the message put out by valentines day in the first place.

“I like having a day set aside just to show the other how much you care about them,” said Cuschieri, “It’s a nice idea.”

Having one day to go all out and prove love for the other person is the whole theme of Valentine's Day. It of course has pressures that go alongside it, and depending on the person it may or may not be as positively regarded.

“If you're in a relationship, it’s your job to treat your girl like a princess every day. If you only do it one day a year, on Valentine’s Day, then you’re not doing your job.” said Hilderbrant.

Regardless of whether someone views Valentine’s Day as a day taken aside to prove how much one another care, or as a hallmark holiday, everyone in a relationship faces some form of expectations on that day. However these expectations aren’t found in material value but, its apparent that what couples really expect on the fourteenth of February is one another’s time.

Getting the perfect gift for the perfect someone

By Alex Wildman Staff Writer

“Personally I’d like food” Cameron Kuo Sophomore

“ VS “

I love flowers and Alison Luna chocolate Sophomore

My dream date would be staying home with chinese take-out and a Joanna Tabacek movie Sophomore

“I would want a Niners beanie” Leo Wilson

Sophomore

Segal said, “I get them roses because I love flowers and I think it's a nice gesture besides, I could never have chocolate and then give it away.”

Although different gifts are appropriate for different relationships, it is important to keep in mind that it isn’t always the gift, but rather the thought that counts.

Sophomore Pyper Hayden said, “A gift doesn’t have to be expensive, it just has to be something that took some thought.”

Generally, for friends, food is always a good option. It’s easy, inexpensive, and thoughtful to whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookies.

Just one batch of the Nestle Toll House recipe will make up to 50 cookies to share with loved ones. That one batch surely will not cost more than 20 dollars, but the smiles on friends’ faces

GIRLS

“

GUYS

“

Valentine’s Day is known as the day of love, but what most people forget is that there is more than one kind of love.

Junior Brian Palma said, “I personally think of Valentine’s Day as a day of appreciating those close to you.”

Whether in a relationship or not, people always enjoy receiving a little celebratory something from people they care about.

“I've never been in a relationship on Valentine’s Day, but it doesn't bother me. I love my friends just as much as I'd ever love someone romantically,” said sophomore Sierra Segal.

There are others that share Segal’s view that being in a relationship on Valentine’s Day is not the most important thing.

Sophomore Claire Spivak said, “I personally don’t mind not being in a relationship on Valentine’s Day, it doesn’t really matter to me that much.”

While some people don’t think about getting gifts for friends or family on Valentine’s Day, it is done, and is also a great surprise for people in that mid-school year slump.

“It makes me feel happy to know that someone would think of me and give me a gift,” said sophomore Kate Bryan.

The question therefore becomes what to get their significant other for Valentine’s Day?

Getting the perfect gift for...

will be priceless. Infographic by Ashley Kawakami Another option is to be creative and make a handmade card or do-it-yourself project. Some construction paper and markers are all that’s necessary to make a heartfelt gift for friends, family, or that special someone.

To take a DIY project a step further, Spivak said, “You can make them a little book, writing things that you love about that person.”

A book of compliments or memories is the perfect way to show someone you care.

Getting gifts for friends of the same gender is usually easy because no one worries that their gift will be taken as a romantic gesture.

However, giving gifts to member of the opposite sex (if not a girlfriend or boyfriend) can be uncomfortable.

“Giving gifts to friends who aren’t the same

gender as me is weird in that it might get taken the wrong way and make things awkward between us,” said sophomore Wesley Lim. In these situations, it might be better to give a card, a hug, or verbal message saying how much one cares for their friend instead of a physical gift to avoid any misunderstandings or discomfort.

If Hayden were giving gifts to her male friends she said, “I would probably give my guy friends a homemade card and maybe a bar of chocolate.”

Next is what to get for the people that give it all, the parents. Typically, all parents truly want is the love and affection of their children, but if a teenager wants to do something extra special they can think about breakfast in bed, making dinner, or vacuuming. Helping out around the house is sure to win some brownie points.

Hayden said, “My parents don't really like when I make breakfast. I've tried it before but it always wakes them up. They would be pretty happy if I would clean for them though.”

Teenagers can forget that their parents want and need to be reminded that they are cared for just as much as everyone else, especially on Valentine’s Day. Freshman Ilana Hamer said, “Maybe writing them a note or leaving them a nice message would be good. It doesn’t have to be expensive, but it should be something personal and to show you appreciate them.”

Valentine’s Day in the 21st century: what it means today

By Karissa Tom Campus Editor

Red roses, boxes of chocolates, pink hearts, romantic candlelit dinners. Instantly, people think of Valentine’s Day. It started with St. Valentine, then cheesy Hallmark cards and then came the classic movies.

If you're single, the typical response is negative. Feb. 14. Forever alone. Happy Single Awareness Day. Or as others might call it: Doomsday.

Perhaps that last description is a bit more morbid than its more commonly known title. Valentine’s Day was never something that I have ever really despised. In fact, I look forward to it every year.

Maybe it’s because I’m a sucker for a good romantic comedy, or it’s because I love being able to wear an extreme amount of

hearts. I don’t know, but I, for lack of a better word, love it.

However, unlike me, many of my peers despise Valentine’s Day and will do anything to steer clear of it. They try to avoid Valentine’s Day like it’s homework.

Valentine’s Day in high school is nothing like Valentine’s Day in elementary school, when in exchange for being forced to bring valentines for your classmates, you would get a pound of candy. Even if you didn’t even remotely like the person you got the valentine from, at least you got a free temporary tattoo.

The main reason that most high schoolers hate Valentine’s Day is because it reminds people that they are single or “forever alone.” The things that are constantly on most teenage minds are relationships.

We quickly develop this fear that we’ll end up eternally alone.

At young ages, it is programmed into our minds that love is the endgame. We learn that staying single means that we will most

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likely end up as that crazy cat lady.

Romeo and Juliet. Harry and Sally. Troy and Gabriella.

It has been written about millions of times. Books, movies, songs. According to the History Channel, Valentine’s Day greetings go as far back as the Middle Ages.

Some will try to tell me that Valentine’s Day is overrated, that Valentine’s Day is the worst day, that Valentine’s Day is a corporate holiday made by big companies like Hallmark to make the big bucks.

But to that, I say that Valentine’s Day is more than a day to tell someone that you love them romantically. It’s a day to tell your friends and family that you appreciate them. Valentine’s Day is more than cheesy, cliche romantic gestures; it is about celebrating love. It is about celebrating friends and family.

So, this Valentine’s Day, spread the love and enjoy a cheesy movie.

Page 8

Features

The Highlander

January 2014

Public displays of affection: going viral Some students have no problem with making out in the middle of crowded hallways.

The miracle of modern technology now means that those kissing couples are also invading the phone screens of their peers.

With the integration of social media in today’s society, the controversial topic of what is appropriate for PDA has expanded its boundaries.

Wikipedia defines public displays of affection as “acts of physical intimacy in the view of others. What is an acceptable display of affection varies with respect to culture and context.”

Witnessing PDA in action isn’t that unusual in a high school setting, and it has now also infiltrated the Internet in social media like Facebook and Instagram. A relationship status on a Facebook page or an Instagram bio page is fairly standard for many couples. Photographs, statuses, and profile pictures including a person with his or her significant other are other typical examples of online PDA. The David Coleman Dating Doctor website called too much of this type of PDA of a “modern dating faux pas.” Most people would agree that there is a limit to how much is acceptable to post- the problem now is agreeing on what that limit is.

Being uncomfortable watching PDA in action is not uncommon. Sophomore Andrew De Lamare said, “It’s none of my business, but

Public Displays of Affection Online

Continuous pictures of a couple not doing anything except hanging out as a couple can get annoying Sabrina Liu, junior I understand that it can make people feel better to talk about a breakup but it can get annoying if it’s online all the time.

In Person

VS

It’s none of my buisness, but if it’s people making out right in front of me it is kind of gross -Andrew De Lamare sophomore

Brittany Cheung, freshman

if it’s [people making out] right in front of me it is kind of gross.”

The type of affection being shown can be the main decision-maker in whether or not it’s appropriate for a public setting.

In American culture, there are some actions that are deemed okay for public in most cases.

Holding hands, hugging, opening a door for another or a brief kiss are some of the acts that general society is okay with seeing couples do.

However, when couples’ affections start becoming more physical in a public environment, the opinion on if it’s appropriate starts to change.

“I do post pictures of my boyfriend and I on social media, but I don’t feel like I’m obnoxious about it,” said sophomore Viviana Tsangaropoulos. “We put up goofy pictures and keep most of our relationship to ourselves.

I’ve never posted a picture of us kissing- I don’t

Infographic by Ashley Kawakami

By Aria Frangos Staff Writer

think anyone really wants to see that.”

Some say that their opinion on seeing PDA depends more on how often it occurs.

If a Facebook profile is filled with a constant stream of clingy photos and statuses from a couple without mention of any other topics, it can get old quickly.

Junior Sabrina Liu said, “It’s fine to put up pictures about events, but everyone doesn’t need to see a couple posting all of their selfies online.”

Status updates with pet names and constant endearments also have the potential to turn stale to viewers. Tsangaropoulos said, “High school couples ‘fall in love’ within a couple weeks. I don’t consider most relationships at this age real love, so I don’t like it when people post ‘I love you’ online.”

Social updates with statuses about a bad breakup or the infamous “I miss you” status

are also not uncommon.

“I understand that it can make people feel better to talk about a breakup to let it go,” said freshman Brittany Cheung, “but it can get annoying if it’s online all the time. Some people just do it for the attention.”

Others don’t feel that PDA is an issue in social media. “PDA doesn’t bother me,” said sophomore Caitlin Caslow.“It’s cute when people aren’t afraid to share their relationship with others.”

Posting pictures with a boyfriend or girlfriend can be fun and cute. Sharing affection for another on social media is not something out of the ordinary, and what people are alright with showing and seeing of a relationship is a matter of opinion.

“Online, I think the biggest problem is that what goes on the Internet is going to stay there and can affect you later,” said De Lamare.

“Some people don’t realize that. Post what you want, but remember that it’s never going to go away.”

There is a wide spectrum of views on what is okay in terms of online PDA. The general consensus is that appropriateness is simply a matter of how much, how often, and other people’s personal opinions on the subject.

“In general, I don’t think there’s too much emphasis on high school relationships. Making a relationship ‘Facebook official’ is definitely not necessary,” said senior Miles Coe. “But it’s fun to be part of a relationship, and it’s not a bad thing to see others in one too.”

One of 365: Valentine’s day is just another day

By Alisa Takahashi Staff Writer Like your birthday and holidays like New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day is another way of judging your relationships with your peers. Some people will receive chocolates and flowers filled with love, while others will scoff at the whole day entirely.

Many would say it is just a commercial holiday, but we still celebrate it, and that suggests that people acknowledge it and might even like it.

Valentine’s Day seems to have this magical power that turns candy wrappers red and creates heart shaped wrappers on everything. Flowers seem to bloom and love seems to float in the air.

Freshman Daniel Wehara said, “The date really has no correlation with the holiday. There shouldn’t be a particular day where someone should express their love, they should be able

to all the time.”

What may have started out as a holiday intended to bring couples together has been transformed into a commercial spectacle peddled to us by florists, greeting card companies, jewelry stores, and makers of stuffed animals.

However, according to sophomore Sydney Cho, “It’s definitely worth it. The holiday has gotten more materialistic and a larger pressure to impress people with gifts has risen, but the holiday still has meaning to it. It is a day to show your family and friends how much you love and cherish them.”

On the contrary, sophomore Kayla Fong said, “I think Valentine’s Day is a pointless holiday, especially if you’re not in a relationship. Sure, it’s nice to give your friends and family some chocolates and tell them you love them, but that could really be done any day.”

Sophomore Shayla Lusk said, “Valentine’s Day is one lousy day to get a little silly about it, to get a bit more into it and to get out of the normal ways of showing love on this one day. It

can’t hurt.”

Freshman Liam Jocson said, “I think on Valentine’s Day too many people put a serious stress on the material value of the day especially in relationships. The day should really be focused on showing love to your significant others emotionally, and not through physical objects like gifts.”

There is no real answer to whether Valentine’s Day is worth celebrating or not, but it is important to remember what truly matters on that day.

Sharing love for friends and family is really what counts. It doesn’t matter where it is spent, or the gifts received, but that you had a good time with people you love, whether that is a friend or a boyfriend or girlfriend.

Ultimately, Valentine’s Day is just another holiday. It is supposed to be fun. Figure out what will make it fun, and then do that. It’s different for everyone, but ice cream cake and chocolates should lead you in the right direction.

The need to be in a high school relationship

By Danielle Hamer

Roses are red, violets are blue, many high schoolers are in relationships- but does that mean that you have to be too?

The new year has been ushered in, and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Each year, Feb. 14, sometimes dubbed as “Single Awareness Day,” or “Forever Alone Day,” reminds the singles in society of the pressure to have boyfriends or girlfriends throughout their four years in high school.

Junior Amanda Breslauer said, “In high school, there is so much pressure for people to be in a relationship, and ‘high school sweethearts’ are a bigger deal than they should.”

Boys, girls see it in the same way: high school can put the wrong kind of pressure on those who haven’t found “the one,” or even “one” at all, which can cause students to rush into relationships that they might not even want to be in.

Junior Kathleen Perry, who has been in a relationship since middle school, does not deny the fact that seeing those who are “happily taken” can have an effect on those who are not.

“Girls often go out with their significant other just because they like the idea of having a relationship, because they feel that it is

Photo by Lara Ostroff

Staff Writer

Some single high schoolers feel the need to be in a relationship. ‘the right thing to do.’ I feel that if you truly think that they are doing something wrong by like someone, go ahead, be in a relationship, not being one half of a perfect couple. While but doing it to imitate the couples who you see wanting this picture of perfection often dubs as happy or ‘that perfect couple’ is not a good teenagers as “needy,” singles naturally find it reason,” said Perry. hard to resist wanting the world of “coupleBoys also have motives for being in relation- dom,” painted by media and advertisements as ships- simply to show off their “dream girl.” an unwavering happy place.

Junior Mitchell Wright said, “It seems that Senior Melanie Anderson said, “Social meguys are considered cooler when they are go- dia sites, like Instagram, Twitter, and Faceing out with a hot girl. That puts pressure on book, are all about picture-perfect couples, people to go out and immediately find some- and advertisements on television are all about one attractive so they can be accepted.” what to buy in order to attract others. The Between public prom proposals, pictures of ideas of love and relationships are constantly “date nights” on Facebook walls, and stores full pushed on to teenagers, because social media of romantic presents around Valentine’s Day, has become such a big part of our lives.” teenagers who are single can feel left out, or As high schoolers get older and the pressure

to find a significant other grows, the concept of getting a boyfriend or girlfriend as quickly as possible becomes more important than the possibility that relationships are not always flawless, and take work.

Throughout his four years of high school, Ryan Pau has learned a lot about how relationships are not all about candy. Pau notes the toils of relationships can affect a couple.

“I have seen that, in couples, both people have to be mature and trusting. Otherwise, the relationship is not going to work out and the two will constantly fight, causing both people to be unhappy. In addition, a lot of useless drama and gossip comes from misunderstandings in relationships, which is annoying and upsetting for everyone involved,” said Pau. Relationships are so idolized in high school, that society sometimes forgets the perks of being independent and single.

Junior Raneem Mokatrin said, “By not being in a relationship, I have so much time for my friends, and I do not have to worry about the drama that I often see can come with a relationship. High school society seems to assert that people can not be happy unless they are in a relationship, but I do not see it that way.”

The rush for relationships gets more urgent as time goes on, but the importance of doing what works for you stays the same.

Page 9

Features

The Highlander

January 2014

Fact or fiction: exploring the friend zone

By Ivy Nguyen Staff Writer Is there that certain friend you like like? Do you go places together or text each other into the late hours of the night? Do you listen to all of their romantic problems and disappointments, all while praying that one day they will have some revelation and realize that you have been "The One" all along?

According to some people, you are in the dreaded “friend zone.”

The “friend zone” has evolved into a catchall term for unrequited sexual interest. It has generated countless jokes and even an MTV reality dating show. Although many pop culture tropes are short-lived, the “friend zone” has lingered since it was first coined in a 1994 episode of “Friends” in which Joey refers to a lovelorn Ross as the “mayor of the friend zone.”

Although the term is ostensibly gender-neutral and sexuality-neutral, it has a few problematic implications. It is a common term

Cole Castro 11th

used among men voicing their frustrations with the opposite sex. The term generally refers to heterosexual relationships with the male as the “friend-zoned” and the female as the object of unrequited desire.

The movie “Just Friends” illustrates this hypothetical situation.

Chris: What about Sheila? You making any headway?

Ray: We’ll see. I’m taking her to lunch today.

Chris: Oh, whoa, whoa whoa. Don’t – don’t do that. Okay? Don’t do lunch.

Ray: Why? Chris: That’s like the express lane to the friend zone.

Ray: What the hell’s the friend zone?

Chris: See, when a girl decides that you’re her friend, you’re no longer a dating option. You become this complete non-sexual entity in her eyes, like her brother, or a lamp.

Ray: I don’t want to be a lamp.

Chris: Yeah, well then don’t be her friend, okay?

These men confusedly think that there is no way for people to be attracted to each other

once they become friends. To them, the window of opportunity with a woman is gone and friendship sets in like an infection.

On the other hand, there are not many examples of women claiming to be “friendzoned.” This is not because it occurs less often, but because females are socially conditioned to be less vocal and more internalized about their sexual desires. Instead of blaming men for saying no, some women think that there is something wrong with themselves.

On the Internet, many people gather on Reddit, YouTube comment threads, and forums to share their experiences with being “friend-zoned.” They grumble about having done all of the “work” or “investing” time into a friendship without reaping any benefits.

Laura Bajurin, a sophomore, said, “Just because you’re nice to them doesn’t mean that they’re going to want to be with you or sleep with you.”

Many believe that the “friend zone” is a nebulous space that is impossible to escape, but it really just absolves them of any responsibility for their actions or obligation to tell their

friend how they feel. The “friend zone” gives a man the benefit of blaming a woman for exercising her right to say no to his romantic advances, even though he let her copy off of his homework that one time.

However, some think that the women are the ones who benefit from the “friend zone.”

Akshay Mohan, a sophomore, said, "I think it gives girls a way to reject a guy without giving them the real reason.”

James Pak, a junior, agrees. He said, "Women can possibly benefit from it by exploiting the guy to do whatever they want."

Bajurin said, "Some people do take advantage and exploit others, but it's unfair to lump them in with all women and say that they all do that."

This is not about some global phenomenon of women mistreating and taking advantage of men. The hard truth is that the phrases “I just want to be friends” and “I like you, but…” are not women throwing men into the “friend zone”; they are socially pressured ways of saying "No."

What is the friend zone?

“Being friends with someone you like but having them only like you as a friend.”

According to the article “Escape The Friend Zone: From Friend to Girlfriend or Boyfriend,” written by Dr. Jeremy Nicholson, the friend zone is a term that, “refers to a situation where one individual in a friendship develops more intense feelings and wants to become “more than friends” with the other person. The friend zone can mean many different things, people view the friend zone in different ways.

There are many different ways and reasons why people get stuck in the friend zone, but there are ways to get out of the friend zone. Different people have different opinions about the situation with some thinking it’s possible to get out of the friend zone while others don’t.

Hayden Clark 9th “An excuse someone uses

when in an awkward situation involving someone from the opposite sex.”

Arian Tabarroj 12th

“When you get too close to a girl and she looks at you as her brother and she tells you her boy problems.”

Sabrina Liu 11th

“When someone has one sided affection for the other person.”

How to get out of the zone:

1.

2.

3.

Seem less interested.

Make yourself scarce.

4.

5.

Get them to invest.

Be rewarding.

Create some competition.

Research and graphic by Ariana Crame

Prince Charming only exists on the big screen

By Gianna Schuster

Such blogging is present not only on Tumblr, but across a multitude of social media netStaff Writer works as well.

Let us think back to when we were staring The outburst of all these flawless relationbug-eyed at a movie screen during a tear-jerk- ship portrayals come with the perception that ing romance film, or squealing uncontrollably endless joy can be achieved through an unat the sight of a heartthrob on television. So breakable bond between two hormone-crazed in love with the idea of love, teenagers glorify teenagers who possess more confusion than romance to such a high level that we are in a brain cells. genuine state of shock when we do not receive “Perfect relationships are always appearing the impossible out of a relationship, or if we in movies and online, but not every couple are not in one, for that matter. can be like that,” said junior Savannah Grech.

Prince Charming may exist in the latest “We’re still young, so being without the perblockbuster, but he may not exactly stroll by fect relationship doesn’t mean that we’re going us in the hallway on our way to class. to live the rest of our lives in a traumatic state According to conventional teenage wisdom, of loneliness.” the most successful relationships are reached Glorifying romance and relationships to when every minute with that special someone such an extreme can, and often does, lead to is equivalent to an absolute fairytale. We have love being “seen as something that you have to the “perfect relationship” all cooked up, but it strive for, something you should have to feel often does not turn out imagined. confident in yourself. They [adolescents] are in Beas a Friend !

J an uareafamiliar r y with i sthe N atio athe l idea of it, but really, I think that Many of us explosion loven with M erelationships.” n t o r i In nthis g blogging Mon t h of “Tumblr we’re too young to even know what [love] is,” style, romantic quotes and photos portraying said junior Elise Dimick. relationships demonstrate the “perfect” date, With loads of societal and peer pressure, the “perfect” kiss, and the “perfect” love life. even casual relationships are often thought to

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T h u r s d a y, J a n u a r y 2 7 t h 2 0 1 1 M T V- 4 3 - 1 - B e n g h a z i Te c h Ta l k 12 - 1pm

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be essential for the highest possible well-being.

“Society glamorizes relationships because they make it seem as if you almost need it, when you really don’t,” said junior Brandon Cuschieri. “You could be on your own and just have good friends.”

Being single is not the same thing as being alone. We can surround ourselves with friends and family who truly care, and not be lonely.

Senior Scott Harris said, “I don’t think it’s necessary to have [a relationship] because many people don’t.”

Being in love with the very concept of romance is usually more common than being in love with an actual person. This idea can be due partly to how we value others’ perceptions toward ourselves.

“I think people try too hard to be in a relationship just for the sake of being in a relationship, for either a popularity or a status thing,” said junior Sydney Salzman. “For instance, I know guys who are constantly looking for girls to go to formal with just for the sake of having a date to formal. Personally, I try not to obsess over relationships, because relationships shouldn’t be worth obsessing over.”

It is not every day that we witness the guy sitting next to us in math rambling about his so-called tragic future of being “forever alone” in a house full of cats.

“Girls worry much more about being in [the perfect relationship] than guys do. But in reality, it’s unnecessary to be thinking that way, because people just need to be happy with themselves,” said junior Natalie Tussy. “Honestly, if you look around you, there are so many people who aren’t in relationships or have never even been in a relationship before, and they’re just as happy.”

Young as we are, the “perfect” relationship is out of our reach most of the time. Struggling through our teenage years, managing a relationship is not a breeze, and neither is finding or maintaining one.

Just because you’re single, it doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world,” said Grech.

If the person we are in a relationship with does not shower us with chocolate and roses this Valentine’s Day, it does not mean that the relationship is an ugly disaster. It just means that we’ll have to go a day without sugar and flowers.

Page 10

Features New Years means new things for different cultures

January 2014

The Highlander

By Tara Shahrvini Staff Writer

The New Year does not always begin Jan. 1.

In many cultures, the new year begins at the start of a month or season.

Sophomore Alex Singer said, “New Year for a lot of high schoolers is a time to go out and be with friends. In a lot of other cultures it has a more serious celebration that is definitely more family oriented. Nowadays, the American New Year is just another bad excuse for people to go and party. I think the New Year should mean more than just friends and parties.”

Both the Chinese and Persian New Years are known as cultural celebrations that differ from the modern-day American New Year.

This year, the Chinese year of the horse will begin on Jan. 30, and the Persian New Year, celebrated throughout the Middle East, will be held on March 20, the first day of Spring.

Traditionally, the Chinese New Year is a

time to celebrate family. It lasts 15 days and represents another year of survival.

C a r l m o n t ’s Chinese teacher Mindy Chiang said, “In the old days, family members who had gone off to work would come home to their parents and celebrate the end of the harvest. Today, most families simply have reunions.”

The Chinese New Year is also well-known for its zodiac signs. The zodiac for 2014 is the horse, symbolizing agility, loyalty, and talent.

Norouz, the Persian New Year, is similar to the Chinese New Year.

Originally a religious Iranian holiday, Norouz is now celebrated throughout the Mid-

dle East by people of all religions.

Norouz lasts five days and is celebrated by visiting family and friends.

By having New Year celebrations on the Free Vector Graphics first day of Spring, the Persian culture emphasizes its desire to spread prosperity and life.

“Every year my family spends the week of Norouz visiting family. It’s tradition to visit the people you are closest with and your elders because the Persian New Year is basically a celebration of life,” said sophomore Sage Shamsai.

Unlike the American New Year, both the

Chinese and Persian New Years are celebrated for more than a day. These other New Years also place a large emphasis on spending time with family rather than friends.

Both of these cultured New Years celebrations also involve certain distinct foods.

Sophomore Melissa Chee said, “My family always eats noodles during the Chinese New Year because they are a sign of longevity and luck.”

Essential to the Iranian celebration of Norouz is the Haft-Sin table. Seven different items are placed on the table to symbolize the start of a new year, including wheat, dried fruit, garlic, vinegar, apples, sumac berries, and a sweet pudding.

All of the Iranian foods eaten have distinct meanings that revolve around the ideas of survival and celebrations.

Although these other New Years are not held on Jan. 1, and are not celebrated as the American one is, they clearly express the importance of family, friendship, and renewal.

Ways to obtain music

Misconceptions of vegetarians

The great philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once wrote that “without music, life would be a mistake.”

Each individual has their own tastes, with varying likes and dislikes, ranging many artists and genres from person to person. Similarly to the various types of music to which people listen, there are also many different ways to obtain this music.

Most of these ways follow one of two strategies. The first strategy is by traditional records, or the highly popular iTunes, where music is purchased directly, and may be owned and enjoyed by the customer from then on. The second is by music radio or services such as Spotify, in which users can listen to music for free, but do not own it, and are sometimes subject to advertisements, in order to keep such services profitable.

There are several nuances between the various sources in both categories, however. These include the inability to reliably request songs to be played on FM radio, contrasted with a more personalized approach on many Internet radio services. Another example would be the ability to purchase single tracks off of an album on a service such as iTunes, whereas entire albums must be purchased at a CD store.

It is these various nuances that lead to the ultimate decision of where the consumer gets his or her music.

Ana Tudor, a freshman at Carlmont, mainly acquires her music through her parents’ colelection.

“A lot of it is old stuff from my parents that they got off of CDs,” said Tudor. She also said that she uses iTunes to purchase newer music.

When someone is a vegetarian, people typically will associate them with being a hippie meat-protesting extremist, but this is an untrue stereotype.

Vegetarians have built up a bad reputation in society with extreme groups like PETA putting on large anti-meat demonstrations, and some non-vegetarians think that all vegetarians act this way.

The truth is, the majority of vegetarians keep their eating habits to themselves and let others choose their food as they please.

Vegetarian sophomore Cailan Cumming said, “I started being a vegetarian a while ago just so I could know what it’s like, then I learned about all the different aspects of animal rights and health factors so I decided to stick with it.”

English Teacher Carole Pierce, who once headed Carlmont’s Student Animal Protection Advocates club and follows a vegan diet, said, “Meat has become part of culture, people have been conditioned to believe that eating meat will make your muscles bigger and drinking milk will make your bones stronger.”

English Teacher Victoria Nilson, who also believes in a vegan diet, said, “When I was 14, I saw my mother with a big slab of plastic wrapped meat and I just had an epiphany, ‘That’s an animal.’”

Everyone has their own reason for choosing a vegetarian or vegan diet. For some, it may be animal rights or health issues, but for some it’s much simpler than that.

Sophomore Laura Bajurin said, “I’m a vegetarian because I just don’t like the taste of meat.”

By Maxwell Ware Staff Writer

While systems like this may work for those like Tudor, sometimes one’s musical tastes will differ from that of one’s parents. Or, in the case of Caitlin Tsai, a junior at Carlmont, they will differ from the tastes of many Americans.

“I sometimes use Japanese websites because I like to listen to music that isn’t on iTunes,” said Tsai.

As stated before, another important reason to not use services such as iTunes is the simple fact that they require input of money beyond paying an electrical bill.

“To listen to music, I mostly use YouTube,” said Aaron Yofin, a sophomore at Carlmont.

“The loading time can be bad if you have a slow internet connection, but it’s free. On iTunes, you have to pay.”

In addition to legal means of obtaining music, there is a considerable population of young people that use illegal downloads to get their music for free. There are many ways to illegally acquire music online, but a very common way is through the use of YouTube converters, in which the audio file from a YouTube video is converted into an mp3 format.

One junior who illegally downloads music said, “[For the] artists that I respect, I’ll buy their music off iTunes. But if I don’t respect them, but I like a song or two [from them], I’ll illegally download it.”

There is also widespread use of Internet radio services, such as Pandora or Spotify, among students at Carlmont. However, there a major downside to using such services for free.

“Pandora has restrictions- like when you can only listen to something once,” said Jack Stanger, a junior at Carlmont. “When I listen to music on my iPod, I don’t have to have access to the Internet.”

By Shayan Mandegarian Staff Writer

Journalism

On the topic of vegetarian activist groups, Nilson said, “I can understand where they are coming from and do believe some of their points, I think they come off too strong and should try a more gentle approach.”

On the other hand, non-vegetarians also have their own reasons for the diet they choose.

Sophomore Brandon Lee said, “It would be hard to break my old habits, and I wouldn’t have the discipline to continue as a vegetarian for very long.”

Sophomore Austin Tang shares Lee’s view that vegetarianism just is not for them.

“Being a vegetarian would restrict your variety of food choice, and it would be too much of a hassle to try to always make sure everything you eat is really vegetarian,” said Tang.

Nilson also said, “I hope people can be more open minded and learn about all aspects of what goes into the food they eat and really think about it.”

Like Pierce said, following a vegan or vegetarian diet would seem to go against much of today’s popular culture.

Freshman Holly Chen said, “It is in my culture to eat meat, I was raised eating it.”

Popular advertising campaign “got milk?” is very well known since it can be found everywhere from the TV screen to the school cafeteria, convincing people starting from a young age what kind of diet they should be following.

Whether you ask a MEAT club member or a PETA member, each person has their own opinion on vegetarianism and veganism.

Overall, vegetarianism or non-vegetarianism has a different meaning to each individual and is just a small aspect of a person’s life.

Do you have issues too? If so, join our National Award Winning high school media staff and sign up for

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Page 11

Features

The Highlander

January 2014

Late night studying harms teenagers

By Kimiko Okumura Staff Writer

Staying up late occasionally happens to all teenagers, but for students that consistently stay up late, it can impact their success in school.

Sacrificing the recommended hours of sleep for academic success is something many students do. Teenagers even pull allnighters to cram for multiple tests the next day or perfect the essay they’ve been working on.

There are countless numbers of articles and studies showing the health consequences of lack of sleep, such as a weaker immune system and a higher risk to get diseases such as heart disease or diabetes.

According to Timothy Morgenthaler, M.D. from Mayo Clinic, the body releases proteins called cytokines when sleeping. When someone is sick with an infection or inflammation, or under stress, the body needs more cytokines to maintain a healthy body.

However, with sleep deprivation, the body isn’t able to produce enough cytokines, which is why sleep affects the immune system. The effects can be short term like getting a cold, but also an increase in risk of obesity or diabetes.

According to Michael Breus, clinical psychologist, short term consequences of sleep deprivation also include poor quality of life, automobile injuries and decrease in performance.

There are also countless academic consequences for students getting little sleep. According to the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, sleep plays a very important role in the brain’s memory and ability to learn.

Sophomore Kamrin Choye said, “When I’m tired, I have less energy and I have trouble concentrating on anything other than how tired I am. I become less engaged in learning the lesson, I don’t participate in conversation or ask questions, and I don’t put forth as much effort as I normally do.”

Choye is not the only student that’s familiar with this feeling of sleepiness that leads to problems the next day in school.

“I’ve noticed that when I study earlier I can retain information better to perform well on tests. I find it harder to concentrate when I’m trying to study while half falling asleep,” said sophomore Kayla Fong.

“After 12 a.m. I don’t remember anything so I try not to stay up that late. If I’m studying and not doing homework I’ll go

to sleep at 12. I think if you’re doing productive work it’s okay. It’s beneficial for me because I need the time to study and do homework for all of my classes,” said sophomore Jason Chow.

Learning and memory is characterized into three functions; acquisition, consolidation, and recall. Acquisition is the introduction of new material. Consolidation is the process the brain undergoes to stabilize a memory. Recall is the ability to access information stored in the brain.

All three steps are necessary in effective memory function. Acquisition and recall functions only occur when a person is fully awake. Consolidation occurs while a per- Chelsea Stewart son is sleeping, consolidation memories and information from that day into the brain. Less sleep means less time for the brain the consolidate this information which impacts the efficiency of the acquisition and recall functions.

Sleep deprivation also affects cognitive processes, such as attention, alertness, concentration, and problem solving.

There are only so many hours in one day, so students must prioritize and decide what they must sacrifice. Getting an appropriate amount of sleep is very crucial in the wellness of a student, but what about when grades come into play?

Most students sacrifice sleep for an A on a test or in a class, whether they know about the risks and side effects or not.

“It’s better to try to study earlier do you can get a good night’s sleep before the day of a test. Sports and extracurricular activities force many students to resort to late night studying.

As long as you can get up on time and remember the information you studied, late night studying can work,” said Fong.

Sophomore Gina Cassacia said, “I think studying late is acceptable if it’s within reason. I do it sometimes because it works

for me, but if I find myself not processing what I’m doing, I go to sleep.”

Gina Cassacia’s mother Lisa Cassacia said, “Late night studying simply cannot be avoided because of all of the homework.

I don’t like it because besides being tired the next day, not enough sleep can get you sick.”

There are ways that help relieve sleepiness from the sleep deprived, even if its short lived. For example, the late start Wednesdays push back the start of school an hour later. Although this wasn’t initiated so students could sleep an extra hour, it does allow students to sleep in.

“I like Wednesdays because I get to sleep in which helps me pay more attention in school,” said senior Anisah Smith.

“There should be a balance between life and school. If there isn’t a balance, things need to change so you can have a happy life. Sleep is important,” said math teacher Laura Robeck.

Although its difficult to always avoid staying up late studying, it’s important to know how the body and brain can suffer.

Advantages on SAT scores can be bought through extra tutoring

By Brooke Buckley Staff Writer

How much money would you pay for your future? Some Carlmont students are willing to pay up to a thousand dollars for Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) preparations.

The SAT is the nation’s most widely used admissions exam among colleges in the United States. Every year students must rise to the challenge of taking this rigorous test because their futures depend on it.

Carlmont junior Adrianna Boubalos said, “It’s nerve wracking to think about taking the SAT. I wish Carlmont would guide us more on how to get prepared.”

To accommodate with the pressure of receiving an “acceptable” score, many students participate in SAT tutoring sessions.

According to the College Board, an average score on the SAT ranges around 1400 points.

Junior Jen Anthony said, “I feel like the ‘average’ SAT score is not socially accepted. Personally speaking I feel pressured to get at least a 2000.”

Junior Sydney Carlier is preparing for her first SAT test in March and said, “I’ve been taking private sessions at AJ tutoring in Menlo Atherton, I know its overpriced but, depending on the person and how well you want to do on the test classes can be essential for getting prepared.”

Students often pay for expensive tutoring sessions to get an advantage on the SAT. Senior Bailee Roces also went to AJ tutoring and said, “It was around $1,500 for a package deal of one-on-one sessions.”

Senior Shaina Gulati said, “After attending private sessions I improved my score by 250 points, I know the sessions were extremely expensive, but they were helpful and a lot easier than having to read practice books on my own.”

Many Carlmont students do not have the financial support to pay for private SAT sessions.

Junior Lexi Jenkins said, “I feel like it’s a disadvantage for the kids who can’t afford private SAT tutoring.”

Last year Carlmont teacher Stephen Lucia offered two courses of free SAT classes for Carlmont students.

“I offered one five-week course of classes five days a week,

and I also offered a second session that was four weeks long and five days a week,” said Lucia.

Carlmont tries to accommodate students’ financial needs by offering free practice sessions for the SAT. Many teachers are also happy to help students study and prepare.

“I wanted to offer rigorous SAT preparation classes to promote equity among Carlmont students. It’s important that everyone has access to a high quality education,” said Lucia.

Lucia was a lead instructor at Ivy Tutor in Palo Alto where he trained teachers how to effectively teach the SAT. Students who attended Lucia’s classes regularly had a 250500 point increase in their SAT scores. These results have encouraged Lucia to offer another free course next year.

Carlmont student Aaron Morimoto attended Lucia’s sessions and said, “The classes were really helpful and brought up my SAT score by at least 200 points. Not to mention it was convenient to attend the classes at Carlmont instead of a tutoring company.”

Lucia said, “It’s about making a difference, and helping students go to the college of their dreams.”

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Page 12 The Highlander

Lifestyle

January 2014

Generation 1.5: the bridge between two cultures

By Grace Yi Staff Writer “English is my third language. I don’t like to talk [in English] unless it is necessary so I don’t embarass myself. I am shy and afraid to interact with others,” said junior Arthur Lam described his experience of being part of the 1.5 generation.

Students who are part of the “1.5 generation,” a term used to describe people who immigrated to the US as children and adolescents, share a unique experience. Unlike their firstgeneration parents or US-born siblings, their identity is split.

They are American in many ways, but not entirely.

Depending on how old the student is upon arrival and where they grow up, their American or immigrant identities vary, as do their role in their families. They can serve as a cultural interpreter and translator helping parents and grandparents navigate their new home. Or they can feel like outcasts, as some may have limited literacy in the English language.

“For the first five months after I moved to America, I would come home with a huge headache because I couldn’t understand. Starting the second semester of my sophomore year I started to have more confidence ,” said senior Simonetta Cocco.

Because “1.5 generation” students are foreign-born, they speak in their native language and later learn English when they attend their first year of school. According to E.D. Oudenhoven’s Case study of 2006, “1.5 generation” students are “ear learners;” that is, they learn English through listening to others speak in English instead of learning through grammar and sentence construction. Although some may seem like they have mastered the English language their essays say otherwise.

Many 1.5 generation students are the first to attend a college within their family and struggle to achieve their goals while fulfilling the high expectations of their parents, especially with traditional values, work, and school.

“I didn’t think of attending a college in America until this past summer because the school system in America is different from the system in Italy,” said Cocco.

There is no single way to define a 1.5 generation student, except that they have the additional challenge of balancing the traditional values of their native culture. For example, Asian 1.5 generation students live in a culturally rich life filled with traditional discipline, such as greeting someone with a bow. However, they also have to adapt to the cultural changes such as eating food with a fork instead of chopsticks.

“In America, we like to hug each other. In Chinese culture, randomly hugging people is considered an inappropriate behavior,” said Lam. Similarly Cocco said, “Last year there was an Italian exchange student and she would kiss me on the cheek every time we said ‘Hi.’ Some people thought we were dating.”

Because of this cul-

ture shock, these students have found themselves losing their sense of culture and fusing with the western style of the US, and have become “whitewashed,” a term used to describe a minority who has assimilated with western society.

“I celebrate Chinese New Years and participate in other festive events, but living in America really dilutes that culture,” said senior Chris Wong.

Similarly, Lam said, “Since both [American and Chinese] cultures have really different cultural values, it is hard to make the younger generation to practice both cultures at the same time.”

However, these “1.5 generationers” appear to benefit from the

“dual culture” inherent in having been born in a different country.

According to a new study by Johns Hopkins University, “1.5 generation” students excel in academic achievement and their advantages continue on into adulthood. The study looked over 10,700 children ages 13 to 19 until they reached the ages of 25 to 32. “1.5 Generation” students tended to excel in the STEM fields like math and science.

There are several reasons why these children excel academically and socially, which is often referred to as the “immigrant paradox” by many sociologists.

One reason is family. When immigrant parents of “1.5 generation” students immigrate to another country, they overcome many obstacles. The parents have high expectations for their kids and raise their children with this motivational feeling resulting in the child having a “dad and mom made a huge sacrifice for me so I should work hard” type of motto.

The second reason is immigrant families live in a tightly knit network of people. The parents are usually deficient in math and english skills so they look to members in their community who have a high achieving son or daughter to direct the high achiever to help their son or daughter.

Additionally, foreign-born children seem to benefit from living in a dual culture environment. They take the best of both worlds in order to journey through the educational system and the professional workforce.

“When you come to another country, you are forced to be open-minded and challenge yourself,” said Cocco.

Although foreign-born children seem to have a more difficult time maneuvering their way to success, they still prove themselves resilient despite their socioeconomic status and

racial minority background.

Photo illustration by Sabrina Leung

College diversity portrayed inaccurately

By Ayesha Abbasi Staff Writer College flyers filled with people of all skin tones coming together in one institution, creating a hypothetical situation that seems to be embody a sense of diversity.

“If you’re not able to, and again this is what we’re doing now, to reach out to the most outstanding Latino students in the country...you won’t be educating the future leaders of America,” said Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admissions and Financial aid at Harvard to the Harvard Crimson, explaining the importance of reaching out to high-ability students within all minority groups.

But there’s a myth to how diversity is really defined.

The term “diversity” is extremely broad and can refer to many things. A diverse candidate can be any student (including white students) who brings diversity to a college campus. A student’s “diversity” may include anything from age, sexual orientation, race & ethnicity, and gender to socioeconomic status and geographic background.

The University of Maryland defines diversity as an “otherness, or those human qualities that are different from our own and outside the groups to which we belong, yet are present in other individuals and groups.”

College-bound students who believe that studying with people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds is important will want to consider student-body diversity when choosing a school.

Ella Stoney a recent graduate of Carlmont High School and a current student at the University of Arizona said, “One of

my main interests was finding a school that was actually diverse because diversity in race and gender is what really enriches the educational experience.”

Yet, the freedom to determine who shall teach and be taught has been restricted in a number of places, and come under attack in others. As a result, some schools, such as the University of California Los Angeles, have experienced declines in the enrollment of black and Hispanic students, reversing decades of progress in the effort to assure that all groups in American society have an equal opportunity for access to higher education.

Recently in a spoken word by black males, who attend University of California Los Angeles, they gave a few scary statistics about how diverse the school really is in comparison to how diverse administration at UCLA makes it.

The video gives stats such as “Only 3.3 percent of the graduate and undergraduate class in the Fall of 2012 was black males.”

They continue to say that, “Two-thousand four hundred and eighteen males were accepted into the 2012 class with only 48 of them being black males. Out of the 48, only 35 will graduate because of lack of money to pay tuitions.”

On the UCLA website, they have said, “We do not tolerate acts of discrimination, harassment, profiling or other conduct causing harm to individuals on the basis of expression of race, color, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, religious beliefs, political preference, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship, or national origin among other personal characteristics.”

Sophomore Kamrin Choye said, “It’s a little ironic how they can go around saying that they don’t tolerate discrimination but then can’t even give enough financial aid to those in need.”

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down any ethnicity. Race blind applications make diversity impossible but these same colleges still claim diversity. Although many don’t see this as a truly race blind application, “It’s kind of a strange situation because they can see your name that’s already racial profiling and on top of that, you check off what race you are on almost all the tests you take and send to colleges, they can see that, and we’re not stupid,” said junior Neeshae Wain.

Although diversity has its importance, especially on a college campus, the thing that is more important for colleges is seeming diverse over accepting diversity. Colleges manage to seem diverse with the tons of propaganda filled with all races of people. When it comes to the actual diversity in acceptance these same school’s fall behind.

“I find it frustrating to see that all these Ivy League colleges talk about how diverse they are, and then they do not accept a lot of people from an Asian decent because there are already too many of us,” said junior Adelyn Yau. Another diversity factor is with historical underrepresentation. Most Asian students are not considered “underrepresented” within the college admission context. This is because in many disciplines, Asian students are represented at a higher percentage than their percentage of the population.

With colleges such as Harvard only accepting 5.9 percent of their applicants, it comes down to more than just an ethnic difference or a minority advantage. At the end of the day the important part is “to be the best you can at all that you possibly can and if that isn’t good enough for a college because of your race than that isn’t the college for you,” said senior Marisa Pereira.

The Highlander

Page 13

Lifestyle

January 2014

Distinguishing discrimination and data

By Isabella Paragas Staff Writer and Illustrator

“Calm down, it’s just a joke!”

“Stop being so defensive and lighten up a little.”

Some people would not see themselves as a racists, yet the remarks made throughout the Carlmont hallways seem to suggest otherwise.

Distinguishing between discrimination and data can be difficult. There is a fine line between a racist remark or stereotyping someone and making a generalized observation or stating a generally known fact about a certain race.

Stereotypes have some base in generalized facts, and have become expectations for every member belonging to that race.

“When you let that fact then color your perceptions and expectations of people, then it’s racism,” said economics and government teacher, Kris Weisman.

This collective understanding about what each race is “supposed to be like” within our society has made some of the Carlmont population oblivious to everyday stereotyping and racism. The “common knowledge” is hard to combat because it is considered “obvious” and even “matter-of-fact,” so people do not question this knowledge.

It is not just small communities or towns in the middle of no where. Carlmont boasts its diverse ethnic community and accepting, nohate policies, but that does not mean that the school is free from racism’s chains.

“People would ask me if I have bombs in my head scarf, and call me a terrorist and harass me, saying ‘Osama-lover’ and ‘get back on your camel,’” said senior Sarah Nofal.

Nofal noted that it seemed like most of the harassment she received was from other minority groups.

Though it was much worse when she first moved here in her sophomore year, she said, “It’s a lot less because I wasn’t as confident and now I am, and I’m able to stick up for myself and people got worried if I was actually going

to tell [Administration].”

Not all stereotyping is “negative.”

“To me, I think that a [stereotypical Asian is someone] who gets straight A’s and is taking a bunch of AP classes. Whenever people ask me about the classes I take, they are often surprised that I am not taking as many honors courses,” said Grant Chen, a senior.

Chen said, “At first I did feel the pressure by this stereotypical idea of ‘Asian’ people, but as time went by, I simply just tell people I’m not taking that much AP classes because I don’t want to stress out myself.”

And some believe that not all races are discriminated against.

Senior Simonetta Cocco said, “I don’t know if racism is a problem at Carlmont.

I’m white, so I wouldn’t really know.” When asked why she wouldn’t know, she explained that, although it may hurt the persons feelings, in the long run, “that white person will still have it better than any other ethnicity: he will have better chances of graduating, of getting into college, of getting a job, of not going to jail although he has committed a crime.”

“Although we do not realize it, we favor white people in nearly every circumstance.

That’s why I do not believe racism towards white people is a thing, because the white person will still be favored in most circumstances,” continued Cocco.

“Socially accepted/acceptable racism” is racism that is deemed acceptable by the majority of society. Things such as jokes and comments about the stereotypes of certain races of people are considered “funny.” Something that is worth laughing at is considered unimportant and not to be taken seriously.

The history associated with those names or events or characteristics are deemed trivial.

This form of racism could be subconscious.

The environment in which someone is raised affects their view and understanding of the world around them and this view is not

always questioned, especially when they are enforced in social media.

Weisman explained that, “Human beings are hard-wired to categorize and it is a part of how they function in the world and we are constantly doing that, and the only thing we can control is the assumptions we make about these categories.”

Over time, this form of racism may be less acceptable, or even obsolete. The first step to even questioning this kind of behavior is to be conscious of it, and for the group who is being stereotyped and discriminated against to speak up.

But there are instances when a word that was once used to be derogatory and racist and is now being embraced by that same group of people it was once used against.

There are other minority groups that identify with and even make fun of the stereotype of their race.

Nogul said that she and her close friends would sometimes embrace the stereotype, “Sometimes I like to joke around like, ‘Oh, I’m going to go home on my camel,’ or ‘Don’t make fun of my uncle [referring to Osama bin Laden comments].’”

But she stresses that she only jokes with close friends, “I don’t mess around with that stuff with other people because they tend to think its okay, but my close friends don’t make fun of me for that.”

Nogul is not the only one to have taken a negative term as her own. Others embrace it as well.

It is not uncommon for students to hear the word “nigga” being said throughout the school.

Some students like Chen commented that the word “nigger” is “offending” and is not being used with others in mind. But one needs to ask themselves who the “others” being “offended” are, whether it be the people using the word or those who hear it, it depends on your point of view.

Those who do use the word believe that the way in which they use it is so different than that of

history’s intended definition, that the meaning has now changed.

“Back then it was used to be disrespectful,” said Michael Slaise, “now its used as in a ‘friend.’”

Or, as the singer and performer Madonna called it, a “term of endearment.”

Slaise also says the meaning changes with his relation with who uses it towards him and how they say it. “If it’s a friend’s friend, I won’t take it seriously, but if it’s someone you don’t know, you don’t know how to take it, like if they’re actually being disrespectful or trying to be friendly.”

To Slaise, the race of the person who uses the word to him does not matter, “It’s the way they use it and how they say it.”

Some will argue that they cannot judge a person that uses that word, because they feel like it is simply not their place to do so.

“If an African American uses the N-word, it is not my place to judge,” said Weisman.

“Using it for a friend, or a comrade, or a brother is taking away from the horror of the historical context. You’re taking and using it in a positive connotation. You’ve taken away its power [to be used in a derogatory way].”

For others, it does not matter who uses the word, its about the historical connotation of the word that makes it inherently racist.

“The word literally makes me cringe and the other side of the spectrum will say, ‘When we use it its like a form of empowerment’ and we own it so its ok for us to use it,’ but when you know the history behind the word there’s nothing that makes it right,” said US History teacher, David Gomez.

Racism, stereotyping, and discrimination come in different forms, and can range from harassment and using racial slurs to simply telling jokes. Being aware of not only what is being said, but also about what being implied can change the way in which people are viewed.

“I think our school does not have as much discrimination towards specific people. But I won’t say that it ceases to exist,” stated Chen.

Photo illustration by Isabella Paragas

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Keeping up with the older siblings

By Alyssa Fagel Staff Writer

“Be more like your brother.”

This is the phrase that rings in the ears of many young students because they are unable to meet the expectations set by their older siblings.

High school is a common time for teenagers to undergo immense pressure in terms of both academics and extracurricular activities.

According to a study done by the New York Times, the first-born child will most often have a higher IQ than their younger siblings. They have also been proven to lead more fulfilling lives. A study conducted by economists V. Joseph Hotz and Juan Pantano concluded that parents are often stricter to their first-born children when it comes to performance in school.

Many Carlmont students have backed up these studies through personal experiences.

Junior Veronica Pontis said, “They want me to get better grades so that my work ethic will be reflected on my sister.”

Pontis, like other students, believes that her parents are very hard on her because she is the first born. She said that since her sister looks up to her, she is ex-

pected to be a good role model.

However, these studies also demonstrate the pressures felt by the younger siblings. For starters, parents often have high expectations for them; if one’s older sibling took four AP classes junior year, then they often will, too, feeling that if they don’t, their parents will be upset.

And since some teenagers fear being a disappointment to their family, the people that often pay for their education, the teens may attempt to take classes for which they aren’t prepared.

It is normal for one child to be born more academically inclined than his or her siblings; that is hard to change. Yet every day, people feel pressured to compete with the standards set by their older siblings.

Sophomore Jake Kumamoto said, “It’s hard sometimes to try to get good grades when my brother has set very high standards.”

Senior Ryan Dimick said, “There definitely exists some pressure within my family to live up to the older children. I have often felt like I had to compete with the grades and test scores of my older sister, and I know it’s the same for my younger siblings.”

Unfortunately, intellectual capabilities

Living up to expectations

By Kat Savin Staff Writer

“An A- does not cut it. It has to be an A, it has to be all A’s.”

That statement was said to senior Ryan Pau by his parents.

Students are constantly pressured with not only getting good grades, but with their own parent’s expectations on how they should be excelling in life.

“I get compared to my older sister and they expect me to get great grades just like she did,” said junior Gigi Vlahos.

We live in a competitive society, so it’s no surprise that parents feel pressure for children to excel and compete. For example, setting expectations that their child has to be the best on the team, have the best grades, have a job, doing volunteer working, and get into the best colleges.

Parental expectations can have a strong effect on kids’ motivation and self- expectations.

“When parents pressure their kids to do well in school, kids naturally begin to get good grades and do well to please their parents, not for themselves,” said senior Henson Kwok.

While healthy and realistic expectations

can encourage a student’s success, unrealistically high expectations can set them up for failure, anxiety and discouragement when

one cannot live up to his or her parents’ goals.

However, low expectations can make it difficult for kids to see and achieve their full potential.

The negative pressure holds the student’s po-

tential to thrive to be the best they can be. Adding on extra unnecessary pressure can lead to anxiety, stress and discouragement. Having high goals set by their parents which are unachievable rationally makes it difficult for the student to live

up to their full potential.

According to Northern Illinois University’s Department of Education, if students feel the pressure coming from their parents is too strong, they could potentially suffer from confidence and selfesteem issues.

“From a child’s point of view, parents should let their kids pursue their passions and dreams,” said Pau. This pressure can also lead to the limitations of teens having a social life. There is always the issue of not getting the desired grade and then being restricted from being able to leave the house or getting electronics taken away.

“My parents take away my computer and phone if they aren’t happy with my grades or don’t think I’m spending enough time on homework and studying,” said Vlahos.

Pressure put upon students by parents is not only negative. Some students use the pressure from their parents as motivation to make their best effort.

“Sometimes I feel they put too much pressure, but I also think it’s a good thing to have at least a little bit of pressure from them, to act as motivation, so I am more likely to put more effort into school,” said Vlahos.

When it comes to it, students should not be

going to school just because their parents ex-

pect them to. What really matters is self motivation, being successful for yourself not others.

“That motivation has to come from in-

side, you can’t force people to learn or, like parents try to do, force us to learn and succeed,” said Kwok.

aren’t the only things younger siblings have to compete with.

Dimick is one of the top cross country runners in the state. He is also the second of nine children in his family, so he has experienced what it’s like to have younger siblings who hope to keep up with him.

Dimick said, “My younger siblings who do the same sport as me feel pressured to live up to the standards that I have set.”

Kumamoto, whose brother is a talented musician, said, “I definitely feel pressured musically because he is a very successful musician and he plays many instruments.”

The pressure students feel to compete with their older siblings is made even worse by how hard it is to get accepted by a good school. Recent years have been proven as a very hard time to be a student; a study done by the New York Times showed that the college acceptance rates in 2013 were noticeably lower than they were in 2011.

While it’s clear that high school can be a time of pressure and expectation for teenagers, families have the opportunity to support young students become successful.

Kumamoto has a very supportive brother. He said, “He never pressures me. He often helps me to get good grades.”

Like Kumamoto, junior Michael Bereket also has a supportive family. His brother, Daniel, is a freshman at Stanford University and was one of the top cross country runners in the state during his high school years. In addition, he received the Richard Bice Jazz Award in 2013 for his trumpet playing ability.

However, through all of his brother’s accomplishments, Bereket said, “I find my brother’s successes as exciting as my own. Our parents never treat our mutual activities as competitions between us.”

Older siblings may experience a different kind of pressure than their younger siblings, but both are equally impacted by the kind of support they receive from their family.

While the roaring echo of “be more like your brother,” leaves some students feeling pressure and anxiety, encouraging words are much more likely to motivate students to do the best that they can at everything they do.

The reality of parenting

By Tian Chary Staff Writer

look up to them for advice. Therefore, in a

Nobody is perfect, not even parents.

Children learn the difference between wrong and right at a young age. They are often punished for bad behavior and rewarded for good behavior. But in many incidents, children catch their own role models doing the wrong thing.

Forgiving our parents is the core task of becoming an adult. The logic behind it is simple: children expect the world from their parents and they do not wish to lower their standards.

Often, we find the characteristics of our parents in our mates and friends. Berkeley, Calif., Psychotherapist Elayne Savage says familiarity is a big reason people may choose someone like Mom or Dad as a partner.

“When you grow up familiar with a certain type of person, you’re attracted to that same type of person because it feels comfortable, whether you like it or not,” said Savage, author of “Breathing Room: Creating Space to Be a Couple.” “That’s what people mean when they meet a potential partner and say, ‘It ‘feels like I’ve known him my whole life.’”

Children expect parents to invest a lot of time into them.

Senior Eric He said, “[I expect my parents] to support me. Honestly, it’s really supporting our decisions and whatever we want to do, not imposing what they want.

[Also], letting us be independent.”

Parents are role models to youths, they

As children grow older, they begin to see the corrupted side of the world. They are no longer the innocent kids who once asked their moms and dads where babies came from. They are forced to witness the good and bad in mankind.

Junior Sam Reidy said, “When I was a little kid, I saw my dad drinking beer and I thought that was the worst thing in the world. I thought that meant he was an alcoholic right away because I was five.

So I thought oh my God, the whole family is going down.”

Sometimes culture can have an effect on how one might portray one’s father and mother. Particularly, in many Eastern cultures, parents expect their child to be obedient and perform well in school—a cultural norm. Thus, the child might not question their “tiger mom” (a very strict mother who makes her children work particularly hard and restricts their free time so that they continually achieve the highest grades) and will accept their mother’s misdeeds because of their mother’s authority.

Yale law professor Amy Hua in a recent essay for Wall Streets said, a Chinese mother would never allow her children “not be the number one student in every subject except gym and drama,” while Western parents are worrying about their children’s self esteem.

Junior Geeta Deo said, “I’m Indian and in our culture, you’re not suppose to talk back to your parents [...] it’s disrespectful.”

And Western children have the concept that parents and kids are on the same level. As a result, more judgment is accounted.

Parenting does not come with a guide book.

Many parents have unconditional love for their children, with some exceptions. But, by all means, no parent is perfect.

child’s eyes, their parents are the closest things to perfect.

love and struggles

The hidden world of autistic children

By Nathan Rosenthal Staff Writer Some people view most varieties of autism as difficult to work with. Separate schools specialize with working with autistic teens.

However, the difference in schooling may not be relevant. Autism, says AutismSpeaks, is a “developmental disorder.”

ABC News’ article about Carly Fleischmann, a “teen locked in autistic body,” reveals the psyche of a teen struggling with severe autism.

Riddled with “ceaseless rocking, flailing arms and tantrums,” Fleischmann spoke through computer.

“It is hard to be autistic because no one understands me,” she said.

The distractions of autism “sometimes takes parental focus away from teaching basic skills,” said Autism Support Network on their website.

“The child may not be able to communicate [their] basic needs...[and] do things for themselves.”

And because autism makes it difficult for a person to control their physical actions, autistic teens and other high schoolers are usually segregated. However, some autistic kids do attend normal high school.

The fact that they are able to attend a nor-

mal high school and learn with the rest of society strikes junior Soha Said as a step forward for accepting and helping people with disabilities.

that students with disabilities should go to normal schools.”

At Carlmont, students seem to agree with ideas parallel to this. In an anonymous poll conducted at Carlmont, 33 students out of 46 said that a normal high school environment is ben-

eficial to an autistic student’s learning rather than harmful.

David Maia, who works with a disabled student, has seen the progression of an autistic student through normal schooling.

AUTISM SPEAKS It ’s time to listen

”Within a normal environment they seem get more comfortable and get to learn better,” she said.

According to the Autism Society, it is nec-

essary for children and teenagers with autism to learn in “the least restrictive environment possible.”

Junior Parsa Padidar said, “Yeah, I think

“He likes it and I think it’s better for him than just being secluded from the rest of the kids,” said Maia. “Yeah, they can be distracting to others in class. However the sounds and people distract that one autistic student more than the others are distracted by them.”

Said said, “A student in one my classes used to be a bit distracting. I felt bad, but sometimes it was harder to focus.”

WebMD said that “it takes lots of hard work to help a child with autism get the most out of the classroom experience.”

However, WebMD said that the point of incorporating disabled kids in normal classes is to “help the children with autism learn from the behavior of their classmates.”

Associations like the Autism Society continue to advocate for autistic students in the classroom as Carlmont continues to

include autistic students within school walls.

Autism spectrum disorders are puzzles that have not yet been solved

The sibling perspective on autism

By Sabrina Leung Editorial Director

One parent whispers, “That retarded child needs to shut up.”

Every audience member in the music auditorium during my orchestra concert glared towards the young boy who wouldn’t stop clapping and making high pitched noises. By the end of the concert, everybody knew that the boy who banged his head when the music got too loud, or cheerfully shouted during the middle of a song when he got excited, was my brother.

My brother, Ivan, was diagnosed with acute autism before I was born, so I never knew he was different until I grew older.

Autism is a developmental disorder that affects communication and social interaction skills and is often characterized by intensely repetitive behavior. It can range from high-functioning syndromes to severe learning disabilities and mental retardation. In fact, one in 88 children in the United States has some form of autism, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

However, at least twice as many children confront the problems of having an autistic brother or sister. And for siblings, it often adds a layer of pressure to be the “super kid” in the family. We are expected to grow up faster than we want to.

When I was 8-years-old, it began to

dawn on me that society didn’t understand my brother’s special needs. Ivan lacks the normal motor skills that I possess, so tasks like brushing his teeth are quite challenging. I had to learn at a very young age how to put someone else’s needs in front of my own because I had to be the “responsible” one.

At times, it frustrated me to make these sacrifices because it didn’t seem fair. I sometimes resented the fact that all the other kids’ parents were at their concerts and performances, but mine weren’t.

But I knew that my brother couldn’t help being disabled.

Like many with autistic siblings, I try to stay out of trouble and to not be the one my parents have to worry about.

Katherine Stratton, a Carlmont senior, has a 15-year-old brother named Tom, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s, a form of high-functioning autism, at the age of three.

She explained the responsibilities she’s had since she was young.

“I’ve had to learn how to handle situations where he would overreact and stuff, and be responsible for my youngest brother sometimes if my parents were dealing with Tom,” said Stratton.

High school students are already overwhelmed with AP classes and extracurriculars, but those with autistic siblings have found limitations on what they can and cannot do.

I’ve been cautious of who I invite to my home to work on school projects, because I don’t know how they would treat my broth-

er. I’ve been concerned if my friends would see me in public and pick up on my brothers‘ strange tendencies. I’ve found myself frustrated over not being able to communicate with my brother and even being the target of aggressive behaviors.

However, it’s quite easy to develop a warm, loving and close relationship with your family because of an autistic child. A 2006 review of the research in the Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability found that while some siblings had “deleterious outcomes” coping with an autistic brother or sister, others found siblings who were well adjusted.

Relating to a sibling who has autism can be complicated. Normal sibling rivalry doesn’t work, because it can never be a fair fight, especially when the only form of communication is sign language. Instead, we help each other to learn and grow.

I’ve been pointed, laughed and stared at for holding my brother’s hand when we cross the street. But while I was giving Ivan a hand with everyday simple tasks, such as dressing and eating, he was teaching me about patience, understanding and advocacy-the traits that all journalists must embody. These experiences have taught me to become sensitive to the struggles and disenfranchisement of those who society deems as different.

Although having a disabled child can be a tremendous burden on a family, a 2007 Harvard Review of Psychiatry article noted that some siblings of autistic children are discovering that the sibling experience can

produce long-term benefits. It was reported that people who grew up with autism in the house tend to be more empathetic and learn to handle difficult situations and negotiations better.

Stratton stated that while she was first hesitant to be in this community because she was uncomfortable around perceived disabilities, she realized she was learning valuable lessons of acceptance and tolerance from her brother.

“One mom told me that Tom was ‘unfit for Heaven.’ Kids would mock the unique way Tom flapped his hands when he got excited.

But Tom is funny and caring and he has many gifts, like a near perfect memory,” said Stratton.

Duty and the burden of responsibility aside, I’ve also had some wonderful moments with my brother. There aren’t a lot of siblings who can laugh at their brother for turning off all the computers at the public library. Not to mention I only have to wait in line for five minutes for any ride at any amusement park.

As we adjust to absorb autistic children into our community and strive to support their unique and medical needs, let’s not forget the siblings. Not every step in this journey has been easy, but I know that my brother has helped me become a better person.

Autism isn’t a disability, but rather an ability to view things in a different way. As for myself, the challenges continue to evolve, and I suspect they also evolve for many others.

But for now, when it’s 6:30 in the morning, and Ivan is waving “Bye, Bye” in the car and laughing, I can smile because I know it’s going to be a good day.

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January 2014

Second semester means a second start for students

By Sarah Klieves Scot Scoop Editor-in-Chief

The new year often signals a time of change. It is a time of resolutions to make things happen differently and another chance for a do-over.

In school, this means that the grade slate is wiped clean.

“There’s always a push [for students] to do well the first three weeks back,” said Carlmont teacher Gigi Kruse-Silva. Warm weather also begins to distract students in spring semester versus the fall semester, stated Kruse-Silva. “It’s easier to focus when it’s cold for some reason.”

Statistic Brain states that 45 percent of Americans make New Year’s resolutions. The top 10 resolutions are about things related to how people feel about themselves and others; nothing is mentioned about doing better at work or in school.

While many people may vow to workout more or eat healthier, some students may hope that the new year and new semester gives them the opportunity to improve and demonstrate through their grades how

strong, smart, and capable they are academically.

Carlmont students do plan on working to perform better academically this semester. In a poll of 118 students, 65 percent said they plan to work harder this semester to improve academically by not procrastinating. And while all students polled hope to improve this semester, talking the talk is different from walking the walk.

Freshman Ilana Hamer said that one of her goals for herself this semester is to not procrastinate, and she has a solid plan in place for herself to achieve this goal. “[I will be] doing my work right when I get home and not putting it off [and] updating my planner with homework assignments, events, projects, and things like that,” said Hammer.

Although the second semester isn’t very different from the first semester, students see it as a do-over for their grades. Kruse-Silva said this is because “teachers present it [to them] in that way.”

Hamer said that the fresh start for

her grades this semester “is great! It’s a new chance to start new [with a] clean slate. You can make this semester [into] anything you want.”

Of these seniors who need to improve, some choose to work hard and turn around their grades, while others follow in the same footsteps they took the semester before.

“This semester, I plan on having the same work ethic I had last semester. If I do that, I’m sure that I’ll do fine in my classes,” said Carlmont senior Kody Simmons.

Simmons explained that he was motivated to do well last semester because of “playing football. I just need to find one thing to keep me motivated. With something to look forward to, my school work improves.”

Although students like Simmons may choose to continue on the same path as the semester before, others, especially seniors, may slack off more. Second semester seniors look forward to high school coming to an end and can see graduation just out there on the horizon. The thought is often that, because seniors have sub-

mitted their college applications and have begun to receive acceptances, they are free to do whatever and don’t have to work as hard in school.

Simmons said seniors start to slack off because “A lot of [them] probably already know-- or think they know-- whether or not they are graduating and don’t really feel like stressing for the next few months is really necessary.”

Senior Brandon Whiteley agrees that seniors tend to have a harder time focusing during the second semester: “A lot of us maintain the belief that because we have made it this far, we deserve some respite from school.”

Despite the belief that seniors slack off, not all of them do. Whiteley still plans to continue to put forth sincere effort this semester.

“Many of the schools to which I applied require seniors to keep up their grades during their final semester, so I will have to keep them up regardless.”

“Senioritis” may be plaguing seniors and leading them to slack off second semester, however Hamer

believes that it is the freshman who slack off more than students in other grades.

“Everyone says that freshman year doesn’t really count,” said Hamer.

“Because your grades freshman year [don’t] count for your cumulative GPA for colleges, some people might not take freshman year as seriously.”

It is important to not slack off, no matter what grade you are in. “I tell [underclassmen] how many summers they will lose if they skip out now,” said Kruse-Silva.

Simmons added that it is important to “stay on top of your work and if you feel like you need help, that’s what teachers and counselors get paid for.”

Kruse-Silva’s advice to freshman and sophomores: “There is no magic bullet to graduate.”

There truly isn’t a “magic bullet” that will guarantee graduation. No matter how many semesters a student may have until their time to leave Carlmont comes, they must work hard and not take advantage of any opportunity they have for success.

Limiting the number of AP classes at Carlmont

By Ashley Kawakami Staff Writer

Everyone has heard of the legendary all-nighters where a student’s best friend was coffee and textbooks.

The horror stories are numerous, of that one unfortunate student who happened to have four tests, a big project, all their normal homework on top of that and didn’t get a wink of sleep as they crammed all night.

Those stories are typically more common from the AP students, particularly those who are taking more than one AP class.

AP classes are college level courses offered to high school students that offer an “extra point” which makes B’s factor in to weighted GPAs as A’s, and those who get A’s get an extra point that can potentially push their GPA to over a 4.0. Not only can taking an AP class inflate students’ GPAs but in the spring students can take AP exams and potentially earn college credit.

AP classes are ways for students who want to push themselves to not only stand apart from their peers with a higher GPA but also a way to set themselves up for college.

However, being in high school and taking a college level course isn’t easy; and many AP students are more stressed than their peers as some try to tackle several AP courses.

This is one of the primary reasons why many schools have been advocating for a cap on the number of AP classes students can take.

Carlmont students will only be guaranteed three AP classes and can sign up for a fourth; however, depending on scheduling, students may or may not be able to get that extra AP. According to the UCLA website in 2013, of the 13,737 people admitted to the school 12,863 (93.64 percent) of them had

a weighted GPA that exceeded a 4.0.

Many students feel they need to take more than multiple AP’s to get into college. In many cases students feel that they have to be better than perfect in order to get in to a good college.

Junior Nico Camerino who is taking six AP classes said, “Personally I feel more confident with my chances of getting into my top colleges when I can show that I was able to succeed in a lot of college level classes, but it’s not necessary to take a ton of AP’s to get in to a good school.”

The AP limit will affect students who want to set themselves apart, and could potentially be seen as a setback for students who wanted to explore other AP classes.

Junior Austin Driver, who takes 3 AP classes, said, “As a senior I wanted to take four AP’s because I wanted to take AP Psych, but now I don’t know if I’ll be able to, and I really wanted to take that class.”

Others see the potential for the AP limit being a setback as they start to think about college admissions.

Camerino said, “I feel like I will have a disadvantage against all the other students across the country trying to get into the same colleges as me who don’t have a limit on the amount of AP’s they can take.”

However, it may seem unfair to many students who want to push themselves to have the coveted 5.0, only limiting AP classes does have its advantages.Right now, since Carlmont students can enroll in up to six AP classes, that is considered a 100 percent load. This means that a student who takes three AP classes looks like they are only taking a 50 percent load. However, with the new cap on the number of AP classes someone who takes three AP’s will be taking a 100 percent load.

Junior Mackenna Galicia, who takes one AP class, said, “Carlmont offers a lot of AP classes, so when there is no limit to the number of aps we can take, colleges will see that we only took a small percentage of the ap classes offered. I think it’s a good thing to limit the number of APs so it will look better to colleges. Colleges will see that three AP’s are the maximum number that we can take, so there will be no penalty for us.”

Although students see both sides of the issue many believe that the choice on the number of AP classes should be left up to students and their parents. Students know themselves best and what course load they can handle in conjunction with their other activities.

Camerino said, “Students understand themselves best. If students think that they can succeed in multiple AP classes, a limit shouldn’t stop them from pushing themselves and taking those classes.”

Students who choose to take AP classes and do extracurricular activities like clubs and sports need to find a balance between school and other activities, something that is different person to person.

Driver said, “I take three AP classes, and I play soccer, so for me that is a good number because I’m able to devote time to both, but I feel like if I didn’t play soccer I would want to take four (AP classes) because I’d have more time.”

Parents and students also have an endgame in mind as they plan their course load, usually deciding to concentrate on areas that they hold interest in.

Galicia said, “I see the benefits (of the AP cap), but at the same time students use AP classes to set themselves up for college and I think parents and students know best how to create a schedule based around their own interests.”

The changing views of high school throughout the years

By Mateen Nozzari Staff Writer

Humans, by statement of fact, are subject to change and grow over time as they age. In similar terms, our perceptions of high school change from the time we are in middle school to the time we are in high school.

The answer is quite vague; however it is a question of perspective. Some high school students feel no difference between the way they saw high school as kids and the way they see themselves now.

The perspective of these high school students has a lot to do with height.

“When I was younger, high school was a scary topic for me.

It was hard thinking about it with my height and being smaller than everyone,” said senior Kiana Yekrang.

Those who were taller in middle school seem to have been less intimidated by high school than those who were shorter.

“As a middle school student, I was okay with being a small guy. By the time I was in eighth grade, however, I’d only grown

a few inches,” said sophomore Thomas Chin. “Entering high school being shorter than everyone else really intimidated me.”

Despite the fact that we are growing as we age and our perspectives may be biased, kids do seem to be getting “shorter and shorter every generation,” according to senior Parsa Attari.

Although height was a large factor in determining one’s thoughts about high school, another factor plays a large role: academics.

“It seemed like a big challenge,” said sophomore Shant Narkizian. “I remember stressing about all of the academic pressure high school was going to cause me.”

Aside from the height differences, academics were a large part of many students’ stress.

“Entering high school, everything was different. Not only the atmosphere in the hallways, but also the academic atmosphere,” said sophomore Rebecca Imison. “It was a hard realization that school wasn’t such a joke anymore and I really had to work to earn my stripes.”

High school is a large transition from middle school; largely on the academic portion.

“High school made me discover how hard I was willing to

work for something,” said Attari. Attari also commented on a separate subject that related to his thoughts as a middle school student saying, “When I was younger, I was much more respectful than the kids I see today.”

Respect and common manners in our youth has allegedly decreased according to some students at Carlmont.

“Kids nowadays are really starting to take things for granted,” said senior Shawyon Fazel. “It’s alright to be a kid and make mistakes, but it’s also important to be weary of our actions,” Fazel said.

Although there is much to worry about for our world’s next generation, there is also much to be appreciated.

“As we get older, we become more mature,” Fazel said. “Our next generation definitely has a lot of potential and there are great things to come.”

As expected, the views of many were changed from the progression between middle school and high school.

Whether it be based on academic stress, height, social aspects, or respect and common manners, it is certain that these changes are all just paths leading from childhood into young adulthood.

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The Highlander

January 2014

Walking and biking: taking a different path to school

By Lizzy Doctorov Staff Writer

Depending on one’s distance from school, time allotted for getting to school, and safety awareness, there are many pros and cons for both biking and walking.

Biking can be a large time saver in comparison to walking or even running. According to Princeton University, the average walking speed is approximately three miles per hour. Average running speeds are approximately eight miles per hour according to Live Healthy. In contrast, according to Bike Forums, the average cycling speed is 12 miles per hour. This makes biking four times faster than walking and one and a half times faster than running.

In fact, Jack Rexer, a junior at Carlmont who bikes to school, said, “Sometimes, biking to Carlmont is faster than driving, depending on the traffic. Biking allows me to bypass all of the traffic.”

His younger sibling, Emily Rexer, also bikes to school because her parents can’t drive her there. She bikes instead of walking because, as she said, “Biking is more efficient.”

Jayson Waller, a teacher at Carlmont, also believes that biking to school is faster and said, “[Walking is] slow, and it’s time that you could be doing something else.”

Another positive aspect of biking is that many roads are available for biking but not for walking. Many roads don’t have sidewalks for walking but they do have bike lanes. While one could definitely walk on the bike lanes, it’s more dangerous and police will occasionally intervene to ensure the safety of the pedestrian.

The main negative of biking is the danger it exposes the cyclist to. According to the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, approximately 670 cyclists lost their lives in car crashes in 2011 in the United States. In addition, there were 38,000 reported bicycling injuries that year from collisions with cars.

Of course, not all crash reports with cyclists are reported. In fact, only about 10 percent are.

The older Rexer said, “There is the danger of falling or getting hit by a car.” He has also been hit by a car door, and said, “Once someone gets doored I hope they would remember that

Infographic by Karissa Tom

it happened and then won’t door someone else.”

The younger Rexer has gotten hit by car doors as well because, as she said, “Cars sometimes go into bike lanes, and kids in a hurry to get to school jump out at traffic lights and sometimes hit me with their doors.”

Bikers also experience the negative effects of weather.

The younger Rexer said, “If it’s really cold out, it gets miserable in the rain.”

While walkers can just take out an umbrella, bikers don’t have that luxury. They need to keep their focus on the road and their hands on the handlebars.

Therefore, depending on the distance and terrain, walking could be a good option for getting to school. Walking provides a chance to slowly wake up without the necessity for alertness that biking presents.

Walking can be excessively difficult with steep hills made for cars. Badly paved roads can also be a challenge. Also, those who live far would find walking a bad option for getting to school.

Marion Demailly, a sophomore at Carlmont who walks to school, said, “I just walk because I don’t have a ride and it’s easy.

I live about 10 minutes away by walking.”

Walking also provides an opportunity to socialize with friends on the way to school, something that would be difficult on the noisy and car-filled roads that bikers take.

The cars of Carlmont Red light on local traffic New or used, Carlmont students have different cars

By Gen Kellis Staff Writer Students at Carlmont drive a variety of cars.

There are multiple reasons that students may drive used cars. It could be purchased by the student themselves, a hand-me-down from a parent or sibling, or simply because it was cheaper and easier than buying one brand new.

Kurt Hildebrandt is a senior who drives a minivan and is proud of it.

Technically his mom still owns the car, but he drives it. Hildebrandt said, “My friends give me a hard time but it gets me from point A to point B safely. It’s easy to drive and there aren’t any bad blind spots.”

However, if he had the option between keeping his minivan or having any car he said, “I would pick a newer green Camaro for safety and gas mileage, but I do have a Stormtrooper sticker on the back of my minivan which is pretty cool.”

Junior Shelby Rebholtz has a handme-down car from his brother.

“It’s a Bronco, four wheel drive, and it’s mine because my mom didn’t want him driving it in college,” said Rebholtz, “It also gives me an opportunity to save up to buy my own car.”

Rebholtz is hesitant about his car because he claims it doesn’t have very good gas mileage and constantly needs repairs.

Some high schoolers are lucky enough to receive new cars too. There are many reasons parents might choose a new car for their new driver. They are safer, have better gas mileage, are more dependable, and are easier to maintain.

Mariko Kondo is a junior who got a 2013 Honda Ridgeline when she got her license, “My car needs to go through all of my siblings, my parents didn’t originally want to buy me a new car but they realized that it was a better investment.”

Kondo wanted her truck over a smaller car so she can carry all of her gear for softball and to feel safer.

Brandon Cuschieri drives a 2007 Acura TL that was a hand-me-down from a close family friend.

“I keep it really well maintained and it runs really well. It’s such a good car to have as a first car. I’m really lucky.” said Cuschieri.

Cushchieri’s dream car is the standard Lamborghini, but he’s really happy with the car he has.

He claims that the only thing he doesn’t love about his car is the gas mileage.

At the high school level there may not be much to say about what a student’s car says about them.

That may appear later in life when they can purchase their own car to fit their needs and wants better. However, students make the best with what they have, adapting their car to how they like it.

Senior Brandon Moyle drives a 2003 Ford Ranger. “It’s the one I’ve always wanted and my parents bought it for me, but I added dual exhaust,” said Moyle, “I would buy a bigger truck if i had the chance.”

Justin Bautista also drives a modified truck, a Ford F-150 “I lifted it and added bigger tires for off roading and after market exhaust. I like the way it looks better and it’s better for off-roading.”

If Baptista had the opportunity, he said “I would probably get a Ford Raptor.”

Cars aren’t the only thing that students at Carlmont have. They also have motorcycles, or at least senior Michael Aldenese does. He rides a 1999 Honda Shadow that he purchased himself, “Well, I bought it about three weeks ago and it gets better gas mileage and its more fun that driving a car.”

By Julia Kranzler Staff Writer

Waking up early on weekdays can be difficult, but arriving to school on time has proven to be an additional challenge due to traffic congestion on San Carlos Ave. Many students commuting from San Carlos or Redwood City find themselves stuck in traffic as soon as they reach San Carlos Ave. While some of the traffic congestion is caused by Carlmont students, other factors include Tierra Linda Middle School students as well as adults commuting to work. Traffic has been so congested in the past that the entire avenue was bumper to bumper.

For some students, arriving late is not a big deal; however, teachers have different opinions.

“My policy for tardies is if you’re late and miss the reading quiz for AP Psychology, you can’t make it up. You lose five points, basically. For every tardy, I subtract five points from participation for the week... it can be disruptive for students to walk in late because I have to give them handouts they’ve missed and stop what I’m doing. I feel like the chronic tardy people are where I begin to feel like it’s disrespectful,” said psychology teacher Michelle McKee. It can be frustrating for students who leave their houses on time, but still arrive late due to traffic that is beyond their control.

“I leave my house around 7:30 a.m. and arrive around 7:50 a.m. Depending on the traffic that day, I sometimes make it to school only a few minutes before the bell rings,” said senior Sydney Levine.

Teachers have drawn the line between excused and unexcused tardies and try and be understanding of the situation.

“Some students come in late and they have an excused tardy...the parent might write a note explaining why they’re late and if that’s the case, I don’t deduct points…Everyone has a bad day and is tardy once in a while, but those who are tardy all the time and do nothing to change their behavior...I just find it to be rude and disrespectful,” said McKee. Associated Student Body and Leadership teacher Jim Kelly said, “I mark you tardy if you’re tardy because it’s the law. If I get a notice that the bus was late or something, I still have to mark you tardy, but I will not mark the participation grade down.”

Students who live fairly close to school have expe-

rienced the woes of traffic congestion as well.

“I leave around 7:35 a.m. and get to school around 7:45 a.m.. Even if I leave my house two minutes later, it could set me back by five minutes because the traffic builds up so much,” said senior Jack McDowell.

Students and teachers have yet to reach common ground in regards to the tardiness situation. Some teachers are more understanding than others while certain teachers, like McKee and Kelly, deduct points from a student’s overall grade if they arrive tardy.

“This is my sixteenth year teaching and in 16 years, we have never had a tardy policy that was effective and cut down on tardies,” said McKee. Kelly has established an agreement between him and his students. “In real life, everyone is going to be late for some things and the agreement I have with my students is if you’re tardy, don’t be disruptive. I don’t make a big deal out of it, you don’t make a big deal out of it. Just don’t disrupt the flow we have going in the class,” said Kelly.

Though teachers try to cooperate with students, students often feel the teachers’ efforts aren’t satisfactory.

“I don’t think [teachers] are very understanding at all. They always say that we should be more responsible with leaving earlier if I know how long it will take me to get to school, but considering I live about seven minutes away from school and I leave 30 minutes before school starts just shows how unpredictable the traffic can be,” said Levine.

McDowell felt otherwise and said, “Most teachers are pretty understanding about tardiness. They just have to punish you if it becomes a pattern. They expect you to anticipate traffic and learn how long it takes it get from your house to class. It’s reasonable.”

Regardless of what time students leave their houses, traffic is almost inevitable, however, some have proven it can be combatted. Several students have a daily routine that ensures their timeliness upon arriving to schools, while other students just play it by ear.

“Other than traffic, I think people sometimes get caught up talking with their friends and get to class late. I think tardiness mostly depends on whether or not you leave your house early enough, though,” said McDowell.

Page 18 Page 18 The Highlander

Campus

January 2014

The passion of teaching Teachers: when objective becomes selective

By Veronika Dvorakova Art Director

After spending their childhoods persevering through challenging years of school, a majority of people leave the classrooms forever. However a fraction of the population chooses to remain in school for the remainder of their years.

Over 100 of these unusual beings permeate our campus.

They are called teachers.

From the perspective of some students, it seems surprising that anyone would want to spend even more of their time at school.

Robert Tsuchiyama, the head of Carlmont’s math department, said, “If someone told me in high school that I would be a teacher, I would have said that there’s no way.”

There are a variety of reasons explaining why Carlmont’s teaching staff chose to become educators.

Tsuchiyama said, “The first time I ever thought about being a teacher was as a child. My dad was in a Japanese internment camp during WWII, and he got released when he was in high school. When he returned to school, no teachers gave him any books because they didn’t have to. So he just kind of sat there.

As a little kid hearing that story, it made me think ‘I want to be a teacher because I would never do that to somebody.’”

By the time he was a high schooler himself, Tsuchiyama’s plans had changed. “I applied to college so I could be a dentist or an eye doctor, but by the end of my senior year I discovered math was my best subject so I aimed to be an engineer.”

During finals in college, Tsuchiyama invested more effort in tutoring others than studying for his own finals. “One day a buddy told me I should be a teacher, because I was more concerned about others than myself. That’s what pushed me over the edge.”

Carlmont French teacher Kathy Burton was not nearly as eager as some students to remove herself from the education system.

“I loved being a student. I loved learning; I enjoyed the intellectual challenge of being at Berkeley. I love everything about the academic endeavor. I loved being a student so much, that I wasn’t so career oriented. It was a different time, there wasn’t as much economic pressure to think about careers.”

Burton’s passion for cultures and languages was influenced by her mother, who also went to Berkeley and became a teacher.

“My senior year of college, I realized that teaching would be right for me, because I loved travel, cultures, languages. My mother was a teacher in Japan and Columbia, so I thought teaching would be a way for me to work internationally.”

Burton’s interests are reflected in her curriculum, as she exposes her students to Francophone cultures around the world.

Rebecca Pearlman, a math teacher, also chose her career based on her passions.

Pearlman said, “I had always loved math, and I taught tennis during my college years in Vermont. I figured that I love math, I love teaching tennis, so I decided to become a high school math teacher.”

Despite this, teaching was not the field she originally intended to enter.

“At one point I wanted to be an archaeologist, but I participated in a dig and it was very boring,” she said.

After choosing to steer clear of archeology as well as corporate jobs, Pearlman found a comfortable setting in her classroom. “I love how math has the sequence built in, and math is the only logical language on earth. I love the dynamics of the classroom.”

Carlmont physics teacher David Talcott also had to experience a job he did not enjoy before he found teaching.

“It was a really weird time of my life, I was 22 and I had just done stockbroking, and I didn’t like all the components of stockbroking. My least favorite part was that I had to charge people to teach them, and it just made me feel bad because it was something I would want to do for free; I was passionate about teaching people stuff. At 23 I decided ‘you know what, let’s just be a teacher and do it for the right reasons.’”

Despite having multiple choir teachers as relatives, Talcott didn’t become one himself.

He said, “In high school, there was a girl I liked who wasn’t into music, but she was into science. Since I was into her, I decided that instead of pursuing music I would start pursuing science to assist in pursuing her. It was a very bad decision.”

Talcott finds that he benefits from this career much more than stockbroking.

“I get the satisfaction of knowing that my job kind of matters; I get to interact with a lot of different people and see them grow. When I was stockbroking I didn’t feel that way; it just felt like a job” However, being a teacher is not a fitting career for all people.

Tsuchiyama said, “Teaching is a passion more than a profession. If you are only interested in having three months off in the summer, you won’t make it as a teacher. It’s more difficult than you think; every course is difficult because it’s a challenge trying to get everyone else to understand.”

effort, attitude, and what is going on in their personal life into consideration. I’ll be humane about it if I know that they are hardworking and come to class everyday,” said Garvey.

On the other hand, many teachers value the fact that a classObjective and selective are two very different things.

The first means to not be influenced by personal feelings room should be an objective place.

“Teachers should make the playing field even in terms of when considering facts, and the latter means to base decisions classroom environment and participation. Teachers are reoff of personal preferences.

Whether one is in the professional world or the social world, sponsible for creating an equitable learning environment,” said Mary Codianne, Carlmont math teacher. favoritism always seems to be inevitable.

Garvey concurs that “it’s important for teachers to divorce Senior Catherine Luckenbach said, “In an ideal world, evtheir feelings from students because they need to eryone would be objective and not be biased, but we know their performance and effort is most imdon’t live in one. Favoritism will always exist beportant.” cause people are people, and we are bound to Another important issue that comes along dislike some and like others.” with favoritism is if it plays a significant role Favoritism can present itself in all types of in a student’s academic life. professional situations. But in academics, the “Teenagers seem to really value how they issue of favoritism and teachers is frequently fit in with their peers. The last thing I want brought up. to do is make them concerned with how they Although the definition of “teaching” is fit in in my classroom. Every student should simply showing or explaining someone how feel valued and there should be no social to do something, teachers are not exempt status because it might interfere with their from their personal feelings about certain school work,” said Codianne. students.

Infographic by Codianne’s statement is true as 77 percent of “Every teacher has favorites. But even though Karissa Tom students believe that favoritism does interfere with I might like somebody and empathize with them, academics. they still have to earn their grade,” said Linda Garvey, But despite the inevitability of favoritism, some students still Carlmont history teacher.

Garvey’s statement raises the important issue of when the believe that the student is in charge of his or her grade.

“The best one can do if presented with a situation regarding delicate balance between simply liking a student and showing obvious favoritism becomes upset, and students can often de- favoritism is to take a step back and rationalize. If you think that a teacher is giving you a low grade on an essay just because tect the difference.

“Teachers definitely pick favorites and it’s obvious in certain he or she doesn’t like you, then ask him or her what you can do situations. I had one teacher who favored female students and to improve. It’s silly when people groan about favoritism but it was really obnoxious. I can understand why people get upset. then don’t do anything to solve the problem,” said Luckenbach.

Codianne said, “Some kids get more attention due to their Your grade is suffering just because a teacher doesn’t like you personality or behavior, but I want all my kids to be involved. and that’s not fair,” said a male student.

Especially in the cases of borderline grades, teachers some- I think of the class as a team and drawing attention to one particular student upsets that. It’s all about whether the attention times take other factors besides academics into consideration.

“If a student is in that ‘gray area,’ I will take the student’s takes the class in a positive direction or not.”

By Jessica Adair Staff Writer

On the subject of substitute teachers: pros and cons

By Darien Malekos Staff Writer

A stranger holding a roll sheet stares at students as they walk into class. His name is scribbled illegibly on the chalkboard but he tells everyone they can call him “Mr. S.” Today a substitute is in control.

Most students have had a substitute at some point during their academic careers. Although substitutes are common, many students have little idea how they are selected.

To begin, all substitutes in California must pass the California Basic Educational Skills Test, the California Subject Examinations for Teachers, the CSU Early Assessment Program or the CSU Placement Examinations, or a Basic Skills Examination from any other state.

After passing one of these examinations, substitutes are carefully selected. Instructional Vice Principal Ralph Crame said, “There is a list of substitute teachers that is maintained by the district office. The district office decides who will be on the substitute teacher list and it is accessible to all schools in the district.”

However, being chosen by school officials does not necessarily mean a substitute will be liked by students. Carlmont keeps an eye on substitutes to make sure they are working well with the students and on the campus in general.

Crame said, “If we notice that a sub is really not a good fit for the school for various reasons, we can request to not have that person assigned to sub at Carlmont.”

To some students a substitute is a relief. Walking into class and seeing a substitute preludes a period of relaxation and ease.

However, other students dread substitutes and cringe as they are given endless amounts of work or, in some cases, no work at all.

Senior Brandon Aflak said, “I like substitutes who sit at the desk and don’t do anything because there is less work for me to do.”

While Aflak’s opinion reflects those of some students, others

disagree. Senior Zack Beauchamp said he prefers a substitute somewhere “in the middle” of laid back and strict.

He said, “A substitute who follows a lesson plan is too robotic, but worksheets can get repetitive.”

Some students don’t believe the amount of work a substitute gives or does not give a class should dictate whether they are liked or not. Senior Ryan Wong said, “A good substitute is one that is chill but can keep control of the class.”

Students are not the only people on campus who have opinions of substitutes. Some teachers specifically request certain substitutes to take control of their classes during their time out.

Biotechnology teacher Daniel Raffa prefers substitutes who specialize in the subject of the teacher’s class. Raffa frequently requests substitute Leslie Herndon to fill in for him during his time away from work.

Raffa said, “Ms. Herndon wants to be a science teacher. She has a master’s in chemistry and a bachelor’s in chemistry so she’s highly qualified on the the science skill level. Plus she’s passionate about teaching.”

Other teachers use a “luck of the draw” approach, completely leaving the decision up to chance.

Crame said, “When a teacher calls in sick, there is an automated system that calls teachers on the substitute list until someone accepts the job.”

This may seem like a risky route, but teachers can be accommodating to requests from students for substitutes they would like or not like to have again.

Crame said, “A teacher can request a specific substitute that they know and are comfortable with taking over their [class] when they are out. When this is the case the teacher communicates directly with the sub first and then puts the request for that person to be their sub when they call in to the system.”

No matter the approach they take, teachers must call in to make sure a substitute is assigned to their class. Whether liked or not, substitutes are a necessity in order to keep control of a classroom while a teacher is away.

Page 19

Campus

The Highlander

January 2014

The debate: the hardest year of high school

By Dana Benelli Staff Writer

When Allison Clark started junior year, she wasn’t expecting a huge change in difficulty. After all, now she was done with the transitioning phase and her workload hadn’t changed much from the previous year.

But as the weeks dragged on, Clark was hit with a sinking feeling.

Her workload began to increase— AP classes required more effort and homework took more time. She also had to manage a job outside of school while balancing her grades and social life. People started asking her about college and expecting her to have answers.

What’s going on? Clark thought. Is junior year just harder than the others?

A recent Carlmont poll found that an overwhelming 75 percent of respondents chose junior year as the hardest year of high school.

Sophomore year came in second at 11 percent, just one vote higher than senior year.

Freshman year came in last with only 3 percent considering it the hardest.

And while individual circumstances may differ, each Carlmont student can likely attest to finding one year harder than the rest.

The difference between her soph-

omore and junior year, said Clark, was “having to juggle so many things overall. It’s the combination of staying on top of your classes and also thinking about college and doing extracurriculars.”

“It takes a lot of time and can make things really hectic,” said Clark.

Junior year is viewed by some as the “most important” year as grades from that time will be the most recent ones that colleges see in an application. Grades also need to be maintained as a sudden drop can reflect badly upon a student’s transcript. “[In junior year] kids start to face a lot of academic pressure,” said Carlmont guidance counselor Kim Miller. “The college part becomes very real and you know those grades are important in your application.”

She also noted that “there are a lot more chances to take advanced classes” and courses of even higher levels.

Current junior Adrian Chan ranked this academic year as his hardest because “so much depends on how you do. There’s a lot of pressure.”

When asked what had been the toughest area to manage between social life, AP classes, outside-school obligations, and college looming in the future, Chan chose “all of the above.”

Students also usually begin sign-

ing up in junior year for the SAT, ACT, and other standardized tests that are necessary to show colleges.

In addition, AP testing occurs at the end of the year for those who have been taking AP classes.

But the following senior year comes with its own unique challenges.

“Everyone thinks junior year is hard, but senior year is by far the most stressful due to college apps,” said senior Vrain Ahuja.

In senior year students often undergo the stress of applying to colleges (and later, applying for scholarships) in addition to managing advanced classes and considering their life after high school.

Senior Marisa Pereira said “With school, college apps, and a job on top of all of that this year has been one of the more difficult ones.”

Miller said “I tend to see kids a lot more in senior year because they have a lot more questions with logistics about college applications.”

Other common senior year obstacles can include making up credits for those who are running short, according to Miller.

Additionally, “during senior year motivation is decreasing, work sometimes can be increasing, and the amount of things you have to do both in and outside of school [require attention].”

Sophomore year can carry its

share of hardships as well.

Clark ranked her sophomore year about as difficult as her junior year, and said that although she had about the same workload, junior year was challenging in “a different way.”

Hurdles for sophomores include finishing up adjusting to the environment and demands of high school.

The California High School Exit Exam is also administered during this year. In addition, interested students may think about working towards getting a driver’s license.

The introduction of AP European History as a sophomore class this year has also affected the lives and stress levels of some students.

Sophomore Kana Limpanukorn, who is taking AP European History, ranked her AP and AS-level honors classes as the toughest area of school for her to manage this academic year.

“Homework-wise it’s completely different,” said Limpanukorn. Compared to freshman year, the difficulty of classes is “much, much higher.”

Freshman year should not be written off, however.

Kailee Wiser, a current junior, ranked freshman year as the hardest since “you have to adjust to a different school with new classes and people you don’t know.”

“I’ve streamlined my schedule [this year],” Wiser added. “You know what you’re good at now, so

you know what classes to take.”

Junior Camille Gerolimatos agreed. “Not only do you have to adjust but freshman teachers can be really hard,” said Gerolimatos. “[They act like] you gotta be prepared for everything.”

By junior year, “you know what to do” and “you’re prepared,” Gerolimatos said.

Sophomore Rio Rojas noted that “you can cut classes when you’re a junior or senior,” referring to the completion of requirements such as needing two years of P.E. that can free up a spot in an upperclassman’s schedule. In contrast, freshmen and sophomores sometimes have to take seven periods instead of six in order to experience all of the classes they want.

Of course, each student’s individual circumstances will vary.

“You could probably make a case for any of the four years of high school being the most challenging depending on who it’s regarding,” said Miller.

With every person being in a different situation, ranging from family life to personal abilities to academic goals, the opinion on which year of high school is the hardest continues to be a personal one.

As Chan said, “It just depends on how well you react to stress and how good you are at playing the school game.”

AVID: helping prepare students for the future

By Jocelyn Moran Staff Writer

Some students at Carlmont voluntarily decide to take a seventh period as a guide to get into a four-year university.

AVID is a popular program offered in several high schools around the United States with the intent to guide students to get to college.

Although AVID serves all students, its main focus is to serve the students who need support academically and need help getting to college.

As of today, AVID impacts more than 700,000 students in more than 4,900 schools in the United States.

Last year at Carlmont, 100 percent of the students in AVID who were in Michelle McKee’s class got accepted to at least one four-year university.

McKee said, “I think AVID helps in a lot of ways, but probably one of the top ones is educating them about the college process. Not only does it help them with the college applications, but with the classes they should be taking, and having them challenge themselves by taking harder courses.”

Junior and current AVID student Sara Arredondo said, “AVID has definitely guided me to take the classes that are best for me. I think AVID can be helpful if you take it seriously and actually pay attention. If you don’t, it’s a waste of time, and you shouldn’t be in it.”

Junior Sofia Kurt is in AVID as a guide to get to college, but the workload can get in the way of her other classes.

“Personally, AVID has been helpful, but at complete my college applications on time and times I’ve just been so annoyed by it. It can with questions I had. They told me when to feel like it’s super pointless, but junior year has take the SATs, and the ACTs. Without AVID, been the most productive year for me. The first I wouldn’t have known when to take them,” two years felt like busy work,” said Kurt. said senior AVID student Crystal Cortez.

Sophomore and AVID student Kevin ErnesFormer Carlmont graduate and student at to said, “AVID has helped me in the way where San Diego State University, Vanessa Smith I can prepare myself is thankful for for college thanks to AVID. the field trips [that “I love AVID. AVID provides]. It It did everyalso helps me stay thing for me to on top of my classgo to college. es. It can feel a little They prepped pointless sometimes and provided because the work us with practice we get can feel like SAT and ACT it doesn’t help, but tests. My AVID overall, I really like teacher, Ms. AVID because we McKee, filled it can prepare for colout with each lege.” of us. AVID Junior Natawas more than lia Fonseca said, a class, it be“AVID is helpful comes a family Photo credit to Becca Fradkin and Danielle Hamer that you’re able because every year you are required to have a certain amount of to lean on and accomplish things with,” said extra-curricular activities that will look good Smith. on your college applications whether it’s being “AVID is not only intended to help students in a sport or as simple as community service with the college process during their high hours.” school career, but also help them develop the As students continue with AVID during skills that they will need, and benefit from in their four years of high school, most of them college. AVID also helps students get the skills feel that it becomes the most helpful senior that will help them be successful in college beyear. “Since I’m a senior, AVID has helped me cause it’s one thing to get them to college, and

it’s a whole other thing to make sure they can be successful once they’re there,” said Mckee.

“The skills that I have learned from AVID are to keep up with deadlines and be very strict on note-taking. It helped me be extremely organized and to always remember to give back,” said Smith.

Around high schools, there are several misconceptions of the kinds of students that are in AVID. Junior Andrew Wach said, “I think the idea of AVID is really good. The fact that it exists is good. I just feel that some students are forced to be in it because of their parents, and it’s not a class that a student would want to be in.”

Sophomore Bijan Khalili said, “When I hear about AVID, I don’t think stupid kids are in it, but I think students who need to stay on track are in it.”

AVID director Matt Miskelly said, “Not only do we give students some curriculum to work on, but to work with, and to become a better student, and to learn skills that will make them successful college students. It also creates an environment where students feel supported, and can learn how to be successful.”

“I have learned that college is necessary to succeed in life. Not only receiving your BA can help you succeed in life, but pursuing something beyond that. It has taught me the importance of school and how I need to make sure that everyone is granted the same opportunity that AVID offered me. It trains you to become a successful college student,” said Smith.

Entertainment

Page 20 The Highlander

January 2014

Impact of violent video games

By Alex Yang Staff writer

Can playing games make someone want to kill?

Dating back to 1947, the first video game was released, consisting of only a couple of dots and lines. Since then, advances in technology have led to significant changes and special effects in video games.

Exidy, one of the first well-known gaming companies, released Death Race in 1976, becoming the first company to sell a violent video game. Later released was Mortal Kombat by Midway Games in 1992, followed by Grand Theft Auto by Rockstar Games in 1997, and Call of Duty by Activision in 2003.

Throughout the history of video games, there have been many bans trying to stop the distribution of violent video games because they might impact society negatively.

Sophomore Austin Tang said, “Violent video games make people think that violence is trivial. It also makes it seem that violence and war are not as dangerous as they really are.”

A study from Ohio State University showed that playing a violent video game once does not have much repercussion, but repeated exposure may have a cumulative effect on aggression in children and teens.

Another study conducted by the Palo Alto Medical Foundation showed that teens who play violent video games for extended periods of time tend to be more aggressive, are more prone to confrontation with their teachers, may engage in fights with their peers, and see a

For some, video games feel like a virtual reality. decline in school achievements.

Sophomore Camron Dennler said, “Violent video games should be discouraged because they are addicting and a waste of time, time

Photo by Veronika Dvorakova and logo by FidGFX

that can be used for socializing. If someone spends too much time playing violent video games, I feel that person will become part of the game.”

Social scientists have been studying cases such as the shooters at Columbine High School, the gunman at the movie theater in Aurora, Colo. and other massacres across the nation. One thing the scientists found in common was that all the shooters played video games and seemed to be acting out of some “dark digital fantasy.”

Although there are negative consequences of violent video games, there are also effects that can benefit society.

Junior Komei Wang said, “I think violent video games are fine because they can reduce stress and anger in some ways. This can help teens relax themselves. Overall, violent video games can be good.”

Researchers at Texas A&M International University have shown that long-term exposure to violent video games is associated with reduced hostile feelings and depression following a stressful task.

In some cases, there have been no direct link between violent video games and increased crime.

Violent juvenile crime in the United States has been declining as violent video game popularity has increased. The arrest rate for all juvenile violent crimes has declined 49.3 percent from 1995 to 2008. In this same period, violent video game sales have more than quadrupled.

Sophomore Angelo Zhao said, “No one should change or prohibit violent video games.

As long as people don’t follow the violence and apply it to society, then it’s fine to play violent video games.”

From innocent questions to hurtful hate The use of ask.fm, a site for submitting anonymous questions to one an other, has evolved to be used for things going far beyond questions.

On ask.fm the user has the option of submitting a question to someone's profile anonymously or showing a username. More commonly than not, ask.fm is being used for teenagers to submit anonymous posts to one and other, many of which are hateful or inappropriate.

Senior Bailee Roces said, “Ask. fm is nothing more than a site that allows people to anonymously submit hateful statements that they would never say without the protection of their computer screen.”

One website is intensely changing the lives of families around the world as children take their own lives due to comments on the site.

Last year alone there were nine teenage deaths directly related to hateful posts on ask.fm.

When asked why so many people use ask.fm, junior Toni Lupil-

?

This poll is based on the responses of 118 Carlmont students.

lin said, “This is high school and in all reality, drama and people talking bad about each other is interesting and that’s why the website continues to grow.”

Sophomore Walter Christian said, “Ask.fm is a website used for teenagers to point out one another’s flaws.”

On the other hand many teens see ask.fm as a good information source

and support the use of the site to ask questions one may not have the nerve to ask in person.

Sophomore Mia Firpo said, “I feel ask.fm is a good way for people to ask personal questions and find out interesting information.”

Ask.fm can very well be funny and entertaining if used in a non-offensive way.

Freshman Drew Lehr said, “I feel that ask.fm is very entertaining and a great way to find out funny and interesting facts about your friends.”

Hiding behind a cell phone or computer screen gives teens much more power to say what they want without consequences. Repercussions of teens’ actions on the site are not seen until lives have already been taken and there is no going back.

In the past, there was a similar site called Formspring that eventually turned into the same sort of statements of hate.

Ask.fm launched in June of 2010 and, with 80 million users, it has greatly overtaken Formspring since then.

More recently in 2012 and 2013, ask.fm has started to become associated with cyber bullying, which has led to many teen suicides.

Infographic by Lara Ostroff

By Lauren Tierney Staff Writer

Junior Sarah Anderson said, “There’s a fine line between interesting questions and hurtful ones and ask.fm users continue to cross this line.”

Sophomore Gabriella Lehr said, “It’s undeniable that ask.fm is a very entertaining and drama filled site and that’s why so many people use it, but at the end of the day someone else’s entertainment may be the reason a teen takes their life.”

Currently, ask.fm is facing lawsuits due to the many suicides of teens around the world.

Sitting behind a computer with no identity, a teenager is given so much more power over others. No one knows or will ever know who sent the post, therefore there are no real consequences.

If teens do not want to expose themselves to hatred and rude questions from their peers, the simplest solution would seem to be for one to not create an account, but ask.fm user usage continues to grow every day.

Junior Lexi Jenkins said, “I don’t need to hear all the things people dislike about me and that’s why I don’t find it necessary to have an ask.fm.”

Entertainment

The Highlander

Hold the phone

Statistics from

Pew Research Center ’s Intern et

& American Lif e Project.

Android 28%

Apple users are familiar with the latest and most popular trends, making them fit to carry the always up to date, always stylish iPhone.

Senior Jessica Levesque is more than satisfied with her iPhone 5S Gold, after having waited weeks for it to arrive due to the phone’s immediate sell out in October. Despite the wait, Levesque understands the necessity of owning the latest gadgets.

“I usually get a new phone every year or whenever the newest one comes out. Prefer iPhones over any other type of phone because they’re much easier to use and work well with a lot of other electronics” ~Jessica Levesque~

In that sense, Levesque is no stranger to the iPhone user stereotype -- which implies owning multiple Apple products and multiple iPhone cases. For Levesque, 17 cases to be exact.

In general, iPhone users are more concerned with appearance rather than technological functions. The iPhone's classic, sleek look and the wide range of accessories available to it lure consumers into the Apple hype.

But of course, there’s nothing wrong with being an Apple admirer or spending money purchasing the newest items.

Because in the end, the large lot of iPhone supporters continues to be the leading trendsetters in the game.

~ Jenny Chen ~

Supporters of the Android platform hold higher expectations when it comes to performance quality. In addition to this, they tend to avoid following the usual trends and like establishing their own original style.

In her spare time, Chen enjoys discovering new music, particularly alternative rock bands that stray from today’s mainstream pop, setting her taste apart from the usual iPhone trend-seeker.

“I listen to music with lyrics that hold deeper meaning, and it just so happens that these are bands that not a lot of people have heard of before," Chen stated. “Plus, the sound quality on the HTC is great since it’s powered

by Beats by Dre.” Along with this comes Chen’s unique eye for art. As a former student at Academy of Art’s pre-college program and a student who has already taken multiple art classes at Carlmont, it’s safe to say that Chen is an appropriate representation of the stereotypical artsy Android advocate.

Written by Angela Perez de Tagle Staff Writer

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akova

There remains a small population of cell phone users that relies on neither iPhones nor Androids. These are the non-smartphoners that can proudly say they know how to live life without the hassle or distraction of an overpriced touchscreen.

Senior Kristen Dames has held on to her Verizon Intensity, a “basic slide phone with no Internet and no apps,” for a total of five years. Her phone is “indestructible” and that’s exactly the way she likes it.

Dames feels no need to own a more complex phone with

Droid users want the most high-tech phone with the most reliable software to match their complex personalities.

Senior Jenny Chen sports an HTC One, an Android frequently held in comparison with the iPhone.

"I've always used a PC, and I like Androids better because they're like mini-PCs."

Other

vor Veronika D

Photo by Kristen Friis

January 2014

Photo by

of cell phone users own an Android

iPhone

Page 21

25%

hyped up applications.

“I don’t like the idea of all those fad apps that everyone becomes obsessed with. I spend more time reading books and I love them.

I would rather spend an hour with a good book than wasting time on an iPhone that costs obscene amounts of money.”

of cell phone users own an iPhone

~Kristen Dames~

ini

Photo by Dominic Giald

Reza Ebrahimpour Math Tutor Phone: (650) 631-0631 Email: zibad@outlook.com

On top of this, Dames prefers using actual computers to complete tasks that most people need smartphones to accomplish.

"I don't need to have games or e-mail with me all the time. I have the patience to wait until I get home to get things done."

Dames, like other non-smartphone users, understands the difference between face-to-face and Facebook. And, because she finds herself less immersed in technology, she is able to focus her attention on the more important things: studying, going to the gym and hanging out with friends.

Page 22 The Highlander

Entertainment

January 2014

Kickstarter Artsy pictures on social media In the past, thousands of creative ideas and innovations would get flushed out before they even had a chance of being successful. The challenge, most outlandish and forward thinking ideas require some sort of professional financial backing to be successful.

Enter Kickstarter, an independent company based in Brooklyn, NY that has built an innovative crowdfunding platform connecting creators with a community of financial backers.

Kickstarter is full of projects, big and small, that are given a chance through the direct support of people like you. As the world’s largest crowdfunding platform, Kickstarter’s mission is to help creative projects come to life and reach their potential.

Since its launch in 2009, 5.5 million people have pledged $947 million, funding more than 55,000 creative projects, from films, music, stages shows, comics, journalism, video games, design and technology products to food-related projects.

Whether they know it or not, many students at Carlmont have been exposed to products that originally started on Kickstarter. Four recent Oscar-nominated documentary films found their start from the support of Kickstarter backers and at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, 20 films by Kickstarter creators will premiere among the world's best and brightest.

“Kickstarter is just cool, so many different projects, from Pebble (E-paper watch for iPhones and Androids) to an emoji translation of Moby Dick that entered the Library of Congress, it just has something for everyone, from practical to just downright silly,” said sophomore Jacob Segal.

The selling point for Kickstarter has been “crowdfunding,” as this phenomenon has erased the need for innovators to appease to a single wealthy patron or grant-giving foundation. Backers can provide their financial support in increments as small as $1.

The crowdfunding tactic also promises rewards for people who back the projects from the very beginning. Most Kickstarter projects include a personal video segment produced by the creators sharing their passion and vision to build excitement for their idea. Backers are offered tangible rewards such as prototype product releases and special experiences in exchange for their early pledges. This model is derived from the roots of subscription model of arts patronage, where artists would appeal directly to their audiences to fund their work.

Project creators set a funding goal and deadline and if people like a project, they can pledge money to make it happen. Project funding on Kickstarter is all-or-nothing; projects must reach their funding goals by the stated deadline to receive any funding.

This type of funding might seem scary, but it has turned out to be amazingly effective in creating momentum and gathering people around an idea. To date, an impressive 44 percent of projects have reached their initial funding goals.

“Kickstarter allows people a tangible way of funding the things they believe in and improving the spread of ideas,” said social studies teacher Kristin Davis-Karnacki.

Most people don’t know about Kickstarter, but surely a lot of San Francisco Giants fans would recognize the Delorean hovercraft that hangs out in McCovey Cove; that was originally an idea that started on Kickstarter.

As the founders of Kickstarter believe, “creative projects make for a better world, and we’re thrilled to help support new ones.

Building a community of backers around an idea is an amazing way to make something new.”

By Miranda Irwin Staff Writer Teenagers in this day and age are often on their cell phones -- whether it is during class, while hanging out with friends or at home -- as a way to pass the time. A newer trend one might find teenagers engaging in is iPhone photography.

Teens have been using their iPhones and other camera phones to take pictures and edit them to be more visually appealing. A popular outlet used for sharing these photos is Instagram.

Since Instagram’s launch in October of 2010, it has reached approximately 150 million users and accumulates an average of 55 million photos daily, according to a December 2013 statistic from Digital Marking Ramblings.

A majority of Instagram users are teenagers and young adults, many of whom enjoy photography -- or at least the thought of it.

Instagram allows people to portray their lives in an artistic and admirable way.

Common terms such as “artsy” and “hipster” are often associated with this evolving trend.

The Macmillan Dictionary defines the term “artsy” as “showing a great interest in art, but in a way that may not be sincere.”

Two of the most popular products that allow Instagram users to take artsy photos and add effects or filters to them are Androids and iPhones.

“I think ‘artsy’ is when people try to take

professional looking pictures. Some end up cliche looking and some end up looking really cool if they don’t over exaggerate it,” said sophomore Chelsea Stewart.

The idea of taking artsy pictures has become more and more popular among teenagers. Using editing apps and filters is the most common known way individuals achieve their final result of a clear or artsy looking photo.

“I love seeing some people try to be artsy with their photos. Photos are people’s way of expressing themselves and if the use of filters allows them to do so, then I think it’s a good thing to use them,” said senior, and aspiring photographer, Ben Knoot.

The teenage and young adult generation, most specifically females, are found to have an overwhelming number of photo editing apps on their phones. Young women often use these apps to make the focus of their photo look more appealing.

“I enjoy messing around with editing apps when I get bored and I have quite a few on my iPhone,” said junior Neeshae Wain.

“If your Instagram feed doesn’t consist of sunsets, water droplet close-ups and elegantly arranged gourmet meals, you’re not a 15-year-old girl,” said Leslie Meredith of TechNewsDaily in her article “How to use Instagram like a 15-year-old girl.”

Photography is becoming a more popular hobby thanks to social media sites like Instagram and an endless amount of available apps. Whether one is an aspiring photographer or simply finds joy in taking photos during their free time, photography

has what seems like an infinite amount of possibilities in what could come from it.

“Whether one uses a filter to touch up a photo that is of poor quality or purely to make their photo more artsy than others, that is totally up to them. Everybody has his or her own reasons for using filters or editing their photos before posting them, and there is nothing wrong with that,” said senior Silas Pang who, like Knoot, is also an aspiring photographer.

The developing interest that society has taken in photography has led to possibilities that many may not have even known existed. Photography, Instagram and photo editing all provoke creativity and opportunity to expand as artists as well as for pure enjoyment.

From photos of food to social outings to nature, photography provides an outlet for individuals to find peace and delectation. No matter if a picture was taken on a phone or with a professional camera, photos have a meaning to their owner and that is essentially all that matters.

“I enjoy capturing the world around me as I see it and I like being in nature just enjoying the peace and the freedom,” said Knoot.

The constantly developing technology and interest in photography provides new ways for rising generations to express themselves and explore their interests.

Whether photography or art are hobbies or possible career paths, technology allows people to experiment with things they are interested in and can help them grow as individuals.

Mainstream vs. alternative music

By Marco Sevilla Staff Writer

Like many art forms, musical genres experience trends. In recent years, a growing trend has occurred where alternative and independent (indie) music have been increasing in popularity, giving these genres and artists more exposure to the public.

The growing popularity of the genre is shown through the abundance of recent number one, Grammy-winning singles such as "Somebody That I Used To Know," by Gotye and "We Are Young," by Fun. Whether it be for its distinct sound or for the recent hipster movement, today's youth are continually growing to appreciate the sound of alternative music.

Junior Emily Rudger said, "I like alternative most because it's not overly done like a lot of pop music is. It can combine elements of pop, rock and rap but still sound cool and different."

An example of a recently popular alternative artist is Lorde whose single "Royals" won her four Grammy nominations in 2014. Some cur-

rently popular alternative singles include "Pompeii," by Bastille and "Sweater Weather," by The Neighbourhood. These singles are known for their catchy beats and interesting lyrics.

Junior and fan of alternative music Sabrina Cojocaru said, "I like that each artist has their own distinct sound. It’s called alternative because it doesn’t really fit into any other musical genre. Alternative artists tend to have really unique sounds, which is a nice change from the repetitive melodies you’ll hear all the time on a radio station like 94.9."

With these ever changing trends in music, teens are starting to look past popular pop singles and into lesser known artists, inadvertently making some them what many call "mainstream." Sophomore Jules Bruey said, "The reason alternative music is spreading is because more bands are coming to the mainstream. We were never lacking in the genre, it just didn't have as much of a cult following as they do now. Also, radio exposure plays a pretty reasonable part." The popularity of concert festivals such as Lollapalooza, Outside Lands and Coachella have also shown a growth in the alternative genre as well as hip-hop/rap, dance and electronic music.

Just this year, the California-based music e v e n t Coachella sold out in under t h r e e hours.

Bruey s a i d , “ T h e Infographic by Zoe Wildman

By Graham Godwin Staff Writer

scene has grown massively with the uprising of newer festivals and a more popular following.

Alternative music is no longer just accessible to the man with horn-rimmed glasses, skin-tight jeans and a fixie bike."

In today's Internet age, artists now have the ability to reach larger audiences by sharing their work online, which some say have allowed alternative artists to gain much more exposure than in the past.

Junior Sophie Fox said, "Nowadays it's easier to be an alternative artist because of the Internet. It's a lot easier to get music out there with websites like Bandcamp, Facebook and Myspace a few years ago."

Some teens argue that the growing prevalence of this genre reflects a change in ideals in society as well, showing that more people want to be different and stand out from the crowd.

Cojocaru said, "I think with this whole 'hipster era' people are warming up to the idea of being different. In previous decades society was so concerned with fitting in that even if people did like alternative music, they would be more likely to hide it."

"In today's day and age, people not only are okay with having their own individual interests, but they want to show it as well. That might be why alternative music seems to be more prevalent."

The name “alternative” can be stemmed from the popular alternative rock genre of the late '60s and '70s. This movement in music was known for its derivation from mainstream rock with its distorted guitar sound and rebellious lyrics. In general, these artists were considered underground due to their lack of recognition on the radio and their independent record labels. Fox said, "The genre has grown and is definitely more embraced. I think the '90s was sort of the start of the D.I.Y. movement which spurned a lot of indie bands. For instance, garage rock, which inspired a lot of other bands. Music is always evolving."

The Highlander

Entertainment

The appeal of music

By Alex Lay Staff Writer

Many students agree with Jackman’s positive view of music.

“I find music soothMusic affects ing. The song I am teenagers in listening to affects many different my emotions. It ways, whethallows me to er it is emoclear my head tionally or and focus on physically. the song. I lisTe e n ten to a mixa g e r s ture of evhave been erything, so known I don’t know to obsess how well muover music represents sic, includmy personality, ing artists, but I do believe songs or almusic can affect bums. This atpeople and reflect traction to music their personalities,” said is induced by the sophomore Lauren Young. artist’s ability to create Sophomore Natalie Stainton music that teenagers can rePhoto by Veronika Dvorakova agrees with the influence of late to or idolize. music on her personal life.

“Music can be a great outlet world.

“I like to listen to music befor teens, especially when they Music can be very positive feel the lyrics are speaking di- by lightening a person’s atti- cause there is always going to rectly to them; then they feel tude, providing a boost of en- be a song that you can relate to. like they have been really un- ergy during a workout or giving When I hear an upbeat song, it derstood. When an artist gives them a different perspective on puts me in a good mood and it helps get me pumped for vola message of comfort, humor, life. leyball. Music can reunderstanding or flect who you are; it can motivation, it can “I love music, and I show if you mainly feel be very therapeutic upbeat or if you prefer to the listener,” said think that there is so calmer surroundings,” Psychologist Kenmuch music out there said Stainton. non McDonough.

The different types Teens are still dethat there is always of genres that teens veloping emotionally, and for some, something I can listen to tend to enjoy can also their personal music can provide no matter what mood I affect lives by expressing a personal connecam in.” their personalities and tion that seems real creating new identities. and can allow them ~Senior Charlotte Jackman.~ These genres can to escape from the

also affect how teens develop to act in social groups or how they develop their personalities. For example, depressive traits in teens are common due to their extreme emotions and by listening to sad music their depression can worsen, said McDonough.

“If a teen tends to have depressive symptoms, it is probably not a good idea to listen to music that is sad for too long,” said McDonough.

Another way teenagers are affected by music, both positively and negatively, is by listening to it while studying.

Sophomore Timmy Miller opposes listening to music while studying.

“I feel more productive when I am not listening to music and for some people it may calm them down but for me it sort of puts me on edge,” said Miller.

Teenagers who listen to classical music while studying are able to easily retain information, which is called the Mozart Effect, according to a study done at the University of Phoenix.

Listening to music while studying a language course isn’t a good idea because your brain uses the same part to both translate the music and the language, causing the brain to become confused.

If the future can be predicted from the past, teens will continue to search for their own identity through music and others may find their identities elsewhere.

Page 23 January 2014

Music blogs

By John Russell Staff Writer We would not be able to get music so quickly, analyze it the day it drops or really even enjoy things at the pace of the Internet without music blogs.

They are usually non-descript corners of the Internet where teams of music nerds trawl every SoundCloud, every Bandcamp account for the newest sounds.

Often, people knock them as being hipster, for straying from the mainstream, but the reality of music post-Internet is that the mainstream is no longer the heart of innovative music.

With 17.5 million people using Spotify, according to evolver.fm, the amount of people exposed to a large quantity of non-mainstream music through the internet is skyrocketing.

Senior Amelia Tupou said of music blogs, “If you want to be current and have the latest sounds you’re not going to get it on iTunes, or from the radio. Music blogs are the only way you can find out about all the new movements and genres and artists.”

The music of the mainstream has a reputation for being more accessible, but as the Internet slowly but surely rewrites all the rules and upends every status quo, the lowest common denominator entertainment of the mainstream is being replaced by the new infrastructure of blogs and SoundCloud artists, innovating at never before seen paces.

One website that stands out in this age of Big Data as particularly innovative is Hypemachine.com, an aggregator of blog post data across thousands of blogs. It takes that huge amount of data and tracks what songs are being buzzed about and gives a second by second chart-view update of what the hottest songs on the internet are right now.

Junior Brandon Magpayo said of Hypemachine. com, “It’s like a leaderboard for all the new up and coming artists today.”

That kind of immediacy is simply not feasible with traditional distribution models.

It’s this rising infrastructure of blogs, aggregators and content creators that sees the fastest growing corner of the internet producing the most interesting musical content.

Hop online, check a blog out. You’ll get better music.

Musicians jumping on the bandwagon

By Ravina Gujral Staff Writer

Nowadays, bands seem to be inserting themselves in the top musical charts by offering new twists to typical groups with their various genres and styles.

The different genres included in the band scene have slowly expanded to form today’s diverse music selection. With bands ranging from alternative to rap to pop girl groups, people are able to listen to almost any type of genre they’d like, while also listening to bands.

Junior Jenna Mourad said, “I think group artists are much more common now because of how many genres they’re in. I mostly listen to alternative/indie music, but a lot of times they aren’t typical/classic bands. For example, I listen to the duet group, Rizzle Kicks often because they are two very different artists that work well together by having one singer and one rapper.”

The new trend to stand out in a crowd and have a unique point of view on music has also been becoming more and more important

throughout younger generations. Subsequently, the new band scene contributes to some of the new kinds of music teens are ultimately looking for.

“People seem to be getting tired of the same artists coming out with similar music, so they’re looking for different types of artists with new music to listen to,” said junior Kira Roman.

W i t h this growing trend of bands in unexpected genres, numerous young people are also finding different styles of music they’re drawn to that they normally wouldn’t know of or listen to.

“The new and upcoming bands are definitely more interesting and flexible with the kind of music they make compared to typical bands with one lead singer and instruments in the background. I also think that different kinds of bands are becoming more popular now because of how much easier it is to find them on social media,” said junior Neeshae Wain.

According to fans, another factor that also draws the listener in is favoritism for Photo courtesy of Incase a certain member of the band. If there are six people in a band rather than one, there’s six times a greater chance that someone will like the band and that particular member’s contri-

bution to the music.

“I think bands generate more conversations since you can compare individual artists within the band. Also, groups generally have artists who start off as individual musicians and work their way into a group. The fanbase additionally collects from each artist of the band, making an ultimately larger group of fans,” said student Komei Wang.

Junior Yunus Evsen said, “I really like the new music that bands like Imagine Dragons and Odd Future have put out in the past few years. They’ve both seemed to make new and interesting music for their genres and were huge breakout artists as a result.”

Overall, various genres nowadays contain bands and have new ways of going about their options as groups.

Having a band in general creates the impression that there’s more than one person involved in the process of creating the music.

This team effort appeals to numerous people and helps to have many sources of input for the music being made and therefore creates a successful band.

Extras

Page 24 The Highlander

Fitting in From page 1 and comfortable,” said freshman Jordan Perkins.

UGGs were created in 1978 by Brain Smith in Southern California; within years his sheepskin boots became ubiquitous footwear among women.

“A lot of people own UGGs, people wear them for different occasions; they are great to keep feet warm but they are also great for lazy days,” said Fecher.

The North Face brand was established in 1966 in San Francisco, when Douglas Tompkins created an equipment retail store that eventually acquired the current name “North Face.”

Chocolate From page 1

CEOs and the board members.”

Recent investigations of the cocoa industry

by CNN, BBC, The New York Times, and the Huffington Post have caused chocolate manufacturers to become more secretive about the origin of their ingredients.

These investigations revealed that the workers’ rights are being violated.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) has stated that all children must be able to attend school while working. In almost all West African cocoa plantations, no education is offered to child laborers.

The workers are also exposed to harmful pesticides without protective equipment. The child laborers have often been sold by family members, kidnapped, or promised money which they never receive for their labor.

Two years ago, the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) planned to air an advertisement featuring Hershey’s use of child labor on a jumbotron outside of the stadium during the Super Bowl.

The ILRF did not run the ad after Hershey pledged to use only cocoa certified by the Rainforest Alliance for its Bliss Chocolates line, to source only slavery-free cocoa by 2020, and to invest $10 million in improving worker life in West Africa.

English teacher Susan Gold said, “It seems that the changes they’re making are [due to] pressure and not of authentic concern. The corporations are acknowledging the problem

Feminism

From page 1

was forced to question why women and men in the same positions are thought of as entirely different things.

Due to growing awareness of feminism, students have started a Feminist club at Carlmont to promote equality.

“There are a lot of people at school who don’t realize how sexism affects all of us. There are some who think that men and women are equal because our community makes it easier for us to not see injustices that exist in our society,” said senior Kalila Kirk.

Students are split on whether they consider themselves feminists or not. Fifty-eight percent of students counted themselves as a feminist by their definition and 42 percent did

“Tons of people around the Bay have North Face jackets, specifically the fleece ones. They are super comfortable and great for chilly days,” said Fecher.

For boys: crew socks, khaki shorts and khaki pants.

“The look of Vans with Nike crew socks, khaki shorts or pants and black or white t-shirt look has been around forever,” said senior Silas Pang.

This look has been branded as the athleticcasual look, however the time in which it came to be popular is unknown.

“The look is easy to put together and it looks decent on a majority of people, there is no real reason guys wear it,” said Pang.

For both genders: a North Face or JanSport backpack, a Camelbak water bottle and Vans.

“I am using a North Face brand backpack from eighth grade and it still works well. I have

Photos by Ryan Freeman and Kellan McDonough

For girls, UGGs and yoga pants are popular For boys, Vans and crew socks.

two manufacture nearly half of all small backpacks sold in the United States.

“My JanSport backpack is great, I have been using this brand since kindergarten and it has never failed me,” said Fecher.

The Camelbak Company had its beginnings in 1988 the midst of a bike race in Texas. The official brand was started in 1993 when it became a countrywide sensation. Since then Camelbak water bottles have been seen in the backpacks of many high school students.

“Camelbak water bottles are quality made, and since Carlmont started to sell them I have seen a lot around school, it’s a big resurgence since the single use bottle,” said Fecher.

There are many different items that students can use to fit into high school society.

These include clothes and products that have become main stream due to their durability and dependability.

and making commitments to change the practices. Now the question becomes: how much are they following through?”

The Hershey Company’s webpage for its Bliss products reads, “When you bite into a decadent square of Hershey’s Bliss chocolate, you’re not just indulging yourself. You’re also supporting the greater good. Since the end of 2012, all Hershey’s Bliss chocolates are being made with cocoa beans sourced from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms.”

This page does not say anything about Hershey’s products without the Rainforest Alliance stamp.

Gold said, “As a consumer, I want to see the Fair Trade label on those products, but being an ethical consumer means that you make a sacrifice. You pay more for fair trade and have less accessibility.”

“Fair trade” products are guaranteed to be slavery-free for those like Gold who refuse to buy from unknown importers. Gold said, “I love all those commercial brands, but I don’t buy them anymore because of this. I think that has to be a personal decision.”

Gold feels that chocolate is a luxury and boycotts companies with undisclosed cocoa sources.

One fair trade organization, Equal Exchange, sources products from small farmer co-ops rather than plantations. On its mission site, Equal Exchange said, “[Equal Exchange] is not designed to maximize profits, nor returns to investors, but rather to bring to the workplace many of the rights and responsibilities that we hold as citizens in our communities.”

Even with organizations like Rainforest Alliance and Equal Exchange whose goal is to guarantee slavery-free chocolate, labels are not always trustworthy.

Companies had to suspend several plantations in 2010 for using child labor while providing what they said was fair trade cocoa.

Some brands self-label their products as fair trade when in reality, they are not. Victoria’s Secret is one example, calling cotton produced by forced labor “fair trade.”

Upon learning about these issues in the chocolate industry, sophomore Seena Sebt was not surprised.

Sebt said, “Nestlé has been infamous for deceiving consumers [since its] problem with baby formula in the 1980s. The fact that they are now abusing children in a different form is unacceptable.”

Carlmont’s Freedom Fighters will be in the quad handing out fair trade chocolate hearts on Valentine’s Day. “Our mission this [first] year is really to expose people to the problem,” said McKee. Though fair trade chocolate can be more expensive than the conventional version, it can often be found at stores like Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods more cheaply than online.

Major chocolate companies maintain a lower price level for products that are not fair trade by sourcing from plantations with labor conditions that violate ILO standards.

Fair trade customer Sirena Vasquez said, “To prevent big companies from getting their resources the cheapest way, you start demanding that the small things are changed. The change can become a norm, and people’s eyes will be

opened to what’s going on behind the scenes.”

For example, when Hershey faced the possibility of consumer criticism, it became committed to correcting the forced labor practices.

The Hershey Company said, “We have taken a leadership role in improving in-country conditions to help ensure farmers maximize their production potential; children have access to basic education and families receive needed medical care.”

Hershey will be working with the U.S. Department of Labor and West African governments to “reduce the worst forms of child labor by 70 percent in 2020.” The ILO will play some part in administering this project.

Hershey has recently created CocoaLink, a program that offers medical and educational assistance to workers in Ghana.

More people are becoming aware of the human trafficking and forced labor in West Africa.

British consumers have attempted boycotts, and the U. S. House of Representatives proposed a bill requiring manufacturers to reveal their cocoa sources before their products could be printed with a “no child slave labor” label.

Gold believes that the way to stop companies from purchasing cocoa from plantations with forced labor is to have an independent monitoring system such as Rainforest Alliance in which slavery-free products are indicated by a special label.

Gold said, “As consumers we need to make ourselves aware of where our products come from. We have purchasing power. These companies are feeling pressured, and that’s an organized effort.”

not.

Choir director Genevieve Tep said, “Everyone tiptoes around the word feminist. A lot of female members of society are not as informed as we should be because so much of it directly affects our bodies and our choices.”

Tep spoke about looking at the current dress code so that Carlmont changes their thinking about feminism and women’s bodies.

“We need to figure out a way to make the dress code have a balance where we aren’t focused so much on girls’ bodies as much as we are on professional standards. I think there is a balance that we can find without it being demeaning or really severe,” said Tep. The Feminist Club has been a part of the change of student’s opinions. “We want to create a space where people can make choices that make them happy in regards to feminism. The Feminist club believes that everyone has their own type of feminism and that it’s an individ-

ual thing,” said Kirk.

Although controversy has arisen over the Feminist Club’s position on different issues, they “work to keep girls informed of women’s and political issues locally and around the world,” said Tep. Music videos, such as “Hard Out Here” by Lily Allen, are meant to be satirical and represent everything that is wrong with how society views women. In the case of Allen’s video, controversy developed over whether it was too realistic and didn’t achieve the purpose of poking fun at people such as singer Robin Thicke and his music video for “Blurred Lines.”

Throughout history women have fought for the right of equality. From Plato in 400 B.C. to Mary Wollstonecraft and “A Vindication on the Rights of Women” in the 1700s, many people have discussed it. Historians state that there have been at least three waves of feminism (with some saying that there is a

fourth wave right now), and each have focused on a different aspect or way of feminism.

Eventually the National Organization for Women (NOW) was founded in 1966 and women have gained many rights, such as the right to vote in 1920 and the right to reproductive choice in the Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade.

“I believe feminism focuses on gender equality. In order for the inequality prevalent in our society to end, I believe there are fundamental beliefs regarding the ‘place’ and ‘capability’ of both women and men that need some revising,” said senior Samantha Samuelsen.

No matter if someone believes that equality is prevalent in society today or not, there is always room to improve the way that humans treat one another. Even if one believes equality has been reached, equality needs to be maintained. Feminism is the mission to continue to improve society.

Brand name colleges From page 1

seen my friends switch out backpacks over the course of high school while I continue to use mine,” continued Pang.

The North Face and JanSport, the world’s largest backpack maker, are both subsidiaries owned by VF Corporation. Combined, the

January 2014

but now it seems tailored to be easier to obtain,” said Turkis.

It is now a concern for parents who spend an incredible amount of money on their child’s college education, not knowing if it will pay off.

Whether it is getting hired for an amazing job out of college or moving back into the parent’s house, it is now a constant worry for students everywhere that the school and education that determines the rest of their lives is not as easy to choose as it was a mere decade ago.

Check out scotscoop.com for additonal content, daily news updates, and extended sports coverage!

Page 21

Sports

Page 26 January 2014

The Highlander

Students row their way to college possibilities

By Kellan McDonough Sports Editor

At Carlmont, many students participate in crew. A sport taking place completely outside of school, crew takes time, money and a lot of hard work.

Like any sport, crew has its advantages; athletes become physically fit, learn competition and make new friends.

An advantage to crew is that it’s a highly recruited collegiate sport. Rowing in high school allows student-athletes to get looked at by colleges. It could potentially push them into the college of their dreams.

Although many students do not start crew with the intent that it will get them into college, it can be a motivator for some athletes.

Senior Chandler Kowtko said, “The essential reason why I began crew was to go to college.”

Many students participate in crew because they love the sport.

“I knew that it would open more opportunities for college, but to me it really didn't matter. I row because it's fun and I enjoy it,” said junior Tommaso Ferme.

Just as competitive and dedicating as Carlmont sports, crew builds up the athletes’ physical strength. Crew workouts are intense and they require lifting sessions.

Junior Adelyn Yau said, “We do weight lift-

ing circuits three times a week. We go on the water Tuesday through Saturday. On the water, we do endurance pieces and interval pieces, depending on what we're working on. Every day we do some core exercises and sometimes, depending on the circumstances, we also run.”

It isn’t just physical strength that’s required. Crew athletes need to be mentally tough enough to row through the pain.

Ferme continued, “Crew doesn’t just require physical strength. Crew requires mental strength as well. Rowers are required to endure a lot of pain from pulling as hard as they can for long periods of time and not give up.”

Furthermore, as a member of a crew team, the athletes have to learn how to work together. Communication can be difficult and advice may be taken the wrong Tomasso Ferme (third from the left) rows for Norcal Crew.

Photo provided by Tomasso Ferme way, but in order to win races, the athletes I switched to rowing. I had three have to have a strong and open mind. going home to start homework. years of exercise to make up for.”

Junior Amanda Breslauer said, “There is a Breslauer continued, “Waking up at 4:20 Crew is physically demanding. Besides praclot of competition within the team. Some- twice a week is so hard. Finding energy for ticing with the team, rowers have to allow time times the rowers get frustrated with something homework is harder after afternoon practices.” for extra workouts. that I said and yell at me. We're all really close Taking up crew just to get into college would Although it’s a lot of hard work, crew proves so sometimes it's hard to not make things per- be sacrificing a lot. The sport has benefits that to be a rewarding sport. It allows athletes to sonal.” greatly enhance an athlete’s health and wellwork out, make new friends and push themThere’s certainly a lot of effort for college at- being, but it takes up so much time. selves, all in a competitive and rigorous envitention. It can be exhausting waking up for Kowtko said, “I originally started as a coxronment. a morning practice, going to school and then swain and I did that for three years. I grew and

What you have to gain from high school sports

By Taran Sun Staff Writer

Incoming high school freshmen face numerous new challenges, such as an increased academic workload and being the youngest among thousands of students. Many consider the act of adding a sport on top of this transition to cause additional stress.

So why, according to the annual High School Athletics Participation Survey, do over 55 percent of all high school students participate in school sports?

Many people attending Carlmont join sports for the social aspect. Sophomore Carly Hunter said, “I play water polo. It’s so worth it to play sports in high school because as an incoming student you get to meet a lot of people who like the same things as you.”

Like Hunter, high school students often join sports teams as a way to ease the transition from middle school to high school.

Securing a position on a sports team can boost a student’s self confidence, and give a student a sense of prestige that accompanies the opportunity to represent their school in their specialized sport.

Senior Michael Scallan has played basketball and water polo since his freshman year. Scallan said, “I like the friendships that you make from being on a team and having to work together to achieve the same goal. Playing a sport gives you something to do after school and can keep you out of trouble.”

Playing a sport in high school can also give students a lifelong activity that they can take with them after they leave Carlmont. Scallan said, “If you’re passionate about a certain sport, it is something you can carry on and that will always be of

interest to you.”

A common concern for incoming students is fitting in with their new classmates and finding a steady group of friends to support them in high school.

Boys Frosh-Soph soccer coach Will Stambaugh said, “Freshmen are coming out of middle school where they are big fish in little ponds, and all of a sudden they are thrown into the ocean that is high school.”

Joining a sports team can help with this transition. Stambaugh said, “One of the things I try to do with incoming freshmen is envelop them into the soccer family. Then it doesn’t matter if you are a freshman anymore. If someone tries to mess with you, you have 50 guys from the soccer team that have your back.”

Students that come into high school with prior athletic experience often worry about how a demanding sports schedule will affect their academic performance in school and their homework load.

Freshman basketball player Spencer Enriquez said, “If you make a sports team, you have less time to do homework because of daily practice. This makes you have to be a lot more organized.”

Hunter said, “The hard part is when you have to balance schoolwork and sports.”

If a student decides to join a sports team at Carlmont, they have to quickly adapt their homework schedule to fit cleanly with their sports schedule and the other aspects of their lives.

This can be a valuable change that teaches student athletes to be responsible with their time and organized if they want to earn good grades in school.

To be involved in a Carlmont sports program, a student has

to keep a GPA of a 2.0 or above. This can provide positive motivation for the student to work hard in school so that they can compete with their friends and avoid the embarrassment of being removed from the team due to bad grades.

Junior Mariko Kondo said, “I think an athlete develops a sense of responsibility because you do have to manage your time and grades [if you want to play a sport].”

However, the issue of time is a key reason that many students decide not to partake in high school sports.

Sophomore Cameron Kuo, who does not play a school sport, said, “I think sports would be very time consuming, and right now with just one AP class, time is an issue.”

Although managing work is a daunting task, forming study groups with friends from a sports team can be of great help.

Some students face a slightly different situation. Sophomore Kevin Shu rows, which is not a Carlmont sport. The various outcomes, according to Shu, are no different. Shu said, “Crew is a lot of work, it teaches a student to manage their time, and you get a lot of really good friends. It’s also great exercise.”

The choice of joining a high school sports team or focusing on academics is an important decision for incoming high school students to make. A student who makes the choice to join a team can be rewarded with a group of companions, easing the transition into a different group of peers.

The student athlete can also develop time management skills, work efficiency, and self discipline by joining a school sports team.

Others may choose to transition more gradually into highschool, giving them the opportunity to focus fully on their schoolwork and other valued interests as they join the community.

The Highlander

Sports

Page 27 January 2014

The good and the bad of freshman basketball Eric Angel: Carlmont’s off-campus wrestler

By Matt DeGraff Staff Writer

The advancement of so many more talents than was possible before will lead to a much stronger basketball program in the future, for This year, the Carlmont men's basketball both varsity and junior varsity teams. program has added a freshman team in adChow said, “I think in the next few years dition to its junior varsity and varsity teams. our basketball program will improve dramatiThe freshman team will help to further de- cally with all the freshmen being given more velop aspiring freshman basketball players by of a chance to improve by being exposed to allowing them play time instead of time to sit the high school playing environment without on the bench or get being bossed around cut as would hapon the court by older, pen with only a more experienced and junior varsity and skilled players.” varsity team.

One worry about Sophomore the new team is that it basketball player will take away players Jason Chow said, who could potentially “I think it would play for the junior varhave been very sity team. And with useful if there had the junior varsity team been a freshman getting off to a rough team last year. It start this season, winwould have given ning only one of three me more playing Sophomore shooting guard Andrew Carlsen manuevers his games so far in league way through the court, securing a win against San Mateo. time and experiplay, it is a compelling Photo by Alisa Takahashi ence than I got on case that the lack of the JV team.” freshmen is hurting the junior varsity team.

Chow also said, “I think having a freshman Sophomore junior varsity player Evan Lee team will improve future JV teams because it said, “There are definitely some JV level playallows freshmen more playing time.” ers in their team that would probably have Sophomore Tyler Brandenburg said, “I been great additions to our team.” think it’s a great idea. More kids can play and Brandenburg said,”It might have a little imit will help develop our program.” pact, but some freshmen made JV so it’s not Freshman team player Greg Lau echoed that big a difference.” these sentiments: “With the freshman team, I But, Chow said, “I think it doesn’t really actually get playing time and I’m not sure that have much of an impact, it is a minor thing.” would happen if I was on JV.” Brandenburg also said, “Freshman and JV The creation of the new team has helped are just getting us ready for varsity, so it doesn’t Lau and many other freshman basketball play- really matter.” ers refine their skills. With this, it will give In high school sports, all that matters is the the next junior varsity team a wider selection results that the varsity team achieves. The of players to choose from, and with it, future ranking of the varsity team in league play devarsity teams. termines which league the men’s basketball Lau also said, “’I’m getting much more program will compete in the next season. playing time than I would on JV. Because of As a result, even if the freshman team weakthis I’m also getting much better than I would ens the junior varsity team this year, it will if I was just put on the JV team.” only help the basketball program in the future But, this freshman team benefits more peo- while having no real tangible negative effects ple than just the freshman players themselves. now.

By Daniel Wang Staff Writer

Almost all student-athletes at Carlmont High School train at Carlmont after school, hoping that their hard work will lead to success in the upcoming season. But for Carlmont freshman and wrestler Eric Angel, that isn’t necessarily the case.

At Carlmont, Angel doesn’t have access to a wrestling team. As a result, Angel said, “I wanted to wrestle for a school team so I had to look at other high schools close by.”

Therefore, two school wrestling teams Angel debated Photo provided by Eric Angel training with were Woodside’s and Sequoia’s. boxing, and jiu jitsu skills.

After some thinking, Angel decided to go Even though MMA is different from wreswith Sequoia’s wrestling team, which currently tling, Angel said, “I know that wrestling is difcompetes in the Bay Division in Peninsula ferent from MMA, but I can make the switch Athletic League (PAL). in fighting styles.”

So, during wrestling season, which spans At Bay Area Boxing, Angel is mentored from November to February, Angel goes to by coaches JP, Berry, and Al** in the sport Sequoia every day after leaving Carlmont and of MMA. There, Angel also trains very hard, practices an additional 1 ½ hours each week- practicing five hours collectively each week. end.

In addition to being a MMA fighter and Although Angel trains with a school that high school athlete, Angel is also a fan of prohe doesn’t attend, he doesn’t find it weird in fessional MMA. “I love to watch MMA fights,” any way. Angel said, “The people on Sequoia’s Angel said. “Three of my favorite MMA fightwrestling team are all really friendly, but my ers are Chael Sonnen, Jon Jones, and Chris school is still Carlmont. Even though I train Weidman.” with Sequoia, the points I earn from my wresAfter high school, Angel doesn’t plan to tling matches go to Carlmont.” stop wrestling anytime soon. “After graduating Since Angel is a freshman, this is his first from Carlmont,” Angel said, “I want to make time wrestling for a high school. Despite it be- it as a professional in UFC.” ing his first year, Angel has started off quite Although Angel knows that making it to the well his high school wrestling career quite well professional level will take a lot of hard work with a 13-5 record, with his latest match being and effort, he is prepared to put in the work to a first-round victory, in which he made three make it to the top level. pins.

But as of now, Angel is focusing on trainBefore high school wrestling started, Angel ing for Sequoia’s wrestling team and wrestling practiced MMA at Bay Area Boxing, an orga- for Carlmont. Boasting a 13-5 record, Angel nization located in Belmont that teaches stu- believes he has the potential to do really well dents mixed martial arts (MMA,) kickboxing, this season.

Winter Olympics could be different this year

By Scott Schulze Staff Writer

The upcoming Winter Olympics are taking place in Sochi, Russia, which is only miles away from the violent attacks by terrorists and attacks against gay-rights protesters.

The Olympic games this year are going to be very different from other years.

The nearby bombings have caused major concerns for the athletes and visitors at the Olympic games. Senior Rj Caslow said, “There is a lot more concern about the safety of the athletes and the fans then in recent Olympics because there have been many attacks before the games have even started.”

This controversy is very important for two main reasons.

People from many different countries all over the world are going to Sochi in the hopes of seeing the 22nd winter olympic games. This puts Russia on the stage for the whole world to

view. This means that if something goes horribly wrong, people all around the world are going to know that Russia could not defend one of the more important events happening this year.

Russia is working on the opposite, which is protection for everyone who is visiting the games.

In a poll of 118 students, 71 percent plan on watching the Winter Olympics.

Caslow said, “I am planning on watching the Winter Olympics because February is a slow sports month and I love watching curling, speed skating, and Shaun White on the half pipe.”

Other students, like senior Robert Zuniga do not plan on watching the games. Zuniga said, “I never really grew up watching sports or the olympics that much, so I don’t really see the need to start watching now. I’d rather play sports than sit around and watch them.”

According to an ABC News report, “More than $50 billion is being invested to show the world what Russia can do.” President Vladimir Putin is claiming the games as a personal project of his and is working to keep the games as safe as possible.

The other controversy taking place in Russia is the beatings and ostracism of gays and anti-gay protesters. The violence against gays themselves brings risk to some of the openly gay athletes.

Caslow said, “Gay athletes will be under sort of a don't ask don't tell policy because this could distract them from the games, and the anti gay laws also have caused many people to protest the games worldwide.”

Because of the homophobic and oppressive laws, some athletes and organizations, like the Human Rights Watch, are boycotting the games.

Sports

Does cheerleading qualify as a sport?

By Sarah Boro Staff Writer

As the cheerleaders prepare themselves to use extreme power and strength to lift their flier into the air, sweat drips down their cheeks. They finally throw and release the cheerleader and cheer with joy with hopes to move forward in their competition.

But, cheerleading is not legally considered a sport.

According to the Office for Civil Rights, there are certain elements that qualify an activity as a sport.

First, it must be a physical activity which involves propelling a mass through space or overcoming the resistance of mass.

Second, “contesting” or competing against/ with an opponent is required.

Third, the activity must be governed by rules that explicitly define the time, space, and purpose of the contest and the conditions under which a winner is declared.

Fourth, there must be acknowledgement that the primary purpose of the competition is a comparison of the relative skills of the participants.

And finally, the primary purpose is competition versus other teams or individuals within a competition structure comparable to other ‘athletic’ activities.

The final necessity listed is where the controversy sets in.

Senior Erika Kubish said, “There is a difference between high school and competitive cheer.”

Kubish’s comment is relevant because the primary purpose of high school cheerleading is to support their high school, and in most cases competition is their second priority.

Many, like Kubish, consider competitive cheerleading a sport, but insist that cheerleading in high school is not.

As previously mentioned, any “real” sport requires competition. People question the validity of high school cheerleading because any squad can choose whether or not to participate in competition. In fact, the Carlmont cheer team hasn’t entered into any competitions this year except for the annual Sequoia Showcase.

Camille Duvalsaint, a sophomore on the junior varsity cheer team said, “I definitely consider high school cheerleading a sport because it’s not what people think.

We don’t just dance (which isn’t as easy as it looks) and do cheers, we also do stunts which takes a lot of effort, strength, and courage just like any other sport.”

In a position paper on whether or not cheerleading should be qualified as a sport, the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators said, “Today, cheerleading involves skills which require the strength of football, the grace of dance, and the agility of gymnastics. Complex maneuvers are performed which challenge the limits of the body.”

In 2004, Eileen Bangaoil, a competitive cheerleader in college, went to have a major operation on her leg after injuring it in a competition; doctors surgically inserted a cadaver's ligament into her left knee and rebuilt her ACL. Bangoil pushed through the pain that she went through to play her sport with her team that needed her.

A reporter asked her one day how she dealt with the pain and she said, “Exercise, ice and a lot of Advil. And do everything I can to keep it stable." The way in which she explained her pain and misery was similar to any sore-armed pitcher in baseball or an offensive lineman with a bad knee in football might say.

Did you know?

When it first started, all cheerleaders were men, but now 97% of cheerleaders are female.

Source: http://cheerleading.about.com/od/cheerleadingfunstuff/l/blfunfacts.htm

The difference is that Bangoil was a cheerleader. But, unlike any other athlete that might get injured in baseball or football, Bangoil pushed through and competed, despite her injury, instead of being removed and operated on immediately.

Still, people manage to claim that cheerleading is not a sport.

And people still manage to tell Bangoil that she is not an athlete.

“Sure, I think that competitive cheerleading is a sport, but high school cheerleading is not. It is just goofing off and rolling around in the dirt; the team doesn’t seem to care. The girls stand on their blocks, do a cheer every once in a while, and raise their pom-poms to cheer for generally one player. How is that a sport?

If it is, what’s a sport?” said Kubish.

Varsity football player Osvaldo Nava said, “I don’t see cheerleading as a sport, however I don’t see it as a hobby either.

I see it as an activity that one enjoys doing in their free time. In football, we train and practice to try and win each game and possibly win a championship, but it is not the same with high school cheerleading.”

It is true that cheerleading is cheering on people who play sports. It is also true that cheerleaders do their make-up and hair to play what they think is their sport.

Although people question how cheerleading could possibly be a sport, one also has to recognize that cheerleading is one part many’s high school experience that adults talk about when they’re older. Going to football games and basketball games wouldn’t be the same if there were no cheerleaders yelling, screaming, and supporting their team.

“Cheerleaders are talented, entertaining, and have really good figures, similar to football, basketball, baseball, and hockey players” said junior Tori Hall, “Why should cheerleading be any different?”

Why does football get all the fans?

By Kian Karamdashti Staff Writer

No other school event brings its student body closer than a Friday night football game; the stadium lights shining down on the field, the smell of tri-tip cooking on the grill, the roar from the crowd as they edge on their team.

“The atmosphere at homecoming was amazing,” said sophomore Sami Makaafi, varsity football player and current soccer player. “The energy the crowd brought made the game, for us players, so much better.”

Fast forward a few months, the stadium lights are still on, and there is still a Carlmont team battling to win a game for their school.

Yet, the stands are empty.

Due to the promotion from ASB and Screamin’ Scots, the attendance and spirit at Carlmont football games reached an all-time high this past season, even as the team struggled.

“In my three years here, this year was by far the most spirited when it came to Screamin’ Scots and football games,” said senior Arian Tabarroj. “It made the games a lot more exciting.”

The high turnout for football led many student-athletes on other athletic teams hoping for a higher turnout for their sport as well.

Sophomore and former soccer player Brent Zanette said, “I was excited to see that even though our football team lost most of their games, they still had a lot of students coming out to the support them. But so far, the turnout for soccer and basketball games has been

way lower than football’s, even though they’re both having better seasons.”

Sophomore basketball player Jason Chow also felt that the amount of fans have been low.

“Although we haven’t had a quad game yet, I definitely feel football gets treated with more excitement than us. You can see it in the amount of fans we have had at our home games.”

The lack of support at their games has left many Carlmont athletes wondering why their sport is not receiving the attention football received every week.

“It’s the American high school culture,” said Frosh-Soph boy’s soccer coach Will Stambaugh. “The casual student who doesn’t care about sports will go to the football game because that’s what you’re supposed to do as an average high-school kid. In other parts of the country the whole town is shut down on Friday nights for the local school football game.

Carlmont here is trying to replicate that with our football team.”

Another reason given to explain the small amount of enthusiasm behind other Carlmont sports is the lack of promotion behind them from the school.

“Everytime Carlmont football had a game you would see posters all around the school promoting it. Meanwhile, I know kids who had been at this school for a year and a half that didn’t even know where the baseball field was,” said sophomore baseball player Connor Loucks. “It’s just frustrating.”

Julian Smith looks to score.

Although they hadn’t filled the stands up all season, last year’s varsity boy’s soccer PAL championship proved that a big turnout was possible for a non-football sport.

Varsity soccer, after a successful PAL league run, were going into the final league game of the season needing a win or tie over school rival Sequoia to win the PAL title. Hoping for the most fans possible to edge them on, the players took matters into their own hands, advertising the game on social media websites such as facebook and twitter.

Photo by Scott Schulze

The game ended in a tie, with Carlmont celebrating their title in front of the packed crowd of students and parents. Stambaugh called the result of crowd members “one of the largest crowds I’ve ever seen for a soccer game at Carlmont.”

Stambaugh said, “That game proved that soccer and other Carlmont sports can get fans in the seats. If we can get some backing from Screaming Scots and Drumline, we can definitely start filling out those bleachers. It’ll only make us better.”