High School Magazine
March 2014
CHANCE
ART BY MARNIE 12L
ART BY DANIEL 12L
ART BY FAH 12L
ART BY GEORGIA 12L
ART BY JENNY 12C
Contents
A New Point of View…
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Human Rights Journalism
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How does IB feel like so far?
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Year 12 IB Visual Art: Photographic Essays
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“The Elephant Man” review
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“The Mousetrap” review
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Poem: Our ways
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Poem: So when time runs out
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Do looks actually mean everything?
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French comics “Cirque du Matteo” and “Tokyo”
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Puzzles page
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Photo gallery: High School Book Week 2013-14
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Cover image by Putter 7A: “This piece of art was inspired by the way in which sunlight shines through the dense canopy of leaves.”
Editors’ word: In this issue of “Chance”, you will find information about our school and what students have been doing throughout the year. We have included some articles on human rights and on whether looks really matter. New students have also made a page about their own experience at this school. The issue features a blog from Year 12 students about their thoughts on the IB programme, IB photographic art essays and an art gallery of various pieces that they have created. We have also included reviews of the plays “The Elephant Man” and Agatha Christie's “The Mousetrap”, as well as some beautifully crafted poems on poverty and life, French comics and a collection of photos taken during HS Book Week. On the puzzles page, there are five fiendishly hard riddles and a meticulously long word search. Alisha 12C, Brice 10W, Putter 7A and Tiffany 7A 3
I am one of the new students that came to St. Andrews at the beginning of the school year and from my first two terms here I have experienced and learned many things of what I may have never even heard of before! The school was able to settle me in quickly and teach me where the location of everything is! This has been one of the best first terms I have ever had! - Brice10W
Making new friends!!! I was in St. Andrews before, but had to go to another country. But when I came back, I was happy to see my friends and not many things changed when I was gone. The thing that changed is I am in High School now and before I was in Primary. Most of my friends changed like who they are friended with and who they are not friends with, some changed in height and weight but others changed personality. High School was really new to me but I knew most ways to go around by heart. It was really weird that I had to make friends with my good, old friends like I am new again. This is true because going away to the other side of the earth, i.e. Argentina, wasn’t easy because it was hard to speak with my friends due to time difference. The classes are sometimes easy but other times are hard; Primary and High School are really different. The school canteen food got a lot better then before, the snack shop changed a lot! - Tiffany7A
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We choose to stay fit!
Ah, the places we’ve been to! Excitement at Loy Kratong day
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Human Rights Journalism This is the winning article in the Under 18 category of the Young Journalist of the Year competition that was organised by Amnesty International Thailand and The Regent’s School Pataya
A Drive for Women’s Rights By Kathryn Myers 10W They are treated differently.
women who were stopped by the police were suspended from their jobs and their male guardians They queue in different lines in restaurants, are were forced to sign a pledge that the women served in disconnected, less sought-after areas in would not drive. numerous public settings, require authorization from their “male guardians” to have medical procedures The “Women2Drive” campaign used social media or depart the country. Their ability to work is restrict- not only to raise awareness of the situation, but to ed - why should women constitute only 17% of Sau- encourage women to take the wheel to support it. di Arabia’s workforce? The campaign rapidly gained momentum, with its online petition gathering at least sixteen thousand They yearn for a measure of self-determination. signatures despite the kingdom’s restrictions on proSaudi women are not only fighting for the right to tests. A supporter of the driving campaign, Mai Alvote, they are fighting for the right to drive in the Swayan, said she was one of the women who ultra-conservative kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Saudi drove following the “Women2Drive” campaign: Arabia is the only country in the world that prohibits “I’m very proud. I feel like we accomplished the women from driving. Nevertheless, the informal ban purpose of our campaign." on female driving became an official state policy in Fighting for women’s rights has never been easy, 1990. Consequently, the government refuses to iswhether it is in the Middle East or elsewhere in the sue women licenses; women have to be accompaworld. nied by a male guardian. When King Abdullah came to power in 2005, he By law, Saudi females must have a male said that he believed the day would come when “guardian” – whether it is their father, brother or women would drive. The right to drive means indespouse. The Saudi guardianship system treats wompendence for women. Although Saudi women en as minors where women are under the legal were under the risk of getting arrested, they insisted guardianship of men for their entire lives, where peron violating one of the most stubborn social codes mission is needed for travel, labour, and education. in a staunchly conservative Saudi society. The male guardians carry the accountability and responsibility of the lives of their women. The owner- Why should the ban on women’s rights to drive deship of a woman is passed from one man to anoth- prive women of that independence? er, making women seem like a piece of merchanWhy should the right to drive depend on whether dise being passed on. Therefore, women frequently you are a woman? rely on male guardians or foreign drivers to drive In a world where society is becoming more conthem to work, or other activities. scious of the issues in various countries, should there “Women2Drive” led bravely, and women bravely still be a ban for women to drive? followed. October 26, 2013 saw fearless Saudi women’s rights activists defy the law by taking the wheel in an ongoing campaign to lift the ban on driving called, “Women2Drive”. “Women2Drive” organized the third major protest in twenty three years against the de facto ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia with at least sixty women who claimed to have driven for the campaign. Subsequently, a number of 6
Human Rights Journalism Age of Innocence By Maisie Proctor 9J
Maisie’s article won the second place in the Under 14 category of the competition.
In 2010, a 10 year old Bangladeshi boy committed suicide after his teacher beat him. As a result, Bangladesh introduced laws to ban all physical harm in schools. But why did it take a boy’s life to change the law? And how much will it take to get all the others—the majority of the countries—to follow suit?
We look to our governments to fulfil their international through the enactment of laws and policies. Is that enough? In order to truly tackle the issue, the whole community has to take action. It must become culturally UNACCEPTABLE to beat up children. At the end of the day, awarenessraising is just as important as passing a law.
Corporal Punishment is the physical abuse of children, typically in schools. Article 19 in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) states that children should be protected from all violence and abuse. Only two countries in the world have not yet signed the convention, which is legally binding. In reality, Corporal punishment remains pervasive. ONLY 34 countries have national legislation banning physical abuse in schools. As a result, many of the countries who signed up to the CRC are not fulfilling their obligations, and children are suffering worldwide. This was recognized by the committee overseeing implementation of the CRC which highlighted in 2006 that it is the “obligation of all States Party to move quickly to prohibit and eliminate all corporal punishment."
So why are we not doing more about this? Why are we not taking more action? Why is it acceptable to beat up children, but when it comes to domestic violence it is a big deal? As Save the Children says, “Assaulting adults is considered a crime but assaulting children is accepted as a parent’s [or teacher’s] right”. And their research ironically suggests women show more acceptance of corporal punishment! If the Bangladeshi boy were alive today, he would be my age. Could something like that have happened to me? Studies have proven that 8 in 10 children in Bangladesh suffer from physical punishment. There was one particular case that featured eight children being hospitalized for failing to bring ‘coloured’ pencils to school, while in another school, a seven year old girl was chained up for ‘bad’ behaviour. So, yes, it could have been me – it is a widespread scandal.
In most countries, beating children is perceived as a NECESSITY for effective disciplining. However, the facts do not support this theory. Research carried out in the US has proven, for example, that states with higher levels of corporate punishment have: more fatal shootings; higher incarceration rates among the adults; more attacks on teachers. This evidence supports the more enlightened views of teachers such as Rafiqul Islam, who states, "We used to give physical punishment at our school in limited scale. But we found that it did not bring any positive result”. Even if you believe the end justifies the means, therefore, it simply DOES NOT WORK.
Now what are you going to do about it?
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The day before IB begins, you get that overwhelming feel when you tell yourself “Oh, I’ll be getting so much work, essays, big projects and assignments that will take most of my time and I bet I won’t get any free time with IB will and the activities I have to do on top of that for CAS!”. If this is how you feel, then let me tell you, DON’T WORRY. I know it all feels too much at first but then I have realized as I got into the first few weeks, that all it takes to be able to survive IB is to be an individual on your own, to know that no one can help you walk through IB but you yourself. And that you will have to manage it and work through it with hard work and self determination. By Alisha 12C
Take yourself through these tips to help you cope with IB:
Be organized. This cannot be stressed enough. You are juggling 6, nearly 7 subjects at a high level here, so keep your notes organized and well-written so that you can refer to them when it comes to exam time!
Do all your homework and regularly take notes to revise all the way through! This way you will not be so overwhelmed when it comes to exams.
Learn the objectives for each subject– this way you won’t be wasting any time learning things that aren’t needed and this way you know you are exactly where you need to be.
Learn command terms for each subject and extra new vocabulary that may seem unfamiliar to you.
Practice through several exam past papers and questions so you know what examiners are looking for.
Make sure you are eating and sleeping well so you don't feel sluggish in classes and instead be a more active learner taking as much notes as possible! So always keep your notebook with you wherever you go.
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Ib has been very tough and there has been a lot of work that keeps me awake past midnight. I think I could cope with the work if I manage my time management better though. –Angana Narula
It's a lot of work, far more than I was expecting stupidly. I feel as though teachers are expecting too much out of us, I mean really all this homework to do in a minimum amount of time. Though it really does teach you the importance of time management and prepare you for long nights of uni/college trying to finish assignment and such. But it also makes you really question whether what you are doing or choose to do is really worth it. Overall, IB gives you a bunch if mixed feelings, mostly stress and self doubt but there are those little moments where you are happy with what you have achieved. CAS is okay, a bit of a struggle at first but over time we will supposedly get use to it and enjoy it a bit more, and find it less of a chore and more of an excitement—Georgia Mulkearns
IB is very challenging and demanding especially when it comes to CAS. I like IB in the sense you learn new skills but other than that the work load is very time-consuming. I realized a lot of practice is needed to understand a lot of the work in IB.– Amanda Cacciola
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ART BY ANGANA
“Light and darkness in the city and on the river”.
Year 12 IB Visual Art Students went on a field trip to the Chao Phraya river and inner city Bangkok. They studied the differences in lifestyles in both areas. They each produced a photographic essay, showing this contrast and a further area focus of their choice. -Miss Kate
ART BY GEORGIA (below) “For my photo essay I wanted to focus on the architecture and people from the river” .
ART BY MARNIE (leŌ)
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ART BY JENNY (right) “I went to Chao Phraya river to see the difference between their lifestyle in city and river bank and the buildings.”
ART BY KIMMY “An eye opening to the rural life people live”
ART BY FAH
Fah: “My essay depicts the contrast between life in the city and life on the river bank, focusing on the transportation, architectures, plant lives and jobs of people in the areas”. 11 11
“The Elephant Man� Review The Elephant Man: a piece of performance that revolves around a grotesque, warped and malformed circus freak named Joseph Merrick.
We had walked into the Victorian era piece of drama expecting garish and excessive costume makeup, and a-not-so interesting plot, but instead, we were faced with astoundingly simple and yet oh-so effective characterization that was more powerful than any attire could ever achieve. The development of the plot relied merely upon the skill and techniques of the actors, and in this case, it was pulled off very successfully. The audience was captivated by the beautiful and poignant story, feeling both sympathy and compassion for the Elephant Man who had never been treated as a human being before. The setting only consisted of four chairs and a curtain; however, they were able to become a circus tent, an isolation ward, and even a bed. Although the props were of the most basic - a hat, scarf and cane - they all had more than one purpose. The scarf, which was also a shawl, originally doubled as a baby wrapped in a blanket. All these ingenious uses for such simple props, when combined with the moving music that further emphasized the atmosphere of the scene, moved the audience and swept them off their feet.
One of the most memorable scenes of the whole play was where the Elephant Man, who had finally been accepted by the others, was snatched back into his life of being ridiculed and mocked by his old master who beat and flogged him even though he was deformed and weak. Tense and threatening music played in the darkness, the dim light illuminating the mangled form of the Elephant Man hunched and trembling in pain, while fractured and dreamy memories played themselves around him. A mother rocking a crying child, his old master harshly swinging a cane towards his defenseless self, and then the present horror that he was in. A lady in all in black coldly closing in on him, poised as if to strangle him with the black scarf, on the other side, the circus master viciously forcing him back into his lonely, cramped circus tent where the Elephant Man had dwelled in misery his whole life. We got shivers when watching that emotional scene, the Elephant Man’s wailing echoing throughout our minds and touching our hearts.
The Elephant man was a very compelling and heartwarming piece of performance. The acting was executed with such simplicity, and yet was so captivating. Once again, our expectations were amiss as we continued to be drawn into the incredible life of the Elephant Man with each passing scene. The style and technique of both the set and props never ceased to amaze. One of the main standouts was definitely the characterisation of John Merrick. The body language required to deliver such a sense of strong deformity is not one of effortlessness, and the precision delivered was truly phenomenal. To conclude, The Elephant Man was an exceptional piece of performance that made use of such fundamental props and still stole the hearts of everyone who witnessed it. By Maisie and Mimie, 9J
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The Mousetrap was a lively, engaging performance that kept me on the edge of my seat and left me absolutely stunned (and speechless, my friends noted) after the murderer was revealed in a spectacular plot twist. The Mousetrap kept the audience guessing throughout the captivating performance in this classic who-done-it by the master of British murder mysteries, Agatha Christie. While the plot was indeed intriguing, it was the characters themselves that captivated my attention as I take IGCSE Drama and it was the first time I had ever seen professional actors who had the ability to execute their theatrical roles flawlessly, and also the first time I had ever seen an actual performance with the set, lighting, props and proper costumes. First performed in London, 1952, The Mousetrap is the world’s longest running play, with over 25,000 performances, this year being its 60th anniversary. The play is a mixture of 1950s drawing-room comedy and murder mystery; pleasing the attentive audience as well as puzzling them. The basic plot of The Mousetrap is that a serial killer is on the loose and the gruesome tale of children being abused is constantly mentioned. The familiar tune of “Three Blind Mice” was played whenever the killer was going to strike, with the ‘Three Blind Mice’ being the murder victims. Revenge for the gross mishandling is planned, with none of the characters entirely sure about whom is the actual murderer, except perhaps the murderer himself. Therefore, the audience was kept on the edge of their seats the entire performance, and there was a sense of catharsis in the air the moment the identity of the murderer was revealed. However, at the end of the performance of the world-famous country house “whodunit”, the audience is asked not to reveal the name of the killer when they leave. After all, you wouldn’t want to be the last little mouse, would you? By Anagha10W
St Andrew’s students and the “Policeman” 13 13
Our ways (a villanelle)
Life may mean nothing; but no one told you so With time being the only element that will make us pay If God could help you; he’d let you know
If we stutter when life says nothing but no If we tremble as the light runs away from day Life may mean nothing; but no one told you so
God’s children look up with faces of sorrow As they plead…for another way If God could help you, he’d let you know
Empty silver platters drain the energy of the low As we stride, we work, we dance and we play Life may mean nothing; but no one told you so
With no food in your grasp, survival is lacking a living flow Let no beast’s aura contradict your foes Life may mean nothing; but no one told you so If poverty had vanished God would let you know By Andrew Pearson 10W
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There is something I have heard people talk about, It always keeps you moving, no doubt. In the midst of the dessert or the center of the sea, Or up high in the mountains, wherever you may be, There will always be a light guiding your way, The brightness of hope will bring you a good day, So never give up and keep moving forward, And you will be soaring like a flying bird, Life may have both its ups and downs, But share love to all and ignore the frowns, The journey of life may end any moment in time, So learn to appreciate and never do whine, Smile to the world and the world will smile back, Then you will know there is nothing to lack, You are blessed with things galore, So give in your best before you are at heaven’s door, Live life to the fullest when you can, So when time runs out, no regrets you will have. By Simran Chabra 12C
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The general idea of the amount of effort put into appearance is that woman/girls (generally) put in more effort in physical beauty. However, in my opinion, isn’t it just that males put effort in looking like they don’t put in any effort? Yet again, this is all opinionated. Although what we know as a fact is that inner beauty will barely ever make a difference on the way you are treated. This is shown online more than anything else. With the social media, people are getting to know you by your profile pictures or how many instagram followers you have. You would be approached because you will look good on your pictures, you will have more friends because of the way you appear on those pictures. The more “pretty” you look the more friends you have. Doesn’t anyone think this is unfair? What in the world happened to kindness?
Are you the kind of person who looks over your outfit three times before you leave the house? Or do you just walk out not caring about how you look? Did you know… the way you appear, affects the way people treat you? When you walk into school and see a new student, what is the first thing you do? Human nature says- you will look at their appearance. No matter who you are, you blindly judge the person by how they look. If you like the way they appear, you would probably go up and talk to them, wouldn't you? How about if you don't like the way they look…
This may have been quite different before the Twenty First Century, but it is the way it is now. Your social status will be defined by the way you appear and the people you appear with. It seems even more important than having real friends now. Most people just want to be attractive. According to a businesswoman in Bangkok (working in the fashion industry), “The first impression is the last impression,” she elaborated on that topic. She says as a businesswoman when you meet someone, a customer or possible employee the first thing you look at is the way they are dressed. So in her opinion, you must always be in dapper. Some empirically supported findings prove that the more physically attractive you look, the better you are treated: you are given more trust, more freedom and you can act how you please. Then again, teenagers view this completely differently.
There are many factors to appearance, including your clothes, your accessories, posture, body language, the way you talk and your body structure in general. Don’t you like to go up to people who look ‘beautiful’? The kind of people who have branded clothes, bags, and perfect hair. The kind of people who have ‘normal’ accents, what is considered, ‘normal’ skin colour, ‘normal’ jobs. Some people say this is stereotyping. They say they don’t look at physical beauty. I think everyone does; everyone has his or her own opinion.
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ARTICLE BY KULINNA SIRIULTHADA 9K
In High School, from my personal research, I have come to a conclusion that most people believe looks is not the answer; good demeanor will get you so much further in life. This very strongly opposes the views of the more aged people with experience in interviews, university and social life. This subject will never come to a consensus. A small piece of advice is… before you do something permanent - like a new hair cut, getting a large tattoo, piercings, or anything that you can’t take away remember that you will be treated how you look. I can confidently say, it will make quite a difference in your life. There has never been one explanation for the word “beautiful” that the population of the world agreed on. The definitions vary making it an extremely complex subject in psychology. Thus, a little fact to keep for life… Always keep your appearance in mind. To some people, it is good to be ‘invisible’- in that case you wear a (metaphorical) “social uniform”. The idea of a social uniform is plain clothes, but what the fashion industry doesn’t accept as normal. A social uniform is what is in-between the overdressed and the underdressed, also known as the people who are looked at. However, it isn’t just in real life. Even in the virtual worlds (with games) attractiveness is judged. An unnamed computer-game did research and experiments on how much attention each character would get. There were four default characters: an unattractive male and female and the opposite. The people who carried out this experiment, made graphs and reports that showed how much of a difference it was between each character (the attractive female character getting the most hits). There are surveys going on all over the Internet on how appearance affects you as a person. Some people say people dress how they want to be perceived. One particular female actress says, “I’ve tried to be impartial. But a pretty face is hard to resist.” This shows that judging people is irrepressible. Geniality is a big deal as you grow up and it definitely affects your school-life. Even the youngest of children think so, “If you look good, people will like you more,” comes from a nine-yearold child. 17 17
By Dishu, Matteo, Priyank and Jeraldine, Year 9
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By Isabela, Georgina and Mirko, Year 9
TOKYO
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1. How can a pants pocket be empty and still have something in it? 2. What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it? 3. What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand years? 4. If I have it, I don’t share it. If I share it, I don’t have it. What is it? 5. When the day after tomorrow is yesterday, today will be as far from Wednesday as today was from Wednesday when the day before yesterday was tomorrow. What is the day after this day?
ARCHERY JAI ALAI BADMINTON LACROSSE BASEBALL POLO BASKETBALL RACQUETBALL BILLIARDS RUGBY BOCCE RUNNING BOWLING SKATEBOARDBOXING ING CRICKET SKATING SKIING CROQUET CYCLING DARTS FENCING FISHING FOOTBALL GOLF HANDBALL HOCKEY
SOCCER SOFTBALL SQUASH SURFING SWIMMING TENNIS VOLLEYBALL WRESTLING
Answers to the riddles— 5. Thursday
4.A secret
3. The letter M 22
2. Short
1. It can have a hole in it.