THE THIRTEENTH
SCHOLARS
THE OFFICIAL MONTHLY PUBLICATION OF THE THIRTEENTH SCHOLARS-THE OFFICIAL SCHOOL PUBLICATION OF PHILIPPINE SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL CARAGA REGION CAMPUS Volume 4 ~ Issue 02 ~ 2 pages September 2019
STEM READY SCHOLARS Pisay CRC commemorates first ever STEM fest
In order to enhance the scholars skills and knowledge in the field of Science, Technology, Engineering,and Mathematics(STEM), Philippine Science High school - Caraga region campus celebrates first ever STEM festival held in Butuan City, September 26-27. The scholars of the said campus was divided into six STEM camps, namely STEM camp one,STEM camp two,STEM camp three,STEM camp four,STEM camp five , and STEM camp six. Given these facts, the festival have many events like jingle making, kite flying, quiz bowl, rubik’s cube (individual and group category), robotics (sumo bot, scribble bot, and groovy gears) , speed stacking, damath, digital poster making, and web development. The winner for jingle making competition is from camp number two,for the kite flying champion is from camp four, camp one for quiz bowl, rubik’s cube (team) champion is from camp two while the winner for the individual category is from
SPECIALREPORT
Duterte inks law creating Philippine Space Agency
Paul Nelson Gonzaga
Despite gaining support from DepEd, passage of ‘no-homework law’ draw heavy blasts Kit Lester Balayo
Regardless of the move being welcomed by the Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Briones, “No Homework Law” filed by Senator Poe last August 27 sparked heavy criticisms from netizens and teachers. The senator authored Senate Bill 966 or the proposed “No homework Law” which will ban teachers to give assignments during weekends if ever the bill passes the senate and becomes a law. “All primary and secondary schools in the country shall not allow teachers to give any network or assignments to students from kinder to Grade 12 on weekends,” the bill read. According to the proposal, teachers are limited to only assign homework to students on weekend so long as it is minimal and will not require more than four hours to be completed. Poe also stressed that the “no homework policy on weekends will be applied to both public and private schools. This served as a compliance to the mandate of the state, she said, which is to safeguard the welfare of teachers and school children. Citing a study from the Organization for Economic Coopera-
tion and Develpoment’s Program for International Students Assessment, the senator noted that additional time spent on homework has a negligible impact on the performance of students. This is after around four hours of homework in a week. “Further, it looked at homework hours around the world and found that there wasn;t much of a connection between how much homework students of a particular country do and how well their studetns score on tests,” the bill read. Several lawmakers filed different versions of what they pushed as the “no-homework” bill. Among these bills was filed by the Sorsogon 1st District Rep. Evelina Escudero. She filed House Bill No. 3611 to ban homework from kindergarten to high school; however, both Senator Grace Poe and Quezon City 5th District Rep. Alfred Vargas only wanted homework to be banned for weekends. Meanwhile, Escudero wanted to impose the “no homework” policy every single day of the year, however, Poe and Vargas firmly believed that homework is alright during weekdays.
crunching the
NUMBERS
20.26 billion 2019
20.10 billion
3.9%
MANILA, PhilippinesPresident Rodrigo Duterte has signed the law creating a space agency for the Philippines. Duterte signed Republic Act 11363 or the Philippine Space Agency (PhiISA) Act on August 8 and a copy of which that was posted on August 13. PhiISA will be the NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)-like agency in the Philippines. The agency will focus on Space science, Technolgy access, space research particularly national security, hazard management, climate studies, space industry capacity building, space education, and international cooperation. It will also serve as the primary strategic roadmap for space development of the country under the Executive branch of the government that will plan, develop, and promote the national space program in line with the Philippine Space Policy. The law also created the Philippine Space Council (PSC) which will be the principal advisory body for the coordination and integration of policies, programs and resources affecting science and technology applications. The PSC will be chaired by the President and the Secretaries of Defense and Science and Technolgy will serve as vice-chairpersons. The official site of the PhiISA will be in Clark Special Economic Zone in Pampanga and Tarlac.
camo four,scribble bot winner is coming form camp six, camp five for speed stacking, camp four for web development, the champion for groovy gears is camp five, robot racing winner coming from camp number four, sumo bot is camp five, for booth making is camp three, and digital poster making from camp number four. Moreover, the overall champion of the festival is camp number four followed by the first runner-up winner - camp number two and STEM camp number five as second runner-up winner. Aditionally, the program was conducted at the above mentioned campus. Furthermore, the student were prescribed to wear t-shirts with their corresponding color base on their camp group.
2020 The Department of Science and Technology is getting a lower budget for 2020. The Department of Budget and Management approved a budget of P20.1 billion for 2020 for the DOST, which is P79.85 million lower than its 2019 budget
EDITORIAL
the thirteenth scholars THE THIRTEENTH SCHOLARS The Official Monthly Publication of The Thirteenth Scholars-Official School Publication of Philippine Science High School-Caraga Region Campus EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Judd Christian Bañas ASSOCIATE EDITOR Carl Djhon Gangca MANAGING EDITOR Joaquin Jerecho Ferolino SECTION EDITORS Paul Vincent Felias Rhojen Elah Jampac Kenneth Jerome Gloria Elan Victoria Tomaneng Alexandria Gabrielle Romano CONTRIBUTORS Goldemer Fajardo Angeld Alindajao Claudine Ysabelle Gloria Paul Nelson Gonzaga Princess Diane Cabardo Blessy Cabardo Justine Castillo
DUST TO GOLD
02
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Nothing does not always lead to nothing. It can also lead to the very best something. The no-homework policy, filed by the House of Representatives, is a focal point which stands to give student the time they need to spend quality time with their family and friends and escape the grasp of academic pressure. As stated in the Department of Education’s statement on this issue, time and a tinge of leisure even just on the weekends, despite being considered as ‘unorthodox’, is needed if people want students to stay focused without putting too much of a burden on themselves. It looks like the very best ‘something’ is found not on the policy, but the impact it has possesses. DepEd finds for this policy, yet that cannot dictate whether it is something that can be implemented right from the get-go. According to Master Teacher II Angelie C. Alvizo, the problem riding on this bill is the fear that DepEd itself would not be able to handle the articulation of this proposal, leading to the mishandling of the information surrounding it. This no-homework policy is still a shot in the dark in terms of its implementation. The bill has not even undergone a first hearing, meaning that it would not
This no-homework policy is still a shot in the dark in terms of its implementation. The bill has not even undergone a first hearing, meaning that it would not be able to go through a second one nor a third. This can mean the death of the bill, and people would be left to mourn its passing. be able to go through a second one nor a third. This can mean the death of the bill, and people would be left to mourn its passing. What separates this no-homework policy from other modern day bills is the fact that it does not aim itself on timely issues, but rather on a simpler one which people have chose to ig-
ADVISER Kenneth Jeason Garcia CAMPUS DIRECTOR Engr. Ramil Sanchez
Philippine Science High School System (PSHSS)
nore over the years. House Deputy Speaker Evelina Escudero explained that homework can deprive students of quality time with their loved ones along with rest and relaxation. What better way to address this than to discourage giving homework on weekends where families can go out and play? Not only does this proposal find for personal growth and repose, it also seeks to improve students’ performance in the classroom. “If students are needed to perform, then they shall perform inside the classroom,” Alvizo said on a press conference. It’s true that academic development can always be cultivated through the time which was given for students to learn, not the time for students to relax. Students are required to undergo the rigorous academic program they find themselves in, yet they are not inclined to bring their responsibilities with them back home especially on weekends. By focusing on their studies during the time required for them to learn, then they can find personal growth during the time required for them to take a break. If the no-homework policy can bring benefit, then that benefit will be the something that came from nothing.
THE THIRTEENTH
SCHOLARS
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Department of Science and Technology Philippine Science High School-Caraga Region Campus Division of Butuan City, Butuan, Caraga Administrative Region
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