Stephanie Kim
Senior Emily Figueroa crowned Queen; Korean Club sold sixty pounds of Korean barbeque; JV Pep performed on Homecoming on Nov. 1. See Pg. 3 for more coverage.
Governor Brown signs bill to eliminate STAR testing, replaces it with Common Core State Standards exams By Jordan Xiao Staff Writer Standardized testing will be seeing changes at South Pasadena Unified and other districts around the state this year. California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill in early October that eliminates most of Standardized Testing and Reporting for California schools and replaces it with a test based on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The new test, called the Measurement of Academic Performance and Progress (MAPP), will be undergoing field testing for the next year, meaning there will be no statewide CST administered in the spring of 2014. However, South Pasadena High School will take either a new English or math test as part of the MAPP trial stages, and sophomores will still have to take the science CST. “I am excited for us to embrace these changes and see how all aspects of education from K-12 to college are aligning to better prepare our students in this changing world we live in,” SPHS assistant principal of instruction Ms Ginger Merritt said. The CCSS focuses on practical application and in-depth understanding of skills, rather than the memorization and drilling characteristic of STAR. Already adopted by 48 states and several U.S. territories, the CCSS intends to place the entire country at approximately the same level of education per grade and prepare students “to compete successfully in the global economy,” according to the Common Core’s website. Although the CCSS was officially adopted in
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California in 2010, the state had not made changes to testing until this year. The bill passed in October defunds STAR and authorizes the implementation of the MAPP by 2015, but suspends standardized testing for this year. “Teachers and students will feel the effects in both curriculum and instruction in addition to some changes in classroom assessment. We believe the Common Core standards enhance our curriculum and it will ultimately impact every classroom,” Ms Merritt said. The U.S. Department of Education has threatened to withhold federal funds from California on the grounds that parents and educators should not be denied an entire year’s worth of benchmark scores. “I believe that the federal government and California Department of Education will settle this matter in our favor; we will get federal funding. However, it is unfortunate that we will not be able to see how much higher our API scores would have been this year. The hard work of our teachers, administrators, and students would have resulted in record scores,” SPUSD assistant superintendent of instruction Dr. Steve Seaford said. Teachers from all departments at SPHS attended various professional development workshops throughout last year to learn the specifics of what CCSS entails. “For the last three and half years, our teachers and administration have been hard at work to successfully transition to the Common Core. Our staff is determined to excel and lead in the new world of CCSS,” Dr. Seaford said.
NaNoWriMo:
A.P. Environmental Science classes venture to Arroyo Seco for lab By Petra Barbu Assoc. Opinion Editor The Advanced Placement Environmental Science class took its annual field trip to test the water quality of the Arroyo Seco river to expand the concepts studied thus far. The educational trip added a tangible aspect to the class curriculum. The November 4, 5, and 6 trips encouraged students to bike to the site with teacher Mr. Donald Wielenga. Although “Arroyo Seco” translates to “dry stream,” the class tested the river for macroorganisms to identify the health of the stream and the type of life that it can sustain. Students tested for pH, nitrate, phosphate, and ammonia levels. Stu-
Rachael Garner
Juniors Lena Gavenas and Elise Takahama test the nitrate, ammonia, and phosphate levels in the Arroyo Seco on November 5.
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A.P. Language students tackle 15,000 words in 30 days; choir prepares for a joint winter concert under new leadership.
dents also measured the amount of dissolved oxygen and turbidity, or how opaque the water is. To further the hands-on nature of the experiments, the tests will be submitted to the Arroyo Seco Foundation. “It’s refreshing to be able to have a more hands-on experience for a science class, especially because APES is so applicable to modern society,” senior Chelsea Hong said. This was one of the first activities that enabled an interactive experience in a natural setting and that demonstrates processes studied throughout the year, such as eutrophication and nitrification. Students in odd period classes will return to the Arroyo today, November 7, to retest water quality.
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Girls Volleyball Dominates: Read up on the undefeated girls volleyball Rio Hondo League Champions as they prepare for the upcoming CIF playoffs.
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