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The Official ISM Community Publication

ISM’s Staff - Do Rules Really Matter? - PSDC -Post-Morrison Basketball - Yogi Chef - ISTA -

THIMUN Gone!? - A LAsting impression - IB P.E.

NEWSFLASHMagazine

From the American and International School Indians to ISM Bearcats, Spirit at the International School Manila is a long established tradition. Spirit is not merely defined by the IASAS Sports or by the Battle of the Bearcats, but it can be seen through both individual and collective efforts as well. The recent 90th celebration was a stunning display of such spirited participation, with all sectors of the ISM community working to ensure success. The pages of this magazine are filled with photos and articles that embody this most important as-pect of the ISM experience: Spirit. What is it? Who has it? How do we express it? How do we share it?

It was the potent, effervescent team spirit that brought the American Indians to a national championship at the National Basketball Tournament in 1957. It was this same spirit that catapulted the ISM Girls’ Rugby team to number one at IASAS 2010. ISM spirit has manifested itself through community endeavors, such as our PTA Governing Board and volunteers that host numerous events throughout the year; our parent and fac-ulty members that volunteer their free-time for Saturday Service Learning and our alumni base that keep this Spirit alive in their reunions and events held all over the world. It is this Spirit that the Newsflash team seeks to capture and display within this issue.

Spirit has always been an important aspect of the ISM student body. From the podiums of debate to the field in sport, ISM students have proven themselves to be adept team players and collaborative speakers who always seek a way to involve everybody, whether in scoring a goal or in tackling pressing global issues. “Bayanihan”, the Filipino word for communal unity, is a good way to express our school’s Spirit. With IASAS Basketball and Badminton being held this year at ISM, we at Newsflash have worked hard to give you a pre-lude of the key events happening on campus as well as a reflection on ISM’s 90th anniversary, all of which showcase the stunning bayanihan spirit of the school. This second issue for school year 2010 -2011 is a tribute to the school and to its spirited individuals, to the delegates, debaters, athletes, artists, musicians, custodians, alumni – and the list goes on – to all who con-tribute to the atmosphere here at ISM. Indeed, being part of the ISM community does inject one with a sense of happiness, which can only develop into a fiercely, loyal sense of team spirit – it is what makes a Bearcat truly roar!

Yours in the Bayanihan Spirit of ISM,

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

Editor-in-Chief: Anthony Gerard Lee Gokianluy Managing Editor: Isabel Martel Francisco

EDITORIAL BOARD:

LETTER FROM THE EDITORSAnthony GokianluyIsabel Martel FranciscoLaura LehmannKaye KagaoanMinsoo WooJonathan Moran

Samata PandeyDenise Francisco

Katie Thompson Shloka SharanNicole CaloChris OngMichi FerreolKrystal KangAngel Feliciano

Gaea MoralesAlyzza Acacio Andrea Ayala Sofia Benares Akshar BonuLouisa Cotterhill Kimberly Go Michaela LimcaocoEsther ParkAmanda SabanMahek Tulsiani

Editor-in-Chief: Managing Editor: HS Coordinator: MS Coordinator: ES Coordinator: Layout Director:

Layout Team:

News Editors:

Perspectives Editors: Features Editors:

Photography Editor:

Staff Writers:

Contributing Writers:

Online Editor:Staff Photographers:

Business Manager:

Adviser:

Bianca FuentesAudrey MacCormac Julia SaubierFrances TanchancoJessica Ellice Tordesillas Claudia Willnow

Ian LuoAudrey MacCormac Katie ThompsonSamantha Ramsey

Ms. Stephanie Hagedorn

On the Cover:

Basketball Photos by Nicholai GoRugby Photos by Vincent ChingMUN Photo by Chris OngMS Sports Day Photo courtesy of Mr. Steve Dodd

Newsflash Volume 5 Issue 2 SY 2010-2011

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Perspectives

12 PSDC: The Philippine IASAS? By: Gaea Morales

14 Do Rules Really Matter? By: Kimberly Go

33 Teen Troubles: The Battle With Oneself By: Esther Park

37 A Lasting Impression By: Audrey MacCormac

p. 38

p. 32

p. 20

p. 15

p. 16p. 22

Features

7 ISM Staff Members By: Andrea Ayala

10 Yogi Chef: An Inspiration By: Laura Lehmann

16 Post-Morrison Basketball By: Claudia Willnow

22 THIMUN: The Fairytale that Had to End By: Akshar Bonu

26 Reading this will get you CAS Hours! By: Mika Limcaoco

30 Is School too Cool for Pressure? By: Alyzza Acacio

35 Fine Improvements for the Fine Arts By: Mumba Dodwell

39 All Grown Up By: Amanda Saban

42 P.E. in the I.B. By: Mahek Tulsiani

6 David Toze Voted Superintendent of the Year

6 IASAS MUN By: Samantha Ramsey

9 IASAS Basketball By: Julia Saubier

13 ISTA: A Weekend of Musical Theatre By: Louisa Cotterhill

15 HS Play Aftermath By: Minsoo Woo

18 ISM Gala at Polo Club: A Photo Spread

20 Rex Navarrete: At the 90th Anniversary By: Sofia Benares

27 IASAS Touch Rugby By: Andrea Ayala

27 IASAS Tennis By: Kay Yang

30 Pista sa ISM By: Frances Tanchanco

32 The Tradition of ICARE By: Shloka Sharan

38 Where Charity Begins at Home By: Leandro Leviste

40 ISM Defends Title as HS Academic Bowl Champions By: Alexei Acacio

41 K-12 Dance Recital By: Sofia Benares

News

Art Corner 44 Poetry

47 K-12 Art

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IASAS MUN By: Samantha Ramsey,Grade 11

2010 marks yet another successful year for Model United Nations. As a simulation of the United Nations, MUN is an activity that enables students to embody the perspec-tives of various countries around the world, and debate on the most pressing global issues. This school year, the Inter-scholastic Association of Southeast Asian Schools (IASAS) Model United Nations was hosted by the Singapore Ameri-can School (SAS).

The ISM delegation, a team of sixteen students, trav-elled to Singapore to participate in the three day event that took place from November 11 to 13 2010. The Singapore American School delegates warmly welcomed the five other IASAS schools, as well as other schools from the region such as the Hong Kong International School (HKIS) and the American Embassy School (AES) from New Delhi. The con-ference consisted of fifteen different international schools from around Asia. Throughout IASAS, students came to-gether to collaborate on creating resolutions which catered to the differing polices from all the nations, and aimed to find solutions to topics of various viewpoints. Six of the ISM delegates mainly submitted resolutions intended to estab-lish feasible and effective commitments to instigate positive change in our world. Students were devoted to overcom-

ing governmental and environmental issues and tried to make their country’s voice heard. On the last day of the conference, the ISM delegation created a MUN music video to the song “Dynamite” by Taio Cruz. After being shown during the closing ceremony of the IASAS conference, the video has now found its way to Youtube, Vimeo, and Facebook. It has received over one thousand six hundred hits, and has been viewed around the world. ISM has undoubtedly left a lasting footprint, leaving everyone more than simply excited to see what our school has to offer next year when we will be hosting IASAS MUN 2011.

http://vimeo.com/16792590

Pictures by Chris Ong

ISM Delegates speaking and preparing during debates in their respective com-mittees6

ISM Superintendent, David Toze was recently voted 2011 Super-intendent of the Year by the Association for the Advancement of International Education (AAIE). This auspicious award was pre-sented at the 45th AAIE Annual Conference last February in San Francisco, CA. We are all very proud of David’s accomplishment as it underscores his years of leadership at ISM in strengthening the school across a variety of areas including curriculum, test score performance, IB participation, college acceptances while managing the facilities of our beautiful campus. David Toze receiving 2011 AAIE Superintendent of the Year Award from Dr. Ernest ManninoAAIE is the oldest and premier professional organization of inter-national schools throughout the world. It is focused solely on the mission of achieving “excellence and innovation in education by creating a dynamic, global community.” The mission of AAIE is to, inspire and support international edu-cational leaders to achieve excellence and innovation in educa-tion by creating a dynamic, global, community that: • Provides forums for discussion and resolution of common is-

sues• Promotes advancements in school leadership, educational

research, and best practices• Develops partnerships with institutions and associations

worldwide

• Fosters networks of personal and professional relationships

The Dr. Ernest Mannino International Superintendent of the Year Award is named after Dr. Mannino, the first director of the Office of Overseas Schools in the US Department of State. Dr. Mannino served in that position from 1964 until his retirement in 1997. In recognition of his outstanding contributions to interna-tional education, AAIE has named its scholarship program as well as the prestigious Superintendent of the Year award in Dr. Man-nino’s honor.

Please join me in congratulating David for this very well deserved recognition.

Sincerely,

Wilfred Steven UytengsuPresidentInternational School ManilaBoard of Trustees

News David Toze Voted Superintendent of the Year

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David Toze Voted Superintendent of the Year

ISM Staff Members

By: Andrea Ayala, Grade 9

even including the days when students no longer roam the campus.

Every school year, ISM students attend 181 days of school, while faculty members attend 187. However, contrary to popular belief, the campus is monitored every 365 days of the year, whether classes are in session or not. During October break, Easter, winter, summer vaca-

In between classes, the halls of ISM are regularly flooded with students. Easily identified as mismatched pat-terns of green, black, yellow and white, Elementary, Middle and High School kids alike weave through their days at ISM. Undeniably, this student body makes up a majority of the school population. However, amongst them, other people similarly make their way around the school. This includes not only teachers, but also coaches, guidance counselors, par-ents, librarians, accountants, admission officers, nurses and lest we forget – the teacher assistants, substitutes, tech of-ficers, cafeteria staff, bus mothers, custodians, gardeners and security guards – all of whom contribute and play integral roles in our school community.

These are the men and women who we can thank for creating and maintaining the safe, clean, and well organized environment that we call school. Oftentimes, only students and teachers are associated with a school’s success and im-age, and thus the hard work of these individuals may be taken for granted. It is these employees who operate the whole school in its everyday hustle and bustle as behind-the-scenes workers. Most of them work with efficiency day in and day out,

FeaturesDavid Toze receiving 2011 AAIE Superintendent of the Year Award from Dr. Ernest Mannino

David Toze Voted Superintendent of the Year

Photo of: Hazel Diate Position: Bus Marshall

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tions and national holidays, there are people improving and safekeeping our school grounds. Even the office staff continues to work during our two months of summer vaca-tion, planning the upcoming school year and fixing student schedules. Just recently, over the October break, the Infor-mation Technology office also had to come in and improve the school’s Internet and website servers, while the faculty members and students were away. Like those who work in the other offices of the school, these employees are loyal and will come to the campus when they are called.

Over weekends and long holidays, the custodians serve somewhat as magical elves. But rather than hiding presents underneath our ISM Christmas tree, they vacuum the classrooms, clean the pool water after typhoons, and pick up trash after sports events. The summer holidays provide an opportunity for them not to relax, but to com-plete the general cleaning of the school. So during the two months that students take time off, the custodians are often busy at work. And when we step back into ISM in August, the pristine appearance of ISM is the obvious testament to their continuous efforts.

In the same light, the gardeners also contribute heavily to the campus’ physical appearance. In order to sustain the beautiful flora that surrounds the 12 hectares of our school’s campus, the gardeners must come in five days a week, if not more. Some of these gardeners have even been part of the school since the campus was based in Bel-Air. Today, they regularly work alongside students from Elementary School with projects that aim to improve our carbon footprint, such as the Community Garden. However, above all the departments at the school, it is the security that contributes the most effort during holi-days and weekends. As it is their responsibility to go through the safety measures of keeping ISM under surveillance, they are the ones who spend the longest time at school, vigilantly monitoring everyday actions twenty-four seven. According to Mr. Flynn, Director of Operations and Security,

the guards achieve this by rotating between a three-shift op-eration during school days and a two-shift operation during holidays. At night, watchmen protect the building for twelve hours at a time. As unnecessary as this may seem, their labor is certainly worth it, as all of those with malicious intentions surrounding the city would not dare to harm our school. The security forces go the extra mile, keeping the school safe even during Christmas day and Holy week. This is why, if Mr. Flynn is in town on Christmas day, he normally comes in to school in the morning, “Just to bring some tokens or food for the guys who are having to work on Christmas day.”

Just like Mr. Flynn, we should be extremely grateful for the service provided for our benefit. ISM support staff are, in some ways, the backbone of our education, and without them, our school wouldn’t be able to function in any way. The time that they put into operating the school deserves our gratitude. As students, teachers and parents, we must take the time to thank these stewards of our education, and to respect their everyday duties as office staff, custodians, gar-deners, and security guards. Whatever job each individual may have, we must remember that they too make up the large community that is the International School Manila.

Picture courtesy of Leandro Leviste

Photo of: Verlen Sordilla Position: Security Guard

Picture by Jae Woo Park

Photo of: Raymundo “Big Ray” SuyatPosition: Special Project 1 (all-around ISM guard and marshall)

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IASAS Basketball The varsity squads are training hard to fulfill the high expectations set by fellow Bearcats, seeing that in January 2011, IASAS basketball, the most anticipated event of the year, will be held here in the International School Manila.

Yet, despite the loss of crucial players and a “sizeable” decrease in height, girls co-captain Clau-dia Willnow says, “the teams look more promising this year.” Karen Soriaga, 4-year IASAS participant and girls’ co-captain says, “Every practice they run suicides to get faster and fitter in order to win games.” The girls have been trained to be disciplined and strong, since every time they miss practice, they run 10 consecutive suicides. Suicides, horses and 4-ways have become a regularity in basketball practice – a true testament to their hard work and dedication.

The boys team has been up to the same rigor-ous fitness program, Alexander Gill, one of the three boys’ co-captains says, “We have a lot of potential.” Jonathan Moran, another boys’ co-captain adds, “Al-though we are a small team, we are probably the quick-est and fastest team ISM has seen in many years. Look for exciting defensive plays and high-speed fast-breaks in this team’s play.” Senior co-captain Miguel Olfato says, “We’re a talented bunch and we try to use our speed to make up for our lack of size. As seen from the first few games, we are adjusting to the new style of play but I think that we’ll all peak at the right time.”

Additionally, this year there are also new coaches. Will the loss of legendary Coach Morrison negatively affect the boy’s game? Jonathan says, “The basketball legacy she has brought to ISM will not be discontinued. Expect head coach and ex-professional basketball player Trent Peabody and assistant coach Carey Nourse to create a legacy of their own.” Jona-than adds that the coaches are “injecting their wealth of basketball knowledge into the young players’ minds very, very quickly.” According to Miguel Olfato, with the new coaches’ expertise plus “the torture from Mr. High-land’s deadly fitness Fridays”, the Bearcats unquestion-ably have a shot at the gold.

This year’s basketball IASAS is one event that is highly anticipated and is sure to attract a large puls-ing crowd of green and yellow cheering, energy-packed Bearcats. Jonathan says, “Having the crowd on the side of our team is like having 100 more team-mates on the floor with you.” Miguel says that “they help build momentum.” In the words of Claudia: “the home crowd is our team’s Red Bull.”

With the teams’ sheer dedication, perseverance and teamwork, they will unquestionably rise above our expectations.

By: Julia Saubier, Grade 11

Pictures by Nicholai Go

Picture of Girls Varsity Co-Captain Julia Saubier

Picture of Boys Varsity Co-Captain Miguel Olfato

News

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Features

and refines his unique style of cooking by using only organic materials as ingredients. He adds, “we cook the food the way nature would want us to eat it.” Remaining true to its name, the food chain merges the essence of “yogi”, someone who is one with the universe, with that of a “chef”. In fact, it serves eco-friendly dishes with all-natural ingredients— not even the coffee is processed!

Amid the hustle and bustle of a day’s workload comes a prime necessity for all living creatures—food. Whether it is a fancy French dinner plate or an informal jam caked on toast, the human meal has long been a center of attention. Food brings out our most natural expressions and it is undeniable that a hearty meal fulfills our appetites and makes our day. For students, the same rule applies: the cafeteria is the ultimate place to be.

Yogi Chef: An InspirationBy: Laura Lehmann, Grade 11

Throughout the school day, a cafeteria hosts important meetings and periods of respite, becoming the hub for social gath-erings. Though snack and lunch break are inarguably the busi-est times of the day, it is anything but unusual to find the same long lunch lines at the end of the day. Afternoon munchies are typi-cal, especially in the high school, where college-bound students re-fuel for the homework load ahead. But according to recent polls on our increasingly monstrous eat-ing habits, students are indulging too often with the unhealthy, to the extent that the situation has been deemed an ‘epidemic’. As sup-porters of this epidemic, school cafeterias are largely at fault. So the question arises- are deep-fried hamburgers, greasy finger-foods, and other ‘junk’ foods, really the meals that a school should be us-ing to fuel their students? The answer resounds with a sim-ple no. Fortunately, the International School Manila has not fallen into this subculture, and has rather taken an alterna-tive route toward a healthy option. The brand new inclusion of the widely renowned “Yogi Chef” is a prime example of its success, and it has successfully satisfied our appetites.

Introduced by Ahbra Dam, the Yogi Chef food chain was formed with two core motives—to promote healthy eating and a healthy environment. According to Mr. Dam, the organization was initially difficult to name, admitting that his team “couldn’t kill animals and call themselves ‘yogi’, nor avoid cooking and call themselves ‘chefs’ oth-erwise”. But with a firm determination for both cooking and the environment, Mr. Dam skillfully unifies both concepts,

In retrospect, Yogi Chef began as Mr. Dam’s part-time endeavor. What began as a small humble movement to save the envi-ronment in the form of a veg-etarian food stall in the well-renowned Saturday Salcedo Market, spiraled quickly into a huge success. Dam’s ad-mirable motives soon trickled down the grapevine. Investors across Manila approached him with business offers but nonetheless faced persistent rejection. Being the faith-ful advocate and vegetarian that he was, Mr. Dam refused to put a price on his cause. In fact, he even hesitated to have his picture taken for the purposes of advertisement in this article, arguing that Yogi Chef was not about his orga-nization, but rather the envi-

ronmental message that it strived to convey. “Yogi Chef is not business; it is a movement”, he claimed passionately. “It is the seed to a chain of environment reform.” Clearly, expanding the chain into the commercial realm was never his intention. But when an ISM representative approached him one morning, Mr. Dam saw nothing but the perfect opportunity towards a further step for his cause. With hopes of spreading healthy eating habits, Dam and his team found a welcoming environment here at ISM. The Yogi Chef food chain saw no better way to promote its cause than through an education system. Not only could it share its beliefs to globally educated citizens, but also to students, the future leaders of the world. Strongly adhering to his cause, Dam reiterated his intentions and requested a few provisions

Picture by Audrey MacCormac

Mr. Dam

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before his entry; in no case would Yogi Chef succumb to an industrial category. With the open embrace of the ISM community, the Yogi Chef was granted the right to deviate from the typical cafeteria regulations. Deviation, however was anything but the result, and Yogi Chef has instead brought significant influence in the ISM cafeteria system, setting a high caliber for other food chains in the school to follow.

Unlike any other organizations within the high school cafeteria, the Yogi Chef uses materials that are especially environmentally friendly. “Everything that goes down the sink is biodegradable,” Dam remarks, “we don’t use bleach or any other typical cleaning chemical. Instead, we use vinegar and organic soap.” But the choice of ma-terials should in no case be misinterpreted for a lack of cleanliness, given that vinegar has been scientifically veri-fied as an excellent cleaning ingredient. “Vinegar works just as well or even better than other materials. Unlike harmful cleaning substances, it flows down the sink and disintegrates into the drainage system. It doesn’t dirty the water and thus keeps the rivers and oceans clean. It’s bio-degradable and does no damage to the environment.” In-deed, Yogi Chef has moved far beyond a matter of cuisine, and it is no wonder that the food chain has exceeded Mr. Dam’s humble expectations.

Today, Yogi Chef is among the hand-picked choic-es for students in the ISM cafeteria. According to eleventh grader and frequent customer Jonathan Moran, “Yogi Chef has broken the popular student misconception that healthy means less delicious.” Its wide array of dishes is not only nutritious and tasty, but also entirely homemade. “When I introduce a dish to my employees, I spend two to three weeks working on it with them. I want to make sure that they master the dish, so I cook beside them ten times until they can manage on their own.”

The dedication and passion behind the smallest of meals is incredibly heartwarming, but when put in a larger context, Yogi Chef embodies an international aspect that ties well into the values of an international community. From salads to coffee, the food chain produces dishes from different cultures for the entire community to indulge in. Of-fering bread, pasta, rice, salad, soup, and many variations from different cultures proved that the Yogi Chef has really showed their perseverance. Their foods explore a wide va-riety of spices and sauces that are fresh and homemade. Tea is organic, coffee is fresh, and to top it all off, dessert with a cherry on top (literally!). The Yogi Chef has even established a yoghurt treat that is made naturally with fresh organic milk. With fruit toppings like strawberry, banana, kiwi, mango, raspberry and blueberry, it is the ideal dessert option on any menu. Mr. Dam evens plans to add choco-late to the list—“all-natural with fresh milk, homemade of course!” His adherence and dedication to his sincere mo-tives are among the many factors that have led to his suc-cess. Indeed, Yogi Chef has set a fine example for the students at ISM: the ideal model of a global citizen. Its

compassionate attitude towards both its environment and customers is one that all food-chains and other retailers can learn from. The movement to the healthy option is well underway, and the attempts of a humble Yogi Chef are an inspiration to us all. The inspired and practical strive towards environmental protection is one that all schools should incorporate.

Picture by Audrey MacCormac

Picture by Audrey MacCormac

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the opportunity to experience firsthand local culture and issues. So how did the “international” students feel partici-pating in a “local” tournament? After several debates com-menced, the ISM participants came to recognize the many different aspects of PSDC that made the tournament a “Philippine IASAS” event. During most IASAS events, ISM students are exposed to a different school environment. Be it, Singapore American School (SAS), Taipei American School (TAS), International School Kuala Lumpur (ISKL), International School Bangkok (ISB), or Jakarta Interna-tional School (JIS). At PSDC, one is pitted against local schools such as Xavier, Southridge, Woodrose, La Salle, and Ateneo.

One of the major similarities to IASAS is that the competition consists of student participants – students varying in degree of skill and knowledge but all aiming to do the best that they can and demonstrate their capabilities. The ultimate goal is the learning experience that the event will bring…and of course, first place and best speaker! The effort and determination was evident in the hall, abuzz with conversations about previous debates, talks about strate-gies and oral adjudications. The debates went by slowly at some moments, and quick at others. It did not always go as smoothly, especially with 117 teams present, each with two members. As many were also unfamiliar with the campus grounds, getting to debate rooms was difficult at the beginning. But the students were all able to manage and were able to get a lot out of the event. “It definitely ex-ceeded my expectations. It was a worthwhile experience despite the competition being at an untimely moment of the year. I learned so much about dealing with pressure and persevering till the end,” said Moonie Sohn, another sophomore participant from the ISM contingent. Whether different from or similar to IASAS, PSDC ultimately aided

A prestigious event held in high regard. A competition brimmed with the air of competitiveness and rivalry.

An exhibition of dexterity, talent and skill. Sound familiar, anyone?

No, no - not IASAS!

Here’s a new acronym: PSDC!

PSDC stands for the Philippine Schools Debate Championship, one of the most reputable national debate tournaments in the Philippines. It is a nationwide com-petition held annually at the Ateneo de Manila University where students from local schools around the Philippines gather for the opportunity to exhibit their eloquence at the podium.

This year a new school joined in – the Internation-al School Manila! Helped along by the venerable coaches of the Forensics Club, ISM’s debaters took the challenge of competing and experiencing the dynamic British Parlia-mentary-style of debate. This year, ISM elected to partici-pate in the Philippine Schools Debate Championship for the first time.

PSDC began on the morning of November 4, 2010, Thursday, at Leong Hall, Ateneo. Upon entering the hall, the diversity of the crowd was noticeable. While the participants were all Filipino (with a few exceptions) and were all from local Philippine schools, the tournament also played host to students coming from as far off as the Visayas and Mindanao provinces. The ISM students had

By: Gaea Morales, Grade 9

PSDC: The Philippine

IASAS?

Perspectives

Picture by Anthony Gokianluy

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in the growth and brought new experiences for those that participated within it, just like any other competi-tion or tournament would.

Yet, obviously, an IASAS event and the PSDC are not entirely parallel. One of the major differences is the span of the demographic locations of the partici-pating schools. IASAS involves (and is held in rotation in) six international schools across South-East Asia. In contrast, the PSDC starts with ‘P’ which stands for Philippines, and the single tournament is held in At-eneo de Manila. Also, an IASAS event could involve music, drama or dance, specifically if it is during the Cultural Convention, whereas the PSDC is specifically a debate event (taking into account the ‘D’ in the acro-nym). This diversity became clearer when the actu-al debates commenced. The accents and manner of speaking were most easily detectable. But the ideolo-gies and arguments were strikingly new to many of the ISM students. An example would be the debates held on the topic of fraternities. Students framed their argu-ments from the perspective of the Filipino fraternities, many of which could be found in the local universities. As ISM students come from international backgrounds and many of the participants were not Filipinos, they knew little regarding the specific debate topic as com-pared to those coming from local schools.

When asked specifically about the debate styles in IASAS and PSDC, Mariella Salazar, a sopho-more and an octo-finalist in the tournament said that, “I feel that IASAS has a higher quality of debate, because you have time to prepare your arguments and gain suf-ficient evidence. PSDC, however, requires thinking on the spot, quite like extemporaneous speaking.”

It was a brand new experience working with students from schools in the Philippines, and the par-ticipating students tackled matters as relevant as learn-ing more about the Filipino culture and how Filipino de-bates go about, to getting more friends on Facebook. When Michael Keppler, a sophomore participant, was asked about his thoughts on this issue, he said, “I liked it. I got to talk to people from the local schools, learn about what life for them was like, make some new friends, speak in the local dialect, and on the whole, further immerse myself in the country I live in.”

It may not be IASAS. It may be the first time ISM has participated. It may have been intimidating from all vantages that ISM was the only international school involved. But, regardless of the initial experience, the form of debate, nationality, or institution, it is safe to say that the ISM contingent departed from PSDC on the evening of November 6 with newfound knowledge concerning not only the world of debate, but also the diverse world of people of our generation living in the Philippines.

A Weekend of Musical TheatreISTA:

The International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA) is an international arts organization and registered charity, based in the south west of England. ISTA organizes an an-nual festival for students to further explore their interest in drama. This year the International School Manila hosted this festival for middle school, joined by six visiting schools from within South East Asia, with a theme of ‘Musical Theatre’.

From various countries, students filtered into ISM for the weekend of November 19th to 21st. The visiting schools were British School Manila, Singapore American School, Tai-pei American School, Western Academy of Beijing, Shang-hai American School, and the American International School Dhaka. Between 10 and 26 middle school students from each school had come to visit and join in the ISTA experience.

According to Ms. Vicki Close, Fine and Performing Arts Director, this year’s ISTA festival was special because it was different from the usual format and included core work-shops where the students would spend most of the week-end, learning about certain aspects of musical theatre. These workshops included vocals, dance, acting, and technology for the arts department. There were also short ‘taster workshops’ lead by ISM teachers and their students. This consisted of more of an introduction to the “ways of ISM performance”. At the end of ISTA, the students performed based on what they’d learned in the different core workshops, ending the festival with an unforgettable exhibition!

Victoria (Tori) Hewitt, a participant from ISM in this year’s ISTA said, “ISTA was so much fun, better than last year. This year was a lot less stressful and I learned to con-quer my fear of singing and acting in public.”

For more information about ISTA go to www.ista.co.uk or ISM’s own ISTA blog at www.ista.ism-online.org

By: Louisa Cotterhill, Grade 8

Picture by Charlene Mamaril

News

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The ISM Code of Behavior is a set of rules that pro-mote “good citizenship” and encourages “the individual to develop desirable qualities of self-discipline”. It explains the responsibilities that all peoples should have, such as being “intellectually honest” which promotes fair play and “treating all property with respect”, as theft can upset others and lead to complicated arguments. These rules are enforced to pro-mote healthy relationships with others, as trust issues may arise and reputations may be ruined if respect is not given. Respect is a two-way street, imperative in any society and is the basis of any working relationship. Without rules, nations would be susceptible to disagreement and hostility towards each other, which could lead to anarchy and possibly war.

Anarchy, according to Dictionary.com, is “a state of society without government or laws.” Mr. Michael Flynn, Operations and Security Director, believes that “the absence of rules can lead to conflict, the lack of consideration for the general well being of others and dangerous behavior.” When asked why, he expresses that “the reality is that some people will at times be thoughtless or selfish” and that if there were no rules, this behavior “would become more common.” 9th Grader Mia Kawazu agrees, saying that people “would have nothing in the back of their minds” telling them not to behave in an uncivilized manner. After all, humans are imperfect, and it is only natural for sinful temptations to cloud judgments.

Are all rules beneficial? In many cases, regulations may have been questioned or debated against because they can limit freedom and independence. While rules may exist because of tradition or religion, one can argue that they pro-hibit individuals from showing their true identities; conversely,

“I’m a physics teacher and one of the things that I have to teach is the notion of “entropy” - that, is that the world tends to naturally move to a state of more disorder and NEV-ER the other way around unless an external influence (a rule, perhaps) is applied.” – Mr. Michael Dickinson, High School Assistant Principal

Imagine a world without rules.

Everyone could do anything they wanted. People could drive carelessly down any lane and scenes of bloody, unfortunate collisions would be your typical morning view. People could run freely across the streets, wearing anything or perhaps even nothing at all. People could barge into your home at any given moment, at the break of dawn or in the middle of the night. People could steal whatever they desired, with no repercussions. People could do anything they want-ed, absolutely anything at all.

Rules are guidelines for conduct and action; they are instructions to be followed in order to create a refined soci-ety. “When everyone knows the rules and plays to the same rules,” declares Mr. Dickinson, “the game is a known quantity and everyone is able to succeed.” Since we were young, we have been guided by authority figures. On many occasions we have all had one simple question running through our minds: Why? It is because rules are necessary for a com-munity to run effectively. People have created rules to reflect the expected way of living for the world to function with mini-mal difficulty. Senior Jolene Oh proclaims that, “rules exist to maintain peace and order” and that without them, “the world would become even more chaotic than it already is.”

Do Rules Really Matter?By: Kimberly Go, Grade 9

Perspectives

Picture by Isabel Martel Francisco

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is it a lack of understanding by those making the judgment? Schools have uniform policies that may reduce peer pres-sure and bullying as everyone is wearing the same thing. However, this does not stop students from claiming that it prevents them from ‘expressing themselves freely’. In cases like these, collective groups and individuals should try to reach a consensus and determine if the benefits out-weigh the disadvantages. Essentially, a balance of rules is needed. People create rules with the intention of preventing anarchy from corrupting our world and for a society to work properly. Yet, they must exist only to a certain extent as some may con-strict one’s liberty, or as Mr. Flynn states, may be “coun-ter-productive or simply foolish.” He adds that “it would be

naïve to think that all rules are fair” which is why people should “question [a] rule that is thought to be unfair” in-stead of automatically obeying them because they are told or taught to. In other words, everyone should use their own judgment and question the existence of a rule, asking themselves if something is really ‘right’.

NewsHS Play Aftermath

“Insightful, inspiring, and invigorating,” says Ga-briela Pascuzzi, the assistant director of the High School play staged last October 14 to 16, 2010.

Directed by Ms. Tami Monsod, the 38 cast mem-bers, composed of Dance Company, B-Boys, athletes, singers and actors, showcased their talents both individ-ually and collectively whilst contributing to the coherency of the play.

A play within a play, The Book of Antigone includ-ed both the drama and the comedy needed to keep the audience engrossed. With juvenile delinquents tasked to stage a play performance of the classic, Antigone, our students effectively blended the modern and the ancient by showing their individual understanding of rather unfa-miliar lines and roles. While Act I characterized the juve-niles and showed their preparation process for the play, Act II presented a wonderful outcome of their practice (what the characters worked for during the entire Act I).

Act I focused on the conflict between the prep school students and the juvenile delinquents that they were supposed to “help” as part of their community ser-vice program. As their interests are disharmonized, the teacher of the juvenile delinquents, Brian Franco (played by Aadam Mohammed) disagrees with Dr.Castillo (played

by Jaime de Venecia), the teacher of the prep school students. However, as apologies and handshakes come and go, the “juvies” and prep school students eventually learn from each other. Hence, Ms. Monsod, the director, says that “the theater has transformative powers” not only for the characters within the play but she herself underwent artistic transformation, learning that the most absurd ideas (quite often from Jaime de Venecia) can be the best ones.

While audiences were sensually impressed in Act I, they were thrilled by the powerful staging of the play in Act II, with Kristine Crouch as Antigone. Like-wise, the play within a play has strengthened the effect of the anachronistic style: Street Meets Greek. When the casts restaged Act II for the ISTA fes-tival, they approached their roles with inspired clarity and maturity. With some changes in roles, they showed twice the strength they did in the first run. Ms. Mon-sod especially points out how Dinesh Mohnani played the original Creon with a kind of reptilian grace while Tae Wan Kim played the new Creon with a lion heart. Hence, as Gabriela rightfully recognizes, the “effects of the play [go] beyond [their] last performance.”

By: Minsoo Woo, Grade 12

Picture by Minsoo Woo

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Post-Morrison Basketball Last year, the head coach of the ISM basket-ball Varsity Boys team was a woman who held high expectations for her team. This year, the new coach-es seem to be following in those same footsteps.

Ms. Mona Lisa Morrison, a JV Boys coach for two years and the Varsity Boys coach for six, has left quite large shoes to fill. But luckily for Mr. Peabody, with his 6’4 stature has had no trouble so far at fill-ing the coaching void. This year, 13 boys are on the varsity squad, all hard working and dedicated for the upcoming IASAS tournament to be held at home this January.

Miguel Olfato, the senior captain, says “The biggest difference from this year’s team and last year’s would be the major height difference.” What with the absence of last year’s fairly tall senior for-wards like Patrick Reed and Alex Oosterveen, this year, the boys will have to make up for lack of altitude with speed, effort, and intensity. Jonathan Moran, the junior captain, is more than confident with their com-pensation, claiming: “We are a lot quicker and faster this year.”

The team is comprised of six rookies, who have only ever been exposed to this year’s new coaches, Mr. Peabody and Mr. Nourse. But what do these newbies expect from the remaining season? Gio Panlilio, a new player from Hong Kong, says that “the season started off slow.” He expresses concern that a surprisingly large chunk of the team had got-ten injured during the course of season, but Gio still maintains the faith that the team will “recover from [their] injuries, and surprise a lot of people at IA-SAS.” Then again, there are veterans that have had a taste of both coaches and their different styles. For instance, all three captains, Alex Gill, Miguel Olfato and Jonathan Moran have all practiced under Ms. Morrison. These boys would all agree that this year’s team focuses on defense, contrasting from Ms. Mor-rison’s focal point of offense. The consensus would be that Mr. Peabody is a detailed coach who empha-sizes the basics of basketball. “He understands the game from both a coach’s and player’s perspective,” says Gio, who also admits that this is a quality that he admires about his coach. He can also be seen as the type of coach who shows the boys how it’s done by involving himself during his practices. On the other hand, both coaches maintain the expectations of win-ning and growing as a cohesive team.

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Post-Morrison Basketball By the time IASAS comes around, the heart of the boys’ game will be defense, but what will they bring to the table that differs from last year’s coaching? “Players from last year’s var-sity team under Ms. Morrison learned respect for the game and the concentration and patience re-quired to play games at the extremely competitive level,” replies Jonathan. No doubt, this same pas-sion for basketball will continue under the guid-ance of Mr. Peabody and Mr. Nourse. The team will surely prove this to the entire ISM community at this year’s IASAS. Come and witness for your-self what this fresh team has to offer on January 27th – 29th. Let’s go Bearcats!

By: Claudia Willnow, Grade 11

Pictures by Vincent Ching and Nicholai Go

(Pictures by Vincent Ching and Nicholai Go)

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“Filipinos and Irishmen—we’re the same. They have a diet based around starch; they eat potatoes. We have a diet based on starch too; we eat rice. And what is rice? Tiny potatoes,” joked Rex Navarrete—master of accents, observer of people, and an all around funny guy. His jokes sent the entire audience in the Interna-tional School Manila’s, Fine Arts Theater on the night of November 11th, into fits of laughter. He had every-one clutching their sides and gasping for breath, and no, that’s not an exaggeration!

Rex Navarrete was invited to ISM to perform during ISM’s 90th Anniversary celebration show. Sav-ing the best for last, Rex performed after ISM’s Show Choir, Jazz Band, and a 20-minute performance by Dance Co. It was a night that definitely showcased stu-dent’s talents, culminating to Rex Navarrete’s fantastic set, all in all creating a spectacular show.

NewsRex NavarreteBy: Sofia Benares, Grade 11

at the 90th Anniversary

Rex Navarrete, the one and only “Premiere Fili-pino-American Comedian,” was born in the Philippines but raised primarily in the United States. Through his jokes though, he is still very much in touch with the culture of the Philippines and his heritage. All of his jokes come from real-life experience, so called “Rex moments;” and relying on past events has truly made him a master storyteller. But the mastery of Rex Na-varrete comes not only in his humor but his versatility as he manages to get people of all races to laugh at jokes that are so inanely… Pinoy.

This show was a perfect way to celebrate a fantastic 90 years and will be a wonderful memory in-grained into our minds!

Picture by Angel Feliciano

Picture by Stephanie Hagedorn

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Pictures by Nicholai Go

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THIMUN:The Fairytale that

Had to End

THIMUN:The Fairytale that

Had to End

By: Akshar Bonu,Grade 10

Every season of Model United Nations (MUN) always begins with a basic orientation – a time during which the fresh faces of MUN can speak to their more experiened upperclass-men. I can remember my first orientation, almost a year and a half ago, in which a veteran said to me: “Probably one of the big-gest reasons for doing MUN is The Hague International Model United Nations (THIMUN) – the only foreign trip which allows you to go outside of Asia – to the Netherlands! It has been the defining moment of my High School so far.” Just the thought of going to Europe sounded great enough, but I soon found out that THIMUN was far bigger then that just an opportunity to travel. THIMUN is currently the big-gest Model United Nations conference in the world, attracting 4,500 delegates from all over the globe. Over the course of the nine days, THIMUN guarantees a delegate new friendships, incomparable fun, and most importantly, possible solutions to global issues. Held in the World Forum Convention Center in The Hague, The Netherlands, it is one of, if not the most, real-istic UN simulations in the world. It is so prestigious that it even holds actual consultative status with the United Nations Eco-nomic and Social Council. In layman’s terms, that means that the real UN may actually consult THIMUN’s passed resolutions! In addition, the level of debate at THIMUN is unsurpassed, with a place for both hardcore and soft debaters. Even though I have yet to actually experience this trip for myself as of yet, I am more than willing to believe former delegates’ assessments of the nine days: an experience of a lifetime indeed.

However, even despite all of these amazing opinions and benefits, this year will be ISM’s final year at THIMUN. Af-ter almost two years of deliberation, weighing the positives and negatives of the change, the ISM administration finally came to a conclusion that THIMUN was to be no more. For delegates both new and old, this was heart stopping. Arguably the best and most cherished trip provided by ISM was being terminated. The ISM administration, however, will not leave the delegates empty-handed, offering a replacement trip – Beijing International Model United Nations (BEIMUN). Having been able to hear the administration’s backing of their decision, it is clear that remov-ing THIMUN and replacing it with BEIMUN had practical and altruistic reasons.

Picture by Mr. Eamonn Hobbins

Picture by Mr. Hobbins

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Yet, even after both sides have put their

cards on the table, no one knows

what BEIMUN will offer...

In explaining their decision, the school cited the envi-ronmental costs and implications of the trip. Thanks to various “green-minded” teachers and students alike, ISM has begun to spearhead the go-green movement. Arguably one of the most environmentally friendly schools out of the six IASAS schools, ISM’s Model United Nations program wanted to support the en-deavor. Traveling to the Netherlands and back is almost 21,350 kilometers, which translates to an excessive amount of carbon emissions. Traveling to BEIMUN, on the other hand, reduces this amount by almost 75% with only around 5,500 kilometers. If Model United Nations is about solving global issues, isn’t it contradictory to propagate one by hurting the environment to go to the Netherlands? An anonymous delegate however ar-gued: “Well, the planes would fly anyway, wouldn’t they? So what difference does it make if nineteen kids go or not?” This is a valid point, but if not for having a huge global impact, this move symbolizes MUN and ISM’s willingness to make sacri-fices for the environment. Who knows what kind of inspiration may sprout from this? The removal of a cherished trip in the name of the environment will, without a doubt, send a message within ISM and ISM-affiliated schools.

with the decision. “BEIMUN is no THIMUN, and the experi-ence will be far worse on all accounts from debate to over-all fun,” says a disgruntled delegate who prefers to remain anonymous. In a conversation with this delegate, they claim that unlike THIMUN, it is nearly impossible to get top chairing positions in BEIMUN. This year ISM got a record-breaking haul of chairing positions in THIMUN. Multiple presidents (the top position in a committee) amongst other high-profile positions reflect ISM’s incredible reputation at THIMUN. BEIMUN, on the other hand, sees all these positions filled by delegates of the International School of Beijing, who sponsors the event. There is a silver lining however, as ISM has received word from the BEIMUN or-ganizers that ISM delegates will be given officer positions in its first year.

For most delegates, the biggest reason they are unhappy is that BEIMUN cannot provide the holistic expe-rience that THIMUN can. THIMUN is hosted in the World Forum Convention Center. The level of debate and pres-tige can’t be matched. It is in the Netherlands, one of the most beautiful and interesting countries to possibly be in. Everything about THIMUN gives an aura of professional-ism and an experience of a lifetime. “Being in the Nether-lands, standing on a podium which was used by real UN speakers before is really just something else,” says a del-egate. In the minds of ISM students, Beijing and BEIMUN really can’t match that. With only around 1,000 delegates, hosted in a far more modest environment – delegates can’t expect much with this change. Though in defense of Bei-jing, there are exciting tourism opportunities such as The

Even so, the ISM administration also had pragmatic reasons in backing this move. THIMUN generally has a cap of 18 delegates, mainly because traveling to The Hague is ex-pensive. BEIMUN, on the other hand, will increase this cap to 25 delegates. That means that seven more students will have the opportunity to experience an international trip every year. Just like what the policy of limitations offers, this means more opportunities for more people, which really is a great thing. De-spite this, many delegates still remain unconvinced. “This year we have Model United Nations Assembly (MUNA) which is a pseudo-international conference open to everyone. Isn’t that enough opportunities?” Although it sounds selfish, it is true that MUNA is a conference open to all delegates. However, there is a reason why it is a pseudo-international conference and does not deliver everything IASAS MUN or BEIMUN could provide.

Arguably the biggest advantage for a typical stressed out ISM student is that BEIMUN, is only five days long, unlike THIMUN that spans nine days. Given the timing of THIMUN, right before mock IB exams, the week of jetlag following the conference, and the nine days of catch up that needs to be done post-conference, is incredibly stressful. Though most del-egates would argue they choose to do THIMUN knowing they can cope with its responsibilities, BEIMUN is forcibly making the student’s lives much easier.

Ultimately however, MUN participants remain unhappy Picture by Katie Thompson

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Great Wall of China, The Bird’s Nest and other exciting historical and modern sites. It may not be the Netherlands, but it surely has its own experiences to offer.

Yet, even after both sides have put their cards on the table, no one knows what BEIMUN will offer. For now, delegates can only look at YouTube videos and see beimun.net for more information. Until a delegation goes for sure, everything is merely speculation. Delegates’ reactions to this change are understandable – a cherished tradi-tion is being scrapped for a wildcard conference. Something secure is being replaced by something yet to be discov-ered. Granted, the ISM administration has provided tangible benefits for scrapping THIMUN. However, only time will truly tell if they shall succeed. With optimism, the “THIMUN gamble” may pay off and, at the expense of a cherished tradition, a new and stronger one may be born. Students will have to keep an open mind.

Picture by Katie Thompson

Picture by Mariella Salazar

Picture by Chris Ong

Greetings from the Hague!THIMUN 2011

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However, logging in those hours does provide valuable time to reflect. Reflecting encourages students to build on their strengths as well as provide an opportunity to identify their weaknesses whether it is inside or outside the classroom. Most of all, reflecting exposes the true value behind those hours because ultimately, CAS reflections are a way to record a worthwhile activity.

What bothers several very CAS-oriented students is the lack of acknowledgment given to the value behind the hours. When questioned about her dislikes towards the CAS system, sophomore Mariella Salazar explained: “In a sense, people do service because it’s compulsory, and I find that although this exposes people to service and may-be gets them to change their views, it can also bring about a mentality that service should only be done to “look good” on college applications or to fulfill the requirements of IB, which entirely defeats the purpose of service. If you want people to care about the world, you must not force them to. But I suppose it’s a chance ISM should take, because we’re not losing anything per se by exposing students to service and other multi-faceted activities.”

Indeed, there are still several students who would rather sleep in than visit a nearby GK community build. However, they are still forced to do so, despite their disin-clination from Service Learning. The downside is that this “forced” system could cause a student’s dislike of the CAS system to grow even more. However, there is still the small possibility of a service trip changing the students’ lives on at least a small scale. I do agree that one’s personal value system does play a large part in the meaning of CAS. Ulti-mately, from a purely practical perspective, all that anyone really has to do is get the hours done. Whether or not the hours were genuinely valuable to depends solely on the student.

As the semester comes to a close, academic pres-sures will continue to intensify. As the new semester be-gins—one with even more challenging academics and a more demanding workload—convenient and available CAS opportunities will slowly decrease. Take the initiative, get those forms in!

As a student body, we are reminded practically ev-ery Wednesday to do three things: 1. Fill up your CAS hours. 2. Give up four hours of your time for someone else (yes, that means you freshmen and sophomores). 3. Get out there and do something.

Yet, only a minute fraction of the high school has so far completed their required CAS hours.

CAS represents three things: Creativity, Action and Service. Granted, not everyone can be the next Hol-lywood star, the future all season athlete, or the successor of Mother Teresa. Fortunately for us students, CAS does not need that. All they ask is that we sacrifice a few hours of our lives for a good and productive cause, whether it be on the field, on the stage, or inside a shelter.

Living in the Philippines establishes a variety of op-portunities to fulfill the Creativity, Action and Service as-pects of CAS. Attending the International School Manila provides even more. It’s simply a matter of breaking the typical “go-home-go-to-school” routine through a bit of sacrifice and affirmative action. The International School Manila offers several different afterschool sports, clubs, publications, productions, and service trips to its students. Everything has already been organized and preset by staff and student councils; the most difficult aspect of joining an activity for the everyday student is, ironically, choos-ing one. Several students agree that they actually have no trouble “going out there and doing something.” In fact, several students already have their required hours (unof-ficially) fulfilled. However, the issue of a lack of CAS hours could be the time it takes to in log in and write the reflec-tion.

Most students—believe it or not—don’t impul-sively do their homework as soon as they get home. The CAS form, an assignment with a flexible deadline, is no exception. According to lead CAS organizer Mr. Neil Woods,“some students are not always involved as much as we would like for a wide range of genuine reasons, such as work, sports and family commitments. Often when there is alot going on, students postpone completing their ser-vice hours to semester two. The problem is that there may not be enough spaces left in semester two for all students!” This may be why early into the school year most of the preliminary CAS hours are still yet to be completed. It is only when the school year approaches its end that most students finally realize that those CAS forms do eventually require completion because in the end, those hours are the key to graduation (especially for seniors!).

Reading this will get you CAS Hours!By: Mika Limcaoco, Grade 10 Picture by Minsoo Woo

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Reading this will get you CAS Hours!Picture by Minsoo Woo

IASAS Touch Rugby For the past three years, ISM has held a strong reputation against other IASAS competitors in the field of girl’s Touch Rugby. Our school boasts two consecu-tive silver medals and one gold, and will expected to do well this season too. Much of this success can be ac-credited to the coaches, Craig Wislang and Steve Dodd, both of whom have seen players come and go. Last year has been both a rewarding and sad season for the coaches. After finally winning the championship in 2010, four seniors graduated and four others moved away, leaving the team with only four returning IASAS play-ers. Coach Wislang comments, “It changes the whole dynamic of the team, obviously this year’s [players are] much younger, but it is good because we can start fresh and carry on.” While this loss of experience poses a dis-advantage for the team, it does allow an opportunity for young and upcoming underclassmen to get a chance at playing varsity level. Under the coach’s policy of se-lecting at least four freshmen as part of the squad, a majority of this season’s team is made up of 9th and 10th graders. According to head coach Wislang, “The six freshmen [and three sophomores] aren’t just there because it’s our policy, it’s because they can play.”

By: Andrea Ayala, Grade 9

IASAS Tennis With five returning upperclassmen – three Se-niors and two Juniors – and four new faces on the Varsi-ty Girls Tennis team, many would say that new additions to the team would pose as a disadvantage; that perhaps training new players would be ‘difficult’. This is not the case for this year’s girls Varsity Tennis Team.

Jasmine Tan Ho, sister of famed Joshua Tan Ho – the only player in the history of Interscholastic Asso-ciation of South East Asian Schools (IASAS) to win all his matches in four years (20 wins, 0 losses, without dropping a single set) – has entered the stage as ISM Girls first singles player. The pressure is on to live up to her brother’s legacy, but Jasmine, a national player who has dominated the Philippine tennis scene at the age of 15, is sure to play a consistently prominent role in an already strengthened team of girls. “We definitely have the potential to medal this year,” smiled Maansi Vohra, captain and an all-tournament player in IASAS Tennis 2009. She has every reason to believe so as this year’s tennis season started with a bang. Pre-IASAS was host-ed in the very heart of Manila, and both of ISM’s teams played with absolute ease. Jakarta International School was defeated 8-0 on both occasions, while Singapore

American School – a dominant force in Tennis IASAS – was defeated 6-2 as well. In the local tournament, ISTA, ISM also lead with three wins and only one loss. ISM’s consistent winning streak is creating a buzz and excitement among the tennis community and is fueling expectations to medal both locally and in IASAS. A great start to what we know will be a great season!

By: Kay Yang, Grade 12

Whether these players can make it to IASAS is still in question, but in the words of one of the cap-tains Chelsea Ferguson, “I think we’ve got a lot of young people who are fit, we can go so much further than we’ve gone at Pre-IASAS.”

Picture courtesy of Sarita Morris

Picture courtesy of Alex Roquey

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Pista Sa ISM For over thirty years, it has been International School Manila’s tradition to celebrate Pista sa ISM. An annual school wide celebration highlighting the culture of the Philippines through an array of cultural displays such as, the Barrio Fiesta, and many spectacular per-formances. This event is organized by the schools very own Philippine Cultural Club (PCC): Mara Javier (President), Rence Pazcoguin (Vice President), Kristine Crouch (Secretary), Sarina Samson (Treasurer), and Frances Tanchanco (Public Relations Officer). Working alongside them were the honorary officers, including Alonzo Virata, Isabel Martel Francisco, Bianca Rome-ro-Salas, Enzo Razon, and Natalia Pena. Their hard work would not have paid off without the help of parents, especially major sponsors Leonardo “Sandy” Javier of Andoks and Maritel Nievera of Cabalen. Other parent liaisons who contributed selflessly to the Pista include Camille Samson, Gianna Montinola, Marianne Pratte, Libet Virata, Junie Pena, Tina Maristela Ocampo, and Irene Martel Francisco. The proceeds from this event were generously directed to the ISM Disaster Relief

By: Frances Tanchanco, Grade 11

Fund. After the endless planning process and count-less meetings, PCC did not let the heavy rains stop the Filipinana celebrations held last October 22nd 2010. This year’s set up reached new levels with its Barrio Fiesta booths all laid out in the courtyard, truly giving it a more “fiesta feel”. Instead of having all the food under the balco-nies, next to the garage, PCC decided to do things differ-ently in honor of IS Manila’s 90th celebration. Bahay ku-

bos represented each of the different food stalls, including new additions: such as a Cabalen buffet and a Sari-Sari store. Like previous years, Andoks managed to attract a large crowd in the corner of the Middle School courtyard. Another component added to this year’s Pista was the col-lection of dancers hired to dance in the Barrio Fiesta and throughout the day. Dancing different native numbers and playing a variety of native instruments, they were surely a great addition to the enthusiasm and spirit. Fortunately, the heavy rains that initially shrouded

Picture by Minsoo Woo

Picture courtesy of Frances Tanchanco

Picture courtesy of Frances Tanchanco

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News

the festive atmosphere were not detrimental to the an-nual traditional parade. The rains began just prior to the parade, spreading panic amongst the PCC officers and participants. However, the problem was quickly solved as the parade took to a new route around the inside of the school. Two bands enclosed the parade from the front and the back, while student dancers taught by Yek Barlongay lead the way. The dancers were a new addition to the pa-rade in commemoration of ISM’s 90th year anniversary. Moreover, another great aspect this year was that our

Hermana Mayor was none other than Taguig City’s mayor, the honorable Maria Laarni Cayetano.

Like every year, the Filipiniana assembly was opened with a speech by PCC President, Mara Javier, and closed by High School Principal Mr. Bill Brown. The performances, hosted by Manu Gonzales and Kimi Ro-driguez, included the HS Orchestra’s “Rosas Pandan”, Dance Company’s “Biyahe Tayo”, Jazz Band’s “Katawan”, Advanced Dance’s “Probinsyana”, and many more by the

regular High School dance classes and Show Choir.

Yet another change accompanying this year’s Filipiniana was the different location given for the Fear Factor program. Instead of being held in the Little Theater, PCC relocated the event to the High School Courtyard. The program is a contest where participants compete against each other by eating exotic Filipino cuisines. New additions were made to the selection of foods offered in this event, including the battue or frog. However, like previous years, dishes such as balut, be-tamax, dinuguan, and adidas were among the challeng-es. The winner was Freshman Dachan Park, winning various prizes including gift certificates from Havaianas, Rustan’s, and a pair of Skullcandy headphones.

Undoubtedly, Filipiniana truly exuded the Filipino culture, allowing students and teachers alike to bask in the history of not only the Philippines, but our school as well. It was the perfect celebration to commemorate the last ninety years of ISM.

Picture by Minsoo Woo

Picture courtesy of Frances Tanchanco

Picture courtesy of Frances Tanchanco

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many other indicators. At the end of the semester, when Power School is updated for the last time and the grades become a trail of past achievements and even minor fail-ures, many tend to forget how their grades came to be. No one dares to remember the struggle, the lack of sleep, and of course the pressure that had once been so potent to the final result. The main pressure involved in this situation is that of academic pressure, wherein a student feels as if he or she needs to attain a certain grade due to the expec-tations that have been set by peers, parents and teach-ers. Fifth grader Katherine Go describes the academic pressure she experiences due to the legacy of her family as she adds, “Because my siblings have a reputation of getting into honors classes, my parents also set goals for me of what I should achieve.” The pressure of getting into honors classes such as in Mathematics and English, and the acknowledgement for outstanding GPAs can serve as a motivational tool for students. But if too much pressure on grades dominates students, other responsibilities such as maintaining a well-balanced life become neglected. In-stead, they should channel their motivations as an inspira-tion to reach their goals. Who can resist the vision of them-selves at the end of the year with countless certificates of their own achievements? Not only would this make the student proud, but also he or she would attain a sense of achievement in reaching a goal that once seemed impos-sible.

“Don’t give in to peer pressure”—a common phrase that has been reiterated to all students at the International School Manila from the fantasy world of kindergarten up until our stressful high school life. This phrase is repeated-ly played to students in wellness classes and during guid-ance assemblies, teaching us how to react when faced with certain situations. However, it is not the only type of pressure that lingers around the campus; there are many others that exist but are not explored to the wider extent. Take, for example, the pressure of achieving good grades, to meet standards, the obligation to join sports clubs and especially in high school, the ‘need’ to get into a presti-gious university. Mr. Steve Ayling, high school guidance counselor, states that, “There are two main types of pres-sure, one that you put on yourself, the other being all of the ‘external’ pressures and expectations which people can feel are hanging over them.” Believe it or not, these pres-sures are not wholly detrimental as they can instead serve as the building blocks of motivation for better performance. Fortunately, here at the International School Manila, deal-ing with pressure is taken seriously and it is in the best interest of the school to prevent severe cases of students feeling isolated and insignificant.

The International School Manila is considerably one of the best learning institutions in the Philippines. One of its many missions is ‘to advance the value of learning, growth and self-awareness as life-long endeavors.’ The success of this mission can be reflected with the general performance of students with their GPAs, SAT scores and

Is School Too Cool for Pressure?By: Alyzza Acacio, Grade 9

Picture by Audrey MacCormac*Mr. Birchenall gives a demonstration

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Is School Too Cool for Pressure? Not everyone’s strength is academics and so not all pressures are academically inclined. A wide variety of clubs are offered at ISM from sports activities such as vol-leyball to clubs that promote culture such as the Philippine Cultural Club. In essence, these clubs entertain interests and enhance student’s potential to excel in a certain area. For example, the Interscholastic Association of Southeast Asian Schools (IASAS) is an event in which six member schools compete against one other in activities including athletics and the performing arts. With the many talented individuals in the school and the limited slots in IASAS, the pressure is heightened yet again. Unfortunately, since it is considered a competitive event, there is a limit to how many students can join, consequently exerting pressure on all the students that desire to be included in the promi-nent IASAS events. Sometimes, students also feel the need to satisfy someone else’s expectations before their own. Freshman Shivani Phadke says, “I feel pressured with IASAS because I really want to get in, but there are so many others much better at what they do than I am. Sports are something that I’m not very good at, so I’m afraid to try out because if I happen to get in, I might disappoint my teammates.” This is potentially harmful to a student’s mind frame because they may entertain feelings of inferiority due to the pressure of their surroundings. But if a student doesn’t make it to these events, he or she should not be discouraged because other opportunities will always ap-pear.

Students try to excel—for themselves, their parents and teachers, and of course, for college applications. Es-pecially for high school students, the pressure of getting

accepted into universities and figuring out the future has always been a ton of bricks on one’s shoulders. Once in a while, overseas universities and colleges visit ISM to in-troduce their schools in college talks. Senior, Jolene Oh believes that college talks are helpful, but at the same time add onto the pressure. “College talks are really helpful but the main problem is that most of the talks are only for col-leges in the States. Overall, the school does pressure us to some extent to join a ‘good’ university because most of the college talks that I get invited to are basically Ivy League schools.” But though this may create an intimidating aura, it is important that students are not discouraged and rather encouraged to strive in fulfilling their desires. Though some perceive pressure to be so over-whelming, it actually assists students in setting higher goals for themselves. From simple attempts to improve a low grade to major decisions like choosing universities that suits an individual best, any type of pressure should not hinder a person’s potential to be unleashed. High School Guidance counselor Mr. Douglas McQueen offers a word of advice for students who feel intimidated, “The most im-portant way to cope with pressure is too have someone you trust that you can openly talk to whether it be a friend, sibling, parent or guidance counselor. Another important point that students should remind themselves of is that we are all human. We all make mistakes and none of us are perfect. That understanding and belief alone can help put many things into proper perspective.” If ever any student feels intimidated, there are people around that are willing to give support such as your parents, teachers, and peers because isolation is never an option.

Picture by Minsoo Woo

Weighed down by College

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News

The Tradition of

The start of every year is always wearisome, characterized by sleep deprivation and unnatural amounts of stress, yet the light at the end of the tunnel brings, ICARE. The one week experience is enough to compensate for the weeks of work, leaving us with great memories that easily overshadow any bad ones. This year, ICARE will be held from December 7 to 11, 2010, and will be hosted in over thirty sites all over the Philippines.

As always, classic sites like Caliraya and Stairway will remain, while some new sites like Pedro Palacio will offer new possibilities. The seven hundred plus High School students will pack their bags and commit them-selves to a week of service, whether it is right here in Manila or all the way in Banaue. From working with kids from other local schools to literally building communities, students will be put in situations in which they actively respond to the environment, fulfilling the learning objectives of CAS along the way. This is also a great opportu-nity for students from different grades to collaborate and create long- lasting friendships.

Matthew Borja, a Junior about to go on his third ICARE trip comments, “ICARE is going to be a great experience! Finally, a chance to unwind from school, and do something fun. We’ll get to teach kids, spend time with new people in and out of our ISM community, and even build homes (and definitely a little character on the way too)!” Undoubtedly, the expectations for ICARE continue to rise as excitement escalates as well. Just like every year, it can be assured that the unforgettable and anticipated week will not disappoint.

By: Shloka Sharan, Grade 11iCare

A typical ICARE Day:

Pictures by Rhea Schmid

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Perspectives

Furthermore, with the expansive use of the Internet, present day teenagers are exposed to more negative influences than what their school environment might in-advertently provide. Movies, songs, and advertisements that refer to stereotypes can potentially diminish one’s self confidence; too many teenagers are pressured to think that skinny girls or muscular men are the “popular,” “well-accepted” individuals of society, setting a false re-ality that an individual’s value is measured by how they look. Not only does this mental obsession with one’s physical appearance take up a large portion of a teen’s focused thoughts, it can inadvertently affect schoolwork and extracurricular activities. Yet ironically, teenagers are preparing themselves for a harsh reality, a world that one cannot survive in without “advertising” him or herself to the people around them. Today, it is difficult to get promoted at work with-out connections with co-workers in the system. Hence, it is considerably counterintuitive to expect teenagers to grow up and be able to reach the highest success in a career that thrives on putting aside one’s real self, and adapting to society. Yet despite the countless external factors that po-tentially disrupt one’s path towards true success, almost

“Life sucks, school sucks”, the phrase most com-monly uttered by stressed out students, upperclassmen and underclassmen alike. Burdened by an overload of responsibilities and duties to fulfill, we too often hear this exaggeratedly gloomy statement from exasperated teen-agers. Obviously, they do not really mean that as their resolute definition of life – it is merely a way of venting or complaining to let off steam caused by stress. Not only that, the natural tendency for teens to feel insecure plac-es a lot of us in a pit of confusion. Ironically, as growing members of the community, teenagers should be prepar-ing to become positive, responsible adults and getting ready to achieve success – but what is stopping them from embracing a brighter future with a positive attitude?

Let’s face the facts: growing up is a hard and arduous journey. We impulsively tend to rebel against grownups, or anyone who seems to be “intruding” into our personal matters. J.D. Salinger, an American writer from the 1950s, portrays this aspect of teenagers through Holden Caul-field, an exaggerated version of the typical “independent” teenager. We want to be independent, and we feel that we are being encaged in places we don’t want to be in.

External factors present in the environment also heavily influence the teenage mentality. Peer pressure,

Teen Troubles: The Battle with Oneself By: Esther Park, Grade 10

for example, can work both ways; a friend can encour-age you to try out for the soccer team or MUN; or the existence of social groups can make you feel the de-sire to “fit in” that soon transforms into an obsession. Worst case scenarios include teens abandoning their true morals and values in order to hop on the bandwag-on, not thinking of where the “bandwagon” is headed. Peer pressure can be a subtle but powerful force. It may cause one teen girl to acquire an unhealthy diet to “look beautiful” and feel accepted, or it may force a teen boy to tell his mate the answers to a math test to stay a “bro” of the clique. These examples may be generalizations, but there is some truth to a teenager’s deep and crucial need for social acceptance. Especially during the forma-tive years, while teens are developing a more mature in-dividual identity, an identity different from the one formed by family and environment during childhood. Peer pres-sure can be a social binding element but it may also lead to more detrimental behavior, such as teenage drinking and drug abuse, of which peer pressure is a determining cause – according to the volunteers from the Freedom from Chemical Dependency (FCD) organization who visited the ISM community a couple of months back. Picture by Audrey MacCormac

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everything depends on the individual. Does he or she have the ability to overcome these temptations and re-main faithful to one’s values? It is also a matter of a mentality test – how teenagers perceive certain things, such as advertisements, and how they can control the influence on themselves. Strong, determined teenagers will be able to overcome such obstacles and be able to appreciate what was gifted to them in the first place – their unique identity as an individual, naturally fulfilling a role of adding a little variety to a collection of humans that are already more similar than different. ISM holds responsibility for the growth of more than 700 teenagers, and it successfully creates a “teenage friendly” environment that boosts their confidence, helps them become more independent, and increases social skills. With the wide array of activities to participate in, students learn their hidden strengths and unknown in-

terests. Students also gradually understand that they have the independent responsibility to prove themselves worthy of the academic subjects and extra-curricular ac-tivities, or “mini careers.” Most importantly, our school has long promoted a unified spirit of pride, which helps everyone feel love, instead of being pressured to fit in to the “coolest cliques,” similar to the school environ-ment that appears in the movie Mean Girls. Our school has shown its extraordinary ability to unite a culturally diverse school and limit the presence of cultural discrim-ination. Let us all hope that ISM continues to remain as an abode of acceptance, that expansive vestibule wel-coming our population of inwardly-fragile teenagers -- that mother figure that perpetually exceeds our cynical expectations of the possible amount of love and accep-tance that can exist in a community. We are all in this together, no cliché intended. Go Bearcats!

Picture by Brandon Hoover

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Features

lightened me about his times on the set of the Matrix and said “It took two months to build an office set, and then some explosive experts came from America to help shoot a scene. We watched them blow up the set in two minutes, and then we were told to build the set again”. Dougie has also worked on the “Elephant Room” from Moulin Rouge. Not only has he worked on movie sets, he has also man-aged tour sets with many famous names and has taken part in the Australian music festival Big Day Out. I am sure Dougie will be able to help out a lot in the Fine Arts, and in fact has already done so with the fantastic K-12 dance recital and the recently concluded ISTA.

This new semester has been a very busy time for the Fine Arts. If you have had the privilege of attending the numerous non-stop events such as the 90th Anniversary, ISTA, The Book of Antigone, PISTA and the K-12 dance recital, you would have seen the new and improved Fine Arts Theater. Whether I was watching or performing, I was always surprised to see the FAT’s newest installations.

The Fine Arts has also gone through a change of technology and staff. We were sad to see Ochie Gampon and Denis Lagdameo leave earlier this year, as they had been a tremendous help to the Fine Arts. Though we shall see Denis every now and again, both he and Ochie will

By: Mumba Dodwell, Grade 11

Fine Improvements for the

Fine Arts

be sorely missed. To replace these two outstanding peo-ple, however, we have Ms. Malou Talens and Mr. Dougie French as wonderful additions to our Fine Arts family. Ms. Malou has taken up Ochie’s position, and Mr. Dougie is our new stage manager. Dougie is enthusiastic and full of life. He comes from Australia, is very easy to talk to, and is full of interesting stories. He has been involved in the Arts for many years, and when I asked how he got into stage managing, he responded, “I accepted an invitation from the wrong person”. Despite this humour, I believe it was the right person Dougie met, as, since then, he has worked on many famous sets such as the Matrix. Dougie also en-

During ISTA, the lighting and set was done very well. The show had floor lights just as you would have seen in Broadway’s version of Chicago, as well as a great colour wash creating a silhouette in the cell block tango.

Malou is replacing Ms. Ochie Gampon, and has been very busy this semester planning the numerous events that have been taking place. Malou is from the Phil-ippines and is very helpful when it comes to finding infor-mation about the Fine Arts. She has said that she thinks the FAT stage is beautiful, is very well equipped, and that her favourite event so far has been the High School Play.

sonPicture by Katie Thompson Picture by Katie Thompson

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If you attended the High School play, The Book of Antigone, you would have seen the new and amazing light-ing that was recently purchased by the FAO. The lights swiftly guided the audience’s eyes to the brother Etocles and Polynices to represent the past. The play also had a well constructed set which framed the stage. The scaffolding was versatile, original and something that many of us had not seen in theater at all.

Another addition to the FAT is the hydraulic stage, which was used in the 90th anniversary. When I attended the 90th, I was personally awed by the new hydraulic stage which was used for the Jazz Band entrance. In fact, the FAT is said to be nearly complete with stage equipment, and is much more advanced compared to other schools in the Philip-pines. When I inquired a new staff member, PJ, about working in the Fine Arts, all he could say was that it was “amaz-ing”. The technology found in our theatre is something you don’t always see in a High School. We should feel privileged to have such sophisticated technology.

It is clear that the Fine Arts this year is very busy, and is something that everyone should be part of. There are lots of things happening, and improvements are certainly creating better experiences for those taking part in the Fine Arts.

Picture by Paulina Sotto

Picture by Nicholai Go

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Features

Most importantly, coming from an international school with such a large integration of cultures yet which celebrates diversity and being able to work with different people from all over the globe, ISM students share certain traits when it comes to interacting with others outside of school. As an ISM student, I personally find it quite easy to be around students from other schools as well as work collaboratively with peo-ple, and I believe this is due to having attended ISM for 11 years; having grown up in its international environment. Anika Leongson, also a senior from Poveda , mentioned that ISM students are outgoing and amiable: “Students from ISM are one of the kindest! You value your friends a lot.” Christina also adds, “With students coming from all over the world, you each have unique personalities and provide interesting per-spectives.” Anika adds, “Sometimes you like to stick with each other, but you are not exclusive.” It is excellent to know that both on and off campus, ISM students are representative of what we strive for as a

In such a closely-knit school environment, getting to know each other as Bearcats becomes second nature. As ISM students we strive to do our best for those around us: for our community, for school, our families, our friends, our peers, and for ourselves. With every school day opportunities are presented to us students wherein we show who we are to the world around us with the choices we make. But does this translate across to students outside the ISM community?

One of the priorities for students at ISM is academics. There is no denying that we dedicate a large amount of time to our school work and extra-curricular activities, as well as frequently sacrificing much of our personal time to truly ap-ply that extra effort to every assignment. One home schooled student, Christina Potenciano, says that “ISM students are very determined, motivated, and proficient. Despite the de-manding workload of the IB curriculum, they still manage to finish everything, get good grades, and engage in other ex-tra-curricular activities.” A senior from Poveda explains how she admires ISM students as we are required to undertake the rigorous IB program – “ISM’s IB program allows students to grow holistically, and this is evident as they are generally skilled at things which encompass a range of areas of learn-ing: from dance to computer studies.” This particular attribute of ISM students seems to be depicted fairly prominently as noted by a comment from Christina: “ISM students know when to be serious when the time comes for getting things done, and they know when to be witty and enjoy themselves during times of play.” It is important that we are taken seri-ously by others, not only in our work but with everything we do.

With ISM adopting the CAS system for Service Learn-ing as well as IB’s graduation requirements for service hours for students involved in both the certificate and diploma pro-grams, our school is arguably one of the best in Asia when it comes to service learning, and Bearcats are always eager to help. A senior from La Salle Greenhills comments on how ISM students seem to be involved with numerous charitable events and organizations throughout the country which ad-dress and work to improve a variety of issues within the Phil-ippines. “Whenever a charity trip is held involving teens from schools all over Manila, you can guarantee that an ISM stu-dent will be there, especially for trips such as those for Habi-tat for Humanity Philippines and Gawad Kalinga (just to name a few).”

By: Audrey MacCormac, Grade 11

A LastingImpression

Picture by Chris Ong and Anthony Gokianluy

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cohesive, international community; helpful, eager to please, focused, and dedicated. As we grow together, we continue to show our true selves through our actions, and really show the world what it means to be a Bearcat.

NewsCharity Begins at Home They are the unsung heroes of Metro Manila’s elite private schools — the custodians, gardeners, canteen la-dies and security guards who represent each school’s life and blood. Some of their names we know, others we don’t. Yet they serve us on a daily basis just the same. As they work long hours without want of recognition, one can’t help but feel that they don’t get the credit they deserve.

But at the International School Manila, there’s an extra spring in their step. On October 2, 2010, stu-dents from the ISM High School senior class thought that the best way to show appreciation for the school’s contractual employees was to organize a day of fun, games and prizes for eighty-five of their kids. With games like “The Boat is Sinking” and “Simon Says,” programs with students as emcees and Chicken McDo for lunch, it wasn’t much different from a traditional Fili-pino children’s party. Students prepared this whole day in honor of those who deserve a moment of recognition.

For many of them, it was the first time they had ever visited the place where their parents work. The 10-year-old daughter of one of our school’s dedicated se-curity staff, Jayzel Marie, didn’t let distance keep her from attending the event. She took a six-hour bus ride, south from La Union the night before to arrive at our campus just in time for the event. Jayzel joined the others who all had made the most of their weekend. It being a Saturday, a number of ISM contractual employees were having their day off. Yet they reported to school that day, instead of taking their day of and spending the weekend with their kids at home. We were so used to seeing them in uni-forms and at their posts that it was a refreshing change of pace to see everyone in casual clothing. It reminded

By: Leandro Leviste, Grade 12

the 50 of us ISM students present that our school’s employees are far more than the careers they lead.

As a high school senior at ISM, I couldn’t be more proud to go to a school that’s taking positive steps to al-leviating these issues of national concern. Celebrating its 90th anniversary this year, ISM has kept true to its mission of promoting a spirit of community service and social responsibility within the student body. This year’s senior class alone has initiated partnerships with Habi-tat for Humanity, Gawad Kalinga and Hands on Manila, in addition to this event in recognition of those in our own community. It’s encouraging to know that a school that has educated so many of this country’s leaders has adopted such a socially conscious approach to learning. This country would be well served to have more like it.

Picture by Rachel Riker

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“In the old system, 5th Grade students were going from one teacher to eight in the span of a few months,” says Mr. St. Laurent. Certainly, it is an undeniable fact that big chang-es occur at this stage for students both physically and aca-demically. To alleviate the possible impacts of these sudden changes, team-teaching proved best – Social Studies and English have now been combined, as with Math and Science classes: “It’s more what you call a Junior High School,” Mr. St. Laurent adds. Department leaders and administration rec-ognize the challenges faced by the students, especially the large age disparity between 5th and 8th Graders. Mr. St. Lau-rent explains, “It’s basically a question of creating an age-ap-propriate environment.” There is a distinct difference between a 10 year old and a 14 year old. Mr. Selander indicates that the initial drawbacks are “more of an adult issue” in terms of scheduling and logistics: “Ultimately I don’t think that having 10 year olds in MS is bad for kids in the long run, it just takes some extra logistical planning for adults.”

There are several issues that begin to arise during the years of middle school, such as new social troubles and aca-demic challenges. There are issues that arise with new friend-ships and in determining where we all fit in and as well as the blooming pressures of achieving good grades. According to Mr. St. Laurent, intrinsic motivation is particularly common in girls. “They tend to be perfectionists, leading to pressure on themselves,” he says. Boys on the other hand, have organi-zation issues, which corresponds with becoming familiar with having more than one academic teacher. Surprisingly, paren-tal constraint becomes an issue already at this stage. “We try to educate parents on the learning process,” explains Mr. St. Laurent. “But sometimes it ends up being over the top.” Thus, over-scheduling becomes a point of contention. “Parents sign their child up for tutoring, piano lessons, violin lessons and more”. As a result, the basis for High School stress begins to develop at this stage.

Come freshman year of High School, academia quickly replaces social and identity issues. Katrina Gavino, a soph-omore who is an active participant in ISM’s varsity sports program, spends 30 to 45 minutes per subject, adding up to roughly between 1 and 3 hours per night of homework. Academically immersed, Akshar Bonu, another sophomore, averages 2 to 3 hours per night, due to the strenuous cours-es available in ISM. Juniors and seniors, particularly those choosing the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, will inevitably have heavier workloads. “There is the ‘pressure’ to get good grades, the ‘pressure’ to join lots of after school activities and get heavily involved in school community, the ‘pressure’ to fit in with fellow students, the ‘pressure’ to gain places at some of the top colleges and universities in the world,” states Mr. Ayling, HS guidance counselor. Mr. Ayling still feels that there are some benefits. “[There] can certainly be increased levels of motivation and determination to suc-ceed (although defining ‘success’ is another issue altogether). It can help students set personal goals, lead to greater col-

The International School Manila comfortably accommo-dates Preschool students through to Grade 12 students. This transition seems quite daunting, particularly since students spend approximately 15-16 years in school growing and developing. With each stage of school, students are faced with different challenges that they must overcome. With each phase of development great lessons are learned, which in turn, builds the foundation for who they are as people.

One of the first lessons very young students must learn in-volves interacting with peers. According to guidance counsel-or Mr. Derek Selander, “One of the big social issues for ele-mentary school kids has to do with friendship, simply because kids are learning about friendship. They’re learning how to get along with each other, how to delay gratification of their own needs, and not getting their way.” The Elementary School program is an inquiry-based program and the educational system promotes learning through play and builds upon units that help students understand age appropriate skills. Gaps in students’ learning may be influenced by a number of factors. For example, “you can live in a place where they don’t teach reading, until 1st or 2nd Grade, and so you know there will be some kids that started reading at [age] 4, while others may have begun in the 1st Grade.” Despite that, Mr. Selander as-sures that it’s “basically adjusting to a new style of teaching, a new environement – there are many factors to consider,” and gaps are not necessarily an indicator for Learning Support. It could very well be a period of adjustment.

When students approach the 4thGrade, however, they face another change in which they must learn ways to adapt. Mr. Selander explains with a smile that “the p word – puberty”, marks the transition between Elementary and Middle School. Recently during the school year of 2009-2010, the adminis-tration had come to a solution regarding the issue of easing the transition between Elementary and Middle School. Grade 5 is now part of Middle school. Mr. Marc St. Laurent, the Middle School guidance counselor, believes that the addition and integration of Grade 5 into the Middle School program is beneficial. When viewed academically for example, a mod-ern language is introduced at an earlier age, thus increasing second language proficiency as studies have shown that the earlier a new language is learned, fluency will be more easily reached.

All Grown Up

Picture by Angel Feliciano

Transitioning from Elementary to High School

By: Amanda Saban, Grade 10

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laboration, since when people work together, they can generally overcome obstacles and periods of difficulty. Thus, this brings to attention the drawbacks to the desire for success – the issue of being “grade obsessed”. “This can lead to a whole number of problems; decreased involvement in after school clubs/activi-ties, reluctance to join service trips, disconnection from friends, poor diet, lack of sleep, increased stress, poor judgments/ deci-sion making and poor grades, thus further increased anxiety and the cycle goes on.” There is, however, a way around this. Mr. Ayling suggests balancing studies with a number of things, such as exercise, socializing, collaboration with peers, involvement in classes, as well as effective communication. He advises stu-dents to “remember [that they] have a great network of friends, family member, teachers and counselors who are all looking out for you in some way.”

“Any change takes a little while to get used to, plan around,

but after you’ve worked with it for a little while, you know what to expect, and it becomes much easier as you get your systems in place,” notes Mr. Selander. This could not have been said any more explicitly. The premise of coping with change is funda-mentally time; as over time, the change will eventually become the norm. Perhaps the metamorphosis from Elementary to High School isn’t as strenuous as thought out to be. It’s just a matter of time.

Picture from gettyimages

ISM Defends Title as HS Academic Bowl

The High School Academic Bowl is a biannual interscholastic competition in which students compete in a general-knowledge competition. Four teams rep-resenting different schools come together for a day, to participate in a “Battle of the Brains” wherein participants must answer a variety of questions from different subject areas. The teams join the competition to represent their schools, and ultimately to fight for the gold.

Coach of the ISM team, David Birchenall ex-plains that the Academic Bowl has “four rounds of toss-up style [questions], buzz-in questions, an envelope round, a Math/Logic round and a penalty toss up.” Teams use a set of buzzers, and buzz in if they wish to answer a toss-up.

Each team consists of ten members in total, with only five members participating in each round. Team members were selected in a rigorous try-out session, in which aspiring participants must complete a quiz of twenty general knowledge questions, and must score in the top ten in order to be part of the team.

The most recent competition was hosted by ISM on November 9, 2010. Participating schools were Brent Manila, Brent Subic, Faith Academy, and ISM. For the

By: Alexei Acacio, Grade 9Champions

Picture by Will Vankoughnett

13th consecutive time ISM won gold with a score of 680 points and a large 196 point lead over Faith, its closest competitor. Brent Manila and Brent Subic placed third and fourth respectively.

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NewsK-12 Dance Recital The 90th anniversary of ISM has been a recur-ring theme in almost every significant event in ISM this year. There was the creation of the ‘Sharing a History, Creating a Future’ art mural that now decorates the first floor halls, the 90th anniversary celebration show, and then there was the K-12 recital.

To celebrate 90 years of ISM, the dance teachers applied the same theme of ‘Sharing a History, Creating a Future’ in order to commemorate ISM and all its glory in each dance.

The K-12 recitals happen every year, twice a semester. It is a special event, which incorporates all dance classes, ranging from Elementary School all the way up to Advanced Dance and even Dance Co. This year, each class was assigned a decade, and thus an extravagant visual timeline was presented onstage.

Dancers showed up at ISM at 10 in the morning on the day of the recital, for a full run-through. Legend-ary Yek Barlongay, dance teacher extraordinaire, and the stage crew made a giant “SMILE” sign and waved it around from the lights booth during both rehearsals and performance as a reminder to all the dancers. The sheer ludicrousness of it managed to bring smiles to all danc-ers’ faces!

The K-12 recital, like every year, was most defi-nitely a success as it allowed all ISM’s dancers to show-case his/her talent. Congratulations to all the dancers and dance teachers! There is no better way that ISM could have asked its 90 years to be represented.

By: Sofia Benares, Grade 11Pictures by Paulina Sotto

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Features

Other students find it disappointing that PE isn’t a part of the IB curriculum. “I think that PE teaches you about things that are useful in real life but aren’t neces-sarily taught in academic classes – and not anything to do with sports either,” says sophomore Moonie Sohn. “It teaches you about teamwork and perseverance. That said, though, I don’t think that PE is the only class that can teach you these things. Classes like Dance or Show Choir, which I’m both a part of, can also teach you these same things.”

When I was a freshman, I positively dreaded Physi-cal Education (PE) class – not only was it an eyesore on my PowerSchool record, but it was also one of the only classes in which hard work didn’t necessarily pay off. I’m the type of person who is known more for intellect rather than physical strength or skill. Although I was relative-ly competent at PE, I never excelled either. Still, as I go through the final weeks of my first semester of IB, I have to admit that I kind of miss it. I miss that feeling that I get after finishing a mile run – tired but exhilarated at the same time;

P.E. in the I.B.By: Mahek Tulsiani, Grade 11

I miss chatting with my friends while throwing a rugby ball around the field; I even miss that biathlon we had to do that one time (well, maybe not that part).

However, at the same time, would I be happy going back to doing PE three times a week, every week? Sadly, I wouldn’t. I appreciate everything that the class has taught me and I have to admit that it wasn’t completely terrible, but it’s certainly not an experience I’d like to repeat. The bottom line is that it’s just not something I like or am good at, and so I for one am glad that the IB doesn’t require a Physical Education component. “I think that it’s good that ISM requires two PE credits,” agrees Alessandra Panares, a junior, “but the thing is that not everyone is good at it or finds it enjoyable. The IB already has such strict course requirements and doesn’t allow much flexibility as it is. If a PE component were to be introduced, then IB Diploma students would be unable to have study halls or participate in other electives like choir or orchestra, which would be a huge blow to ISM’s stellar arts program.”

“I think that the IB’s structure is way too rigid in gen-eral,” says Krystal Kang, another junior. “It doesn’t leave a lot of room for people who excel in multiple fields in the arts, for instance, or for those who really like sports but also really want to take AP US History or non-IB Psychol-ogy or something. I don’t think the problem is that it doesn’t leave room for PE, but that it doesn’t leave room for a lot of things in general.”

The absence or inclusion of PE as a component of the IB Diploma gives us all something to think about. Maybe someday the system will change, but in the mean-time, at least I won’t have to do another biathlon any time soon.

Picture by Minsoo Woo

The Newsflash

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Art CornerThe Newsflash

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POETRY Burnings

by Claudia Zuluaga (ISM alumna)

Flags and books do burn together,like two birds of a feather.

Two birds of hate and despise,do burn before the enemy’s eyes.

The Stars and Stripes,reduced to ash,

and Holy text,left a glowing ember,

Two religions,do fight and clash,

Grieving family,do remember

their dear ones Dead,for nothing more,

than a differing belief,in their God above.

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Larger than life,the beginning of the end,contemplation of the sight

the painter’s last call before the night.

The late sun,The darkening sky –

Nature’s Kodak moment,warranting sighs.

A sight of hazy colors,temporal beauty

captured through the lens –‘tis a statement meant to last!

Rays of valedictories,The final cycle of Helios’ chariot –

Fire turn to ash,The death of a world.

A merging of bodies,Ere returneth the Son!

Heaven and Earthas one.

Bloody red,the death of a god –the sinking of a giant

into the Earth.

Sunsetby Anthony Gokianluy

A soft coo,a flutter of wings –

above the grassy dew,silent and swift as the wind.

She flies on high,feathers light as air –

a shadow, moving amongst shadows,the silent spectator of the night.

The sky is dark, Nyx’s paradise –Her amber eyes pierce the hallows

a hoot… almost a cryfor the hunt to follow.

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White against black, a sightreflecting the luster of the lighther gaze piercing the gloom –

a mirror of the moon.

Athena’s petabout Mother Nature’s heights –all in the dark pupil of her eye,The wise songbird of the night

The Owlby Anthony Gokianluy

46

Fragile Love

I am like a leaf blown in the wind, the trickle of moisture down a plant.I am the flower that withers in your hand after I have given you all of my fragrance.

You are the wind that blows through the earth, the sun that summons the moisture into its palms, the hand that picks off my petals one by one to determine the fate of one lost such as I.

Maantak na Pagibig

Animo’y dahon ako, ipinapadpad ng hangin,Hamog na humahaplos sa halaman.Ako’y bulaklak na nalanlanta sa’yong kamay,Matapos mabigay ko sa‘yo lahat ng aking halimuyak.

Ikaw ang amihan na umiihip sa buong mundo,Ang araw na humahalina sa hamog patungo sa’yong palad,Ang kamay na isa-isang pumipitas sa aking mga talulot,Upang maitadhana ang buhay ng isang nawawala tulad ko.

Three Languages, One Poemby Nicole Calo

K-12 ART

47

Katherine Go, Grade 4, pencil

Lillian Holt, Grade 3. Paper Collage

Devang Bisen, Grade 5, oil pastel

Katherine Go, Grade 4, Pencil Drawing

Lynn Kwon, Grade 6, oil pastel

K-12 ART

47

Stephanie Kubota, Grade 12. Mixed Media

Lynn Kwon, Grade 6. PastelCathy Kelly, Grade 8. Musical Instrument Whistle

Sarah Kim, Grade 8. Functional Lidded Vessle

Natasha Zobel De Ayala, Grade 8. Musical Instrument Whistle

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Bea Elizalde, Grade 6

48

WHAT IS ART?

Paulina Sotto, Grade 12. Mixed Media - Keyboard

Rhea Schmid, Grade 12. Oil Pastel

Martin Narciso, Grade 6, Mixed Media

Kei Matsunami, Grade 11. Sculpture

Cindy Chen, Grade 11, Graphic Design

4949Cindy Chen, Grade 11, Graphic Design

Paulina Sotto, Grade 12. Photography

Bea Elizalde, Grade 6

Isabel Sicat, Grade 12. Pencil Drawing

Christine Cabigao, Grade 12. Dress

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Frances Tanchanco, Grade 11. Photography Rabia Shakeel, Grade 11. Jewelry

50

Zaina Ahmed, Grade 11. Photography

Chris Ong, Grade 11. Photography: An Amsterdam Canal

Ariana Mapua, Grade 9. Photography

51

Chris Ong, Grade 11. Photography: An Amsterdam Canal

Jaqui Pisano, Grade 12. Mixed Media

Chris Ong, Photography

51Sofia Benares, Grade 11. Mixed MediaChristine Cabigao, Grade 12. Photography and Sculpture

Monica Seet, Grade 11. Sculpture

University Parkway, Fort Bonifacio, Global City1634 Taguig City

P.O. Box 1526 MCPO Makati City 1255Trunkline: (632) 840-8400/ Fax (632) 840-8405