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March 2, 2010
Noelle Fujii
Symbolism, tone, style. Some students can’t even comprehend the meaning of the work, which makes enjoying, much less analyzing, the work impossible.
“Every day, it’s a teacher’s job to get students interested,” English teacher Sharon Jones said.
Yet sophomore Melanie Miller is often bored by the assigned reading. She had difficulty understanding Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. She read Art Spiegelman’s Maus because it was a captivating, easy-to-understand graphic novel.
“I was motivated by Maus because it was in the form of a comic book, which set it aside from all of the other books,” Miller said.
Freshman Maureen Madrid believes a good story and climax can motivate students to read. Madrid is unimpressed with a majority of the current academic literary selections, but she continues to read in order to do well on the tests.
“I don’t know what English teachers would really let us read but I guess [I would] like [to read] stories that can relate to a typical teenager’s life,” Madrid said.
Freshman Natalie McCluskey would like to read books containing adventure and life lessons.
“[The books I’m reading in English class] are about the older times, which is harder to relate to and [they also] use older language, which I don’t see the point of learning,” McCluskey said.
On the other hand, senior Michael Jones enjoys the assigned dramatic works. Although he did not enjoy every classic, he liked Lord of the Flies by William Golding and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.
“Often in everyday life you see references or quotes from classic books like the ones assigned in class,” Jones said.
If pop culture is not enough to encourage students to read classics, they will be pleased to learn that more contemporary books are approved annually.
English teacher Stewart Perlman submitted The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini to be reviewed and successfully approved by the district. However, purchasing the novels and developing new curriculum is also an issue.
English teacher Teri Hu submitted eight contemporary books to the district for her AP English Literature class, and six were passed.
“We teach enough literature by dead people, it’s time to read books by people who still have a pulse,” said Hu, in an e-mail letter.
She submitted more dramas, such as “Six Degrees of Separation” by John Guare and “Wit” by Margaret Edson, because she can make copies to distribute to students.
“I don’t know if every student who doesn’t read would be more inclined to read if the books were more relevant, but for SOME, that would make a difference,” Hu said.
Meanwhile, teachers continue to motivate student readers through interactive projects, group work and class discussions.
This article originally appeared in print on March 2, 2010. It has been modified to correct style errors.
Photo Credit: Raphael Ghieuw Sien
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December 19, 2009
Nicole Pham
Students packed the gym for the winter assembly Dec. 18, but the annual event was cut earlier than in previous years. Student activities director Helen Paris released students ten minutes before first period was scheduled to start, explaining the gesture as a type of holiday reward.
The assembly, though shortened, maintained its usual sequence of events. Athletics director Mike Tripp announced the $2,500 check awarded to the football team for their entry in a video contest. Balancing athletics with academics, vice principal Lance Miller acknowledged those with a 3.0 GPA or higher.
After the administrators’ announcements, the festivities began with senior Kimberly Chatterjee singing “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. Sports team members and teachers appeared as Chatterjee sang about each “day”. English teacher Debi Pavlecic (pictured) was among the six teachers acting as the “geese a-laying”. Students played games with seasonal themes, competing within classes. The school band, conducted by senior Christopher Valdez and band teacher Duane Mitchell, played sets of holiday music between the various games.
Photo Credit: Raphael Ghieuw Sien
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November 13, 2009
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November 10, 2009
Edin Cristofi
With fantasy football coming to an end, there have been many shockers and busts. Some surprises have been the emergence of Kyle Orton and Denver Nuggets, Mario Manningham from New York Giants and DeSean Jackson’s from the Philadelphia Eagles. Their consistency with points have impressed fantasy owners. Matt Forte of the Chicago Bears and Clinton Portis from the Washington Redskins may have been some players who have been disappointing. But you can guarantee that those players won’t be able to redeem themselves as the season finishes.
One season is ending, another is beginning. And yes, I am referring to basketball.
Some sleepers that may bolster your fantasy team are:
Roy Hibbert, center for the Indiana Pacers. This is Hibbert’s second year in the NBA and he looks polished, just through the first couple of weeks of the season. Hibbert is making a big impact coming off the bench, and if he continues to play this way, you can guarantee that he will start before mid-season.
Jason Thompson, power forward for the Sacramento Kings is another second-year player that you might consider drafting. Unlike Hibbert, Thompson has been a starting power forward ever since last season, so you can expect a more reliable performances on a night-to-night basis. Thompson probably was not someone you would have picked up last year because of the lack of consistency. However, with last season under his belt, you can bet stability will be there this season.
People you shouldn’t expect much from this year are:
Caron Butler, a small forward for the Washington Wizards. With “Agent Zero” a.k.a. Gilbert Arenas back and with the new additions of Mike Miller and Randy Foye in the off season, I don’t expect Caron to get as much playing time.
Keyon Martin, a power forward for the Denver Nuggets. Don’t anticipate Kenyon to be in the spotlight with the emergence of “Birdman,” otherwise known as Chris Andersen. In the 2008-2009 playoffs, Andersen did all the dirty work in the paint, creating havoc for opposing offenses. Both players are playing split minutes even though Kenyon starts every game.
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October 16, 2009
Chase Glenister
Fremont police department officials called a meeting with the FUSD and all secondary principals in the district, including Principal Linda Fernandez. The FPD wants to have the schools be stricter about the hat policy, to make it easier to distinguish between students and gang members.
“It is effective on all campuses in the district, not just ours. In addition, they chose hats because they wanted to be fair about it. Not everyone wears tank-tops or low-cut Dickies. Everyone wears hats,” Vice Principal Lance Miller said.
As a result of the new hat policy, people can buy a Husky Hat for $20 at the student center. All money will go to the student store account.
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