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A R T Viewpoint X E
Mountain View High School 2135 Mountain View Road Stafford, VA 22556 @mvtheviewpoint
STUDENT NEWS Magazine MVHS VOLUME 10 ISSUE 2 December 2015
Larry Crosswell and Sarah Seigh perform as puppets for a skit in the improv show.
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The Viewpoint OCTOBER | NOVEMBER 2015 VOLUME X EXTRA ISSUE
OUR GENERATION I started to think about what big things were happening in the news recently. There was a terrorist attack in Paris, a shooting at a Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs, and of course, presidential candidates publically bashing each other. This is what is most discussed on the news. I’m tired of hearing of extreme acts of hate and violence. I’m sick of feeling like this generation will be the one who ends us all. Obesity and divorce rates are rising, Caitlyn Jenner is the awarded Woman of the Year, national debt is at an all-time high, and if you aren’t in constant fear of our world being diminished by nuclear weapons, as the news suggests, you probably should be. You have to look long and hard to find information on something positive happening in our world, something good that this generation is doing. I googled “Great Accomplishments of 2015.” Here is what I got: “Does Hilary have any accomplishments?” “Kim Kardashian turned 35! Her 10 biggest accomplishments so far!” Oh, wow. In case you’re wondering, her “perfect duck face” and contouring were at the top of this list. Is this it? Are these the best moments of this year? The media is obsessed with drama. Nobody wants to
hear about how the 3D printer is making life-saving human organs, or the oldest Australian man who knits sweaters for injured penguins. I’m not trying to discredit the news, or pretend that terrorist attacks aren’t important. I feel as if the world is becoming such a negative place, this is because everyone focuses on the bad things that happen. As part of the media I make it my goal to be diverse and honest. I don’t agree with covering stories just to get views or “likes.” Every journalist wants to make people feel something. Let’s all remember to recognize the good things that happen, not categorize a whole generation, year, or group of people based on a few individuals. I frequently wonder in 50 years how people will describe our generation. I hope we are remembered as the generation who legalized gay marriage, developed life-changing technology and advanced equality. I give all of you a challenge; try to find the good.
Editorial Board
Hailey Bullis Cory Haley Sarah Yakulis Social Media Editor
Krissy Poff
Copy Editors
Leah Garza Reagan King Adviser
Trisha Strahl
The Viewpoint is a cross-section of the news and opinions of the student body of Mountain View High School. It is a forum of expression published by aPrintis. Letters to the editorial board are welcome and should be submitted to rooms 303 or 311.
Staff Writers
Jenny Bullers, Lily Cowper, Paige Doerfler, Michael Goffus, Zane Gobie, Alex Harrington, Morgan Ocetnick, Reagan King, Austin Venable Front Cover Photo: Cory Haley
2014, 2015 Virginia High School League State Championship First Place Award Winner 2013, 2014, 2015 Free Lance-Star Best Over All Newspaper 2011 Columbia Scholastic Press Association Gold Medalist 2011, 2010 and 2009 Virginia High School League First Place Award Winner
Editoral board
Mountain View High School 2135 Mountain View Rd. Stafford, VA 22556
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Halo 5: Guardians An overview of Halo 5: Guardian’s campaign and multiplayer by Zane Gobie
Campaign
While there were many who liked the game’s story, a majority of the fan base was displeased. Aside from a handful of exciting cut scenes, and an interesting couple of missions featuring the Arbiter, the campaign was lacking in both story and level design. A majority of the levels were simply a compilation of big, open areas crammed full with enemies. The two missions that were designed nicely were Sanghelios and the Forerunner planet “Genesis.” They were the only levels that felt like they had any heart put into their creation. As far as the story goes, it was by far the shortest out of any of the other games. Which is not a bad thing, but only if it is done right. 343 Industries’ biggest difficulty on top of having a short and rushed story, was dealing with making a human dominate campaign, which focuses more on new characters and the strong impact of how organized humanity has become. Instead of the humanity on the brink of extinction scrambling for cover and fighting for survival, it is near the end of humanity’s comeback. Many are upset that The Master Chief, for the amount of missions you actually get to play as him, doesn’t really do much. While Chief is a big component in the story, it is the team of the Spartan IVs (Fireteam Osiris) that does all of the heavy lifting. 343 is putting their own spin on the Halo games, which is a good thing, but fans of any form of entertainment do not favor change. 343 is attempting to add a deeper plot to the games, including their own individual significance, from which the games could
definitely benefit. This, as well as the atmosphere of the game, really changes Halo from what it was originally. In the beginning, you were The Master Chief. The stoic, legendary hero who nearly single-handedly defended the humanity against the ultimate threat, The Covenant. You played as the unstoppable soldier, the king of the battlefield. The man who was not even thought to be human, but a demon. It was just Chief and his AI companion Cortana paving their way through destroyed and abandoned human settlements, and Covenant forces, as well as the infamous Halo rings. It was the insanity of war that you plunged yourself into in order to save all of humanity, the beaten down species it was. But now it’s different. The Covenant are all but beaten down and forgotten. The biggest posing threat is now the Promethians, who are even more technologically advanced than The Covenant. With a new generation of enemies, also comes a new generation of allies. The Spartan IVs are now humanity’s go-to weapon. While The Chief and the other Spartan IIs have not been forgotten. Everyone’s focus is on the newer Spartans. Chief is starting to show cracks in his armor due to the death of Cortana in Halo 4, and now seeks her out in hopes of seeing her again. This, as well as his connection with his old Blue Team, humanizes the Chief to a major level. Fans are reacting negatively to watching the once famed ultimate soldier, being weakened to the point where he can no longer live up to his former title. This title may seem better
looking back on it after playing the next installment, but as a stand alone game, it did not hold its own as a story. We just have to hope that Halo 6 will be able to complete the story that Halo 5 started.
Multiplayer
The characters in the stories of the Halo games are beloved by all fans, but it was Halo’s innovative game mechanics and multi-player that influenced modern gaming and made it the legend that it is. Many were indeed a little disappointed with Halo 5’s story, but fans are raving about the new multiplayer. In the beginning of Halo, the most interesting thing you could do was probably shoot somebody with a rocket launcher while you were jumping off a building. Now you can dive out of the air and pound into enemies, or disintegrate somebody with a Promethian weapon, or charge into a base filled with enemy players and AI that fight until the last man is standing. You can find any familiar gametype from past games, but the one that is getting the most attention is the new game-type “Warzone”. This game mode brings a whole new multiplayer formula. Spawn in a map and jump out of a pelican with your whole team by your side, with a pistol in your hand and an assault rifle on your back, you look around, there are Promethians everywhere. You stand with your team and eliminate all enemies from the base and take it for your own team. You cleared the base, but the fight is only beginning, you still have another enemy to worry about, the opposing player team.
Let the battle begin. You scramble to regroup with your team to make an effective offense. You look around for a vehicle or another weapon for you to use, but there isn’t anything to be seen. Why is that? Well, Halo 5 uses a new system of REQ packs. A REQ pack is a compilation of cards that are redeemable for a single weapon, vehicle, or armor upgrade. You earn cards to add to your pack by completing games. So you go to the designated “REQ Station” in your base. You head out with a battle rifle and a shotgun while riding on a mongoose. The head-to-head fight to take control of the other bases before your enemies can are to allocate enough points to win. You fight back and forth with your team while also eliminating separate forces of Promethian and Covenant groups, and have almost beaten down the enemy. You have taken every base and have pushed the enemy back to their base. This is it, your chance to end the fight. You team up with all your friends and other comrades in front of the enemies spawn and prepare to destroy the core hidden in their base. You fight and struggle for many minutes to take hold of the base, but they are too strong. When out of nowhere, a comrade who saved their card, redeems a Scorpion tank and bombards the base and destroys the core. You are extracted and leave the map. This game-type is better than any big team battle game-type Halo has ever had. A game you can play for hours and it will still be fun. 343 did a great job on the multi-player and everybody else is in love with the game even if the story upset them.
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A view of the reviews Mountain View presents Frankenstein
Frankenstein is what a dear friend of mine would call “ a slow burn.” The necessary expository information is revealed in Act 1, leaving the audience to form opinions about how each character reacts to Frankenstein’s creation. Act 2 delivers the action and refreshingly new ideas about how Dr. Frankenstein’s loved ones would really react to the monster’s actions. Although the long conversations can leave you disengaged at times, most of the characters make you feel their emotions through their acting, such as when their family member is crushed to death or when they feel empathy for the monster that did it. The cast did an overall fantastic job with stand-outs, such as lead Sam Fulton (Dr. Frankenstein) and Sam Butler (Igor) and minor mishaps, including monotonous delivery and some stuttering by Justin Schneider (Henry). 4
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by Leah Garza and Cory Haley
Frankenstein tackles modern societal ideas about the actual importance of physical beauty and the terrifying results of lack of communication. Frankenstein isn’t an action-packed horror with a scare behind every turn. It’s a slow burning thriller that makes you wonder how it will play out. Although this can be tedious at times with long exposition conversations and almost a minute of Elizabeth dancing by herself singing wedding music, the show as a whole is worth paying $6-$8 to see. Overall, the play was a success and it continues to have an increasingly resounding impact upon each reflection. If you’re willing to sit through a slow Act I to get tension building and a back story, then Mountain View’s presentation of Frankenstein is highly recommended.
Bring Your Own Technology has been used since 2013. It has affected the Stafford County’s student population greatly, who before, were not allowed to have their phones out at any time. At the beginning of this school year, the school board took a vote on whether to keep BYOT in place, or go back to the old policies. It was resolved with a 4-3 vote allowing the BYOT policy to be put onto a second trial run. It is worth noting that there are two policies put in place that allow students to bring technology to school. There is the BYOD, which allows students to bring devices such as a computer or an iPad. On the othe hand, the cell phone policies is the policy that directly affects student cell phone usage during school, and while students can’t text or make phone calls during class, they are allowed to have them on their person and use them for educational purposes, and if a teacher allows, personal use. The rules of the cell phone policy are generally as followed: don’t take out your phone unless a teacher permits it to be out, don’t use your phone for personal reasons including social media, and if a teacher allows personal use, be responsible. “Last year, we got a pilot that says, ‘hey you can have it out all the time, but not during class unless you are specifically allowed to do it.’ So some teachers, there was a survey, didn’t like that for various reasons which I listed in the class assembly, and the principals lobbied to get a second year pilot for the cell phone policies,” said James Stemple, Mountain View High School’s principal. Stemple believes that while students have been caught with their phones out, that the student population ultimately does a fairly good job of staying off their phones given the learning time. However, the policy was placed onto another trial run and will be reviewed come the next year once again. The reason that the policy has not yet been made final is because there have been many complaints of students being on their cell phones and using their technology for reasons other than strictly educational. Susan Steska, a French teacher at Mountain View said, “It’s nice to have the technology available, but at the same time, I feel like I spend more time dealing with the kids that are not doing their classwork and getting distracted, than I do using them in class.” Last school year Mountain View students started using an app called Yik Yak, in which students made harmful remarks about fellow students and even the administration. The app, which keeps users anonymous, caused quite a disruption and ultimately had to be banned. The cell phone policy can be a powerful tool in education when used properly, but whether it will continue for years to come is up to the students.
Losing the phones Bring your own technology (BYOT) has been an active part of the Mountain View student population’s every day life, however, due to complaints it could be taken away. by Hailey Bullis Art by: Sidney Morgan
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Teaching at its finest Theresa Gaddy is an honors 10th grade and IB English teacher at Mountain View High School. You will always find her with a smile and if you have her as your teacher, you will learn something new every day. by Emilee Holmquist The Viewpoint: When did you know you wanted to be a teacher, and why? Theresa Gaddy: Well, when I was little I liked playing school with my younger brothers, and sometimes I would even set my little stuffed animals up and call role, and I would leave one of the stuffed animals behind so that I would have an absent student. When I was twelve years old all I wanted for my birthday was a chalkboard, and I liked playing school as a kid but that doesn’t mean that I automatically said I was going to be a teacher. When I originally was in college, I thought I wanted to be a criminologist and study criminals. I love the criminology courses because that was more like the psychology of everything, and then criminal justice courses talk about the hierarchy of the justice system, and I was so bored. The cool thing about the major that I had was, I’m English and theatre education, so I liked that because it allowed me to be an English teacher, or I could be a theatre teacher, or I could teach public speaking. I could do middle school, or I could do high school, so it’s just a lot of flexibility for me. VP: Do you have any regrets about becoming a teacher? TG: The only regret I have is that I wish I was in a profession that made more money. You don’t really notice it when you’re younger, you know when your kids are little and your bills aren’t as substantial, but now that I have kids that are going into college, I wish I had one of those jobs like everybody else in this area who’s making $120,00 a year. Another thing is when you get to be my age, other people who are in their 40s like me are getting bonuses, and they’re climbing this ladder in terms of their job, and I have been in the same position for 20 years. That’s pretty much my only regret. Despite that, I love my job. EH: What characteristics does it take to make a great teacher? TG: I think you have to be somebody who is able to tell what your students need, and you’re able to come up with a good plan that gives them a shot at getting what they need. I think that you have to be somebody who is very flexible, and it’s not all about me, it’s more about them, you know? That can come in a million different packages, but the most important thing is to be able to get the students what they need so that they can move forward and be independent of you as a teacher.
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Theresa Gaddy has a love for reading that is never ending. If there is one thing she loves, it is books. VP: What is the hardest part of being a teacher today? TG: Probably having enough time to do everything you need to do: between planning everything that you want to do, then making whatever copies or getting all the resources situated so that way each block can go smoothly then figuring out how to be able to give students all the feedback that they need so they can keep progressing. It takes a lot of time to get organized, so you have to be really smart about the way you do things otherwise its really easy to get overloaded with stuff. VP: If you could change one thing about the teaching department, what would it be and why? TG: I would make it so that there were no such thing as grade levels. High schools a little bit different, because if you’re more advanced in math, you can take a more advanced math class and you might have to be in a class with juniors and seniors. I think that even earlier on there are a lot of students who are really far advanced in a lot of different things and they’re held back by the fact that they have to be put in 4th grade, for example. I wouldn’t necessarily put an eight-year-old and an eighteen-year-old in the same class just because they can do the same math, so there’s obviously logistics involved, but I feel like the structure for educational system is just kind of archaic, and it keeps students from being able to progress. SOL tests, for example. Maybe you’re a sixth grader who can pass the SOL writing test in sixth grade and be done with it and move onto other things instead of sitting in a room where you’re having to prepare for an SOL. There are just lots of things that just slow people down.
VP: If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring teacher, what would it be? TG: I would say to figure out what it is that you know that you can do, what you can provide for the students. That’s pretty much like advice that you’d give to anybody in life, is to figure out what your passion is, and help nurture other students’ passions. I could think of like a million little pieces of advice as situations presented themselves, figure out what can you do to nurture in them and make it so that they’re the ones driving the train. VP: What makes being a teacher worthwhile? TG: I would say just knowing that you get to spend time with people who find value in what you do. The students, depending on what it is, see the immediate benefit in whatever skill they’ve just acquired, or whatever progress that they’ve made. Being around students who really want to improve and really want to do well, and knowing that you played a role in helping them get there and better their ability to function in society, it’s a good feeling. It’s kind of like being a doctor, you know? You help people who aren’t feeling well or are sick, and you figure out what to do to help them. It’s kind of the same type of situation…the students have needs, the teachers give them what they need, and then they move forward and they’re happier. VP: What is one thing you look forward to coming to school to everyday? TG: It’s a number of different things; it can be something as simple as spending time organizing things. There are various phases throughout my day. I get here at six in the morning, and a lot of times I’ll grade assignments. I enjoy the busy moments of the day just as much as I enjoy the moments where the students are all over the room and we’re going about the day. I would say I look forward to the variety, and the autonomy, how I’m able to do whatever I see fit within the perimeters of what needs to get done. It’s really nice to be able to be the one who makes those types of decisions.