BERKELEY HIGH
PUBLISHED BY AND FOR THE STUDENTS OF BERKELEY HIGH SCHOOL
www.berkeleyhighjacket.com • friday, May 5, 2023
no. 15
AAPI STUDENT SUBMISSIONS ON PAGE 9
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Students initiate Korean class at BHS BY AVA RAMSDALE staff writer
Berkeley High School student Yiru Kim first became aware of a possible Korean language class in early February, when the School Director at Oakland Korean School was informing her of a need to implement Korean language classes in schools across the Bay Area. Kim suggested starting a Korean class at BHS, as the school does not have a Korean program in place and has a habit of supporting efforts to enhance students’ language and cultural skills. Kim, who is also the president of the BHS Korean Culture Club, said “It’s our goal to provide students with the opportunity to begin a journey of Korean education, overall spreading the interest
and love for Korean culture, language, and more.” Wan Hee Kang, Director of the Korean Consulate Education Center, is working in tandem with Kim and staff members such as Principal Juan Raygoza to implement the Korean class at BHS. Kang hopes to create an opportunity for students to learn a new language and also learn about Korean culture. According to Kang, a group of BHS students including Kim reached out to her, hoping to establish a Korean language class within BHS. Kang reached out to Raygoza, in hopes that they could work in tandem to set up a program. “The process of developing a new class is a lot of work and can also take time,” Raygoza said. He explained that next year he will work with other members PAGE 11
Students at the CCC begin college applications, many of which include letters of reccomendation as a crucial part of the application process.
NOLAN WHITEHILL
INVESTIGATIVE
Letters of rec process overloads teachers BY JASPER LOVVORNBLACK staff writer
“Out of all the 50 letters of recommendation that I wrote, I was happy to write all 50, and I think that each student deserved a great letter of recommendation,” said Erin Smith, a Berkeley High School Biology and Integrated Science teacher, “(but) at the same time it’s a
ton of extra work that I can’t do during school.” For many BHS junior and senior teachers, writing letters of recommendation for students is a lengthy process. It’s also one that some students rely heavily on to get into colleges. But for different teachers, writing a letter can range from between 20 minutes to an hour. Some teachers require more student participation than others, in the form
of writing assignments to teachers that describe their own experiences in classes. “I integrate aspects of a student’s senior profile, indepth questions I have them answer in writing and looking at past assignments they’ve submitted, particularly final projects. Sometimes I speak with their present teachers for updated input,” Academic Choice (AC) history teacher Angela Coppola wrote in an email.
Letters of recommendation, in some cases, are more important to college admissions than other factors, like a student’s GPA or standardized test scores. Instead of numerical values to represent a student’s capabilities, a teacher is able to convey through words what a student’s strengths are, “in ways that are so much richer,” according to Masha Albrecht, a math teacher at BHS. PAGE 8
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Four classic AAPI films that are far too overlooked
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Asian American cinema has flourished recently, but many of these classic films are now overlooked. PAGE 12
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