4 EDITORIAL
THE BULL’S EYE
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Are You Down for Year-Round? Attending a high school following a traditional system, DBHS students wonder whether a year-long schooling system is a better choice. BY YUSHENG XIA ASST. EDITORIAL EDITOR
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Numerous studies have shown a steady decline in the American high school education for the categories of science, math, and reading in recent decades. The news of American students’ falling behind in global standards has led various groups from private organizations to lawmakers to debate on a solution throughout the years. To really improve students’ education, however, it is high time for the topic of year-round schools to take center stage. Before crying out in exasperation at the thought of staying in school all year long, students should realize that the overall number of attendance days does not change. Year-round schooling gives students the same 180 days of education rearranged into smaller chunks that last for the whole year. The problem with the regular school schedule is that much of the information students learn is
BY EMILY WONG ASST. A&E EDITOR
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Cartoon by GLORIA KIM
FOLLOW UPS SANDY HOOK REENACTMENT Australian resident Ryan Jake Lambourn recently created a computer game, “The Slaying of Sandy Hook Elementary,” based on the shooting that occurred last year. He claims that the game is a way to advocate gun control. Lambourn was also the creator of “VTech Rampage,” a reenactment of the Virginia Tech shooting in April 2007.
When you look out at the diligent students attending Diamond Bar High School, you will probably notice a consistent pattern in their appearance: the dazed, I’m-completely-burnedout look. To relieve students from the side effects of the rigors of school, the wonderful threemonth long respite we call summer break swoops in. Despite summer vacation’s great necessity for the health of students, however, several states have eradicated this rest period by establishing yearround schools. Year-round schooling, as the name indicates, is a system in which school days are evenly spread out through the year. Schedules may be divided into a cycle varying from six to nine weeks of school, with one to two week breaks. Though proponents may say attending school year round provides multiple
lost over the long summer break. Teachers often have to review old material at the beginning of a new school year, spending valuable time that could instead be used to move kids forward. Unlike regular schools, yearround schools allow kids to maintain their knowledge without the doubt of losing much of it over a long respite. Dividing the school schedule up with many short breaks can help relieve the long stressful task of high school cramming, as well as allow students of lower grade levels to focus on academics throughout the entire year. With year-round schooling, school districts would have the option of following the 45/15 schedule, in which students attend 45 days of school and then take 15 days off. These frequent breaks allow students time to process the information learned and help them maintain a more balanced schedule. The system of year-round schooling also gives schools the option of adopting a multi-track system. This would divide the total body of students into four groups,
or “tracks,” and have three of them active for a period of time while the fourth is on break. A multitrack system would allow schools to increase their normal student capacity by over 30 percent, which would greatly benefit cities with fast-growing populations. Class sizes could then be reduced, allowing individual students to receive more help from teachers than they would have in larger classroom settings. Besides, the main reason the current school schedule was established in the first place was because children were needed at home during harvesting seasons in the summer. Times have changed immensely since then, and most American families live in urbanized areas instead of on farms. Our country needs to realize that the world is ever changing, and education, the most important part of society, needs to evolve with it. By switching to year-round schooling, America would be solving many problems with its education system and bring upon a better, more efficient way of teaching its future generations.
advantages, such as preventing “summer learning loss,” there are even greater drawbacks to this educational system. First, the cost to maintain a year-round school is hefty, almost 10 percent higher than that of the normal system. In Tempe, Arizona, a high school reported an increase of $157,000 in maintenance costs after it switched from traditional schooling to yearround schooling. In addition, an exorbitant amount of money may also be lost if students fail to abide by the scheduling. This occurred in San Diego, when 27 yearround elementary schools saw an increase in truancy between July and September, a period in which traditional schools have a long summer vacation, resulting in a loss of $1.4 million. All in all, many American schools already struggling financially will lack the additional funds necessary to maintain year-round classes. Another hassle of year-round schooling is the option of a multitracking system, which is the separation of the student body into four divisions: three attend
school while one is on vacation. Though this can increase student enrollment by 25 percent because one group can fill in the spot of the other on break, families with siblings on different rotations will struggle to find time to go on trips or spend time together. Finally, the biggest argument against year-round schooling is that few schools have stuck with it. In fact, since 1980, 95 percent of the schools that changed to year-round schooling ultimately returned to the traditional scheduling. Although there is an inevitable academic forgetfulness in the first few weeks after summer vacation, students eventually accustom themselves to the new school year. Some courses also assign summer homework to make the transition into classes easier. Teenagers deserve a long break from our textbooks to devote time to interests outside of school. Even though the week-long winter and spring breaks provide a temporary relief, there is nothing quite as satisfying as leaving school in late May knowing we will not have to come back until August.
PG-13 Movies Giving Violence Too Big of a Shot Violence in PG-13 movies has been steadily increasing each year and could have many negative effects on America’s younger generation. BY SASHA RIVERA CONTRIBUTING WRITER
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magine you are going to see that new action movie with your kid brother or sister. The movie is rated PG-13, and you both are so excited to finally watch a film together. But as the movie gets going, you realize that it is filled with nothing but blood, guns, and explosions, and your little sibling looks a bit overwhelmed. The level of violence resembles that of the R-rated film your parents went to see. Is it really okay for your sibling to be watching this, even though it’s PG-13? It turns out that recent PG-13 films actually contain more violence than R-rated movies. A 2013 news report in the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, which was in response to the Sandy Hook shooting, showed that the gunplay has tripled in the PG-13 rating since 1985, while violence in R-rated movies declined. According to the report’s co-author, “The MPAA website clearly says that R-
rated films contain more violence. But PG-13 films now contain significantly more violence than R-rated films.” The Motion Picture Assn. of America, MPAA, did not comment on this, however. Six health organizations, including American Medical Association, support the finding that being exposed to violent media increases aggression, especially in kids. This goes hand in hand with “the weapons effect,” or the well-researched theory that seeing weapons escalates hostile behavior. In movies, teens and children not only witness the weapons effect, but also see characters using the guns. The Pediatrics report said, “The presence of guns in films also provides youth with scripts on how to use guns. In addition, children no longer need to go to movie theaters to see films; they are readily available on the Internet or cable. Thus, children much younger than 13 years can easily view films that contain ample gun violence.” In other words, these vicious films are actually teaching teens and kids how to use various weapons. After all, not only has violence in
PG-13 movies risen in recent years, but so have school shootings. Some may argue that violence has always been around in American movies and does not affect aggressive behavior in kids. According to k12academics.com, from the 1930s-1970s there were only 51 school-related shootings, most of which were between adults or were suicides. But, from the 1980s-2010s, during which the PG-13 rating was established and the Pediatrics study showed that violence was increasing, there were a whopping 120. This time, the majority of the shootings were by teens and kids 18 and under. Therefore, as the movies get more violent, so do the younger viewers. On a more personal level, I think extremely violent films with a profuse amount of guns and explosions can scare and slightly traumatize younger audiences as well. For instance, I was 11 years-old when I first saw “The Dark Knight” with my parents. If you have seen the movie, you know that gunplay and bombs are a significant part of the movie. I came out of the theater overwhelmed and wide-eyed at the
overflowing violence, even though it was a good movie. That night, I could still hear the explosions in my dreams, and it wasn’t a pleasant experience. Overall, the MPAA should be more careful with rating PG-13 movies, especially since studies have shown that they contain more violence than R-rated films.
The amount of violence and gunplay can have a negative effect on youth by increasing aggression, a possible contributor to the increase in school shootings. So before you take a younger sibling to see a possibly-violent PG-13 movie, take a look at some of the movie reviews to make sure it isn’t overly intense.
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