The Highlander
October 2013, Vol V Issue II
www.scotscoop.com
What’s inside
Closed campus frustration By Gabriela d’Souza Scotcenter Editor-In-Chief
Screamin’ Scots in full school spirit page 16
Students need to be wary
Photo by Veronika Dvorakova
Are you addicted to your cellphone? page 13
Carlmont’s cultural diversity explored page 8-9
By Veronika Dvorakova Art Director
“He won’t hurt me,” thought the female Carlmont senior, just like the victimized girls in scary movies do. Her new “friend’s” bedroom reeked of marijuana as the other two people in the room climbed to the top bunk to hook up. She was left alone with the boy who lived there. Looking back on that night, she said: “He kept trying to make moves on me, and I kept pushing him away. The other two were too high to notice my struggle.”
“When he pinned me down on the lower bunk, I realized I shouldn’t be here with him. I wanted to scream but all I let out was a little squeak; I was so scared,” she said. She fought against his weight on top of her as he fought against her zipper. “He tried making out with me and to [get into my pants], but I pushed him off,” said the student. “I told [the other boy in the room] that I need to talk to him and ran outside. He never followed me out, and so I just waited in the parking lot alone, in the dark, crying. Finally, my aunt came to pick me up.”
There are many others who have experienced close calls because of misjudgments regarding their safety. Many such situations can be prevented. Not all victims are girls; anyone can be attacked anywhere. Brent Staples, an author and editorial writer for the New York Times, takes precautions when in public. Describing himself as a “youngish black man--a broad six feet two inches with a beard and billowing hair” in his essay “Black Men and Public Space,” he explains how being perceived as a threat by others puts him at risk. Staples ~Continued on pg. 14~
The race for teacher recommendation letters By Sabrina Leung Editorial Director
Like most juniors towards the end of the 2012-2013 school year, Jeff Wagenseller had two things on his mind: college applications and teacher recommendation letters. He began to panic. His junior English teacher was only willing to write a set amount of letters and he didn’t think he had a shot because he wasn’t the top of the class. He was afraid his senior teachers had a negative impression on him. Some of his past teachers were not capable of writing him a strong letter to help him gain admission to the competitive colleges of his choice. “I just did not do really well my junior year. Putting forth effort and participating helps compensate grades at times, but I did not go out of my way to participate, either, for the most part last year. After much hesitation, I decided to ask one of my senior teachers,” said Wagenseller. The search for strong recommendation letters from teachers have caused some seniors to panic this year because some teachers have
refused to write them. “I don’t write recommendation letters for seniors not because I don’t want to, but because I rather spend my time helping them with their college applications,” said AP English Literature and Composition Joseph Hill during a lecture. He later explained that it would be more beneficial for him to provide students with college essay tips rather than writing a mediocre letter for them after only knowing them for several months. Other teachers have set a limit on the maximum of letters they will write. “I already have to write 15 letters this year, which is way too many. I usually tell myself that I will not go over 20 letters, unless there is a special circumstance,” said AP and AS Chemistry teacher Felix Guzman. However, others have found themselves carrying the burden of writing over 20 letters this year. Math and AVID teacher Andrew Ramroth said that he has to write between 25 and 30 letters for his students this year. “I don’t set a limit on how many I write. I really should, but
Photo by Ryan Freeman
the kids who ask me generally are the ones whom I have a strong relationship with and that I would be happy to write for,” said Ramroth. Most private colleges require a guidance counselor recommendation letter, along with one to three letters from core subject teachers. Students who plan to major in Math or Science- related subjects are often required to have at least one Math and Science teacher recommendation letter. As courses, grades, standardized tests and the college essay are crucial components of most college admissions decisions, students thus tend to overlook a potential source of powerful testimonials to their
stories: letters of recommendation from counselors, teachers, coaches, and mentors. At smaller to midsize competitive colleges and universities, which have more wherewithal to conduct a thorough/holistic review of applicants, the recommendations matter more. “The Ivy Leagues have acceptance rates of less than 10 percent, and almost all the students applying have high test scores and grades. I need to make sure I get good letters so I increase my chances of getting into the schools of my choice,” said senior Alexandria Liu. According to a New York Times ~Continued on pg. 14~
In Sept. 1998, Carlmont closed its gates during lunch, and the school officially became a closed campus. “In order to keep our students in a supervised, safe, and orderly environment, the Board of Trustees establishes a ‘closed campus’ at all district high schools effective September, 1998. Once students arrive at school, they must remain on campus until the end of the school day unless they have brought written authorization from their parents/guardians and received permission from school authorities to leave for a specific purpose,” states article BP 5112.5 of the Sequoia Union High School District Policies database. This decision caused uproar among the students who soon began to sneak off campus during school hours. “People leave campus all the time,” said senior Jeanette Chow, “usually to get food, but reasons vary.” The main objection to open campuses is safety, a top priority of education officials who are liable for students during school hours. “There are fewer problems and potential issues with students [on a closed campus],” said Instructional Vice Principal Ralph Crame. Many Carlmont students feel strongly about wanting to leave school for part of a day, which explains why some of the most coveted days of the year are minimum days. “It would be nice to have an open campus,” said senior Jeanette Chow, “but it’s understandable that we don’t, a lot of kids would not come back to school after lunch if we did.” A recent study by Shirlee Lichtman, of the Department of Economics at Stanford University, found that “in conditionally open campuses, [privileges based] on student grades/test scores or behavior, produce a positive effect on student tests outcomes, when compared to a closed campus policy regime.” A conditionally open campus would entitle those students who meet specific requirements, whether it be a grade point average or grade level, would be allowed to leave campus during lunch while other students would not. “I think [a conditionally open campus] isn’t a bad idea, it’s just logistics and how it would be enforced and keeping it fair and consistent that would be my concern,” said Crame. The study also found that dropout rates decrease when high ~Continued on pg. 14~