The Index Eutαxia Swzein Dokei
Volume LXXIV, No. 4
December 2012
Haverford, Pennsylvania
Writing Quality at Haverford: Is it on Par?
Will Tackett ’14 discusses how Haverford writers stack up against those from other schools amidst a flurry of perceived writing issues that have come up recently. Will Tackett ’14
Haverford is a college preparatory school. Its main academic focus is to ensure that its students are ready for the rigors of the college experience. One key part of college academic work is writing, an area in which professors demand a lot from their students. To prepare students for these high expectations, Haverford has spent a good portion of the curriculum on the development of adept writers. However, recent instances in which certain classes, especially among the Fifth Form, have received a select few A’s on writing assignments call into question the quality of Haverford students’ writing. Are Haverford student’s writing abilities not of the caliber they are expected to be, or are these recent assignments nothing to be concerned about? One thing that can be said with relative certainty is that Haverford graduates are not struggling in college; level of preparation, even for the high-tier colleges to which Haverford students aspire to matriculate, is not concerning. Recent Haverford graduate Deepak Bhaghat ‘12 states that writing skills he learned at Haverford such as “structure
and fleshing out your thoughts” really help in college, despite the more long-term nature of college writing when compared to high school writing. In addition to college preparation, Haverford also compares well with similar schools in terms of writing. English teacher Ms. Rebecca Smedley notes, “I have as many beautiful and talented writers here at Haverford as I had at Baldwin...most Haverford kids want to do well and care.” The motivation to do well is a defining quality of many Haverford students and goes a long way to improving overall quality of writing. If Haverford writers are faring well in college and performing just as well as their fellow high-schoolers, why the recent spate of seemingly less than satisfactory essay grades? One reason could be that students are not able to bridge the gap between summary and analysis. History teacher Ms. Hannah Turlish says that, for many students, “the transition from a report to analysis is a huge jump that can be really confusing.” Most analytical essays require a thesis that can be argued with and debated. Students should identify the significance of the
Index Staff Ms. Turlish grading her Fifth Form US History students’ papers. quotation or passage analysis a boy can produce in class orally. being analyzed. However, there is a little bit of a disconnect In their writing, however, students tend to when students go to write papers.” In writing, take the safe route and give what is mostly a more so than in class, students will tend to give summary, which requires less thinking. a summary of the text instead of analyzing it. That is not to say that Haverford students are incapable of thinking. Ms. Smedley states, Continued on Page 5 “Students know how to read critically...I am generally impressed by the level of
Getting the Credit: How Arts Factor In at Haverford Manav Khandelwal ’15 examines the current Arts credit system and gauges its effectivness. Manav Khandelwal ’15
option is usually most suitable for students who don’t take two languages, because they In the flurry of activities that is your have an opening in their schedule during schoolwork and extra-curriculars, the process both their Third Form and Fourth Form year. of getting an arts credit, or what the Haverford As mentioned, you can either take one yearStudent Handbook calls the “Fine Arts long course or two semester courses. The Requirement,” might be safely put on the back year-long courses include the following: burner. Unfortunately, it is an issue that must 2-D Art Foundation, 2-D Art Portfolio*, 2-D be addressed during your career as a Haverford Senior Thesis*, 3-D Art Foundation, 3-D Art student, because to graduate and earn your Portfolio*, Ceramic Arts, Music I, Survey high school diploma from Haverford, you must of Western Music, Harmony, Theatre I, and complete this requirement. Theatre II. The semester courses include: So, how can you do this? According to the 2-D Art Principles of Design, 3-D Art Course Catalog, there are four ways to earn Design, Photography, Video and Animation, your arts credit: 1 year-long or two semesterWoodworking Arts, Film Studies, and long course(s) in an arts class, participation Theatre III*. All honors art courses require in a performance ensemble for one year, a prerequisite, usually completion of the participation in three drama productions, or previous course with at least an A- grade. three full seasons of stage crew. “Participation in a performance ensemble” The last one is pretty self-explanatory, includes one year in the Glee Club, String but you might want to know more about the Ensemble, or Jazz Band. Jazz Band meets first three. We’ll start with the class: this once a week after school for two hours, string ensemble meets a couple times per week, and Glee Club meets three times per week for 30 minutes before school. Unlike the completion of a course as a requirement is at the leader’s discretion whether you deserve an arts credit based on attendance. The three plays can be either spring or fall, fall being the dramatic play and spring being the musical, and they do not have to be consecutive. You can even do one per year for three years and earn the credit. For example, a combination of last year’s musical Getting an arts credit through the normal channels. Index Staff
Also inside this Issue...
Read about the student body’s reaction to the recent 2012 Presidential Election on Pages 12 and 13. Writers include Brendan Burns ‘15 and Stewart Denious ‘13.
Third Former Cameron Cummins getting his arts credit with 2-D art.
(Hairspray), this year’s drama (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest), and this year’s musical (Pippin) would be satisfactory. While the system may seem simple, the debate over the arts credit system has been long-winded and frequent. There are those, like Art Department Chair Mr. Christopher Fox, who believe the system should be expanded to increase the involvement students have in the arts. It’s easy to see his point. Haverford students take six or seven classes and participate in many other extra-curricular activities (Academics), usually play two to three sports (Athletics), but a minority of them participate in any sort of art-related activity, be it orchestra, singing, acting, or visual arts, on a regular basis. He calls the art
Index Staff
requirement “pitiful” and believes that the program should encourage students “to try new things,” because, as he puts it, “ They cannot like what they do not know.” Mr. Fox also cites the narrow focus of the credit program, which usually leads students to try only one type of art. “All arts are not the same,” he says. “Visual arts involve working with your hands and eyes, while performing arts require empathy and sometimes vocal ability. They are as different as chemistry and a foreign language.” He proposes a change to the program in which students would need to try at least one visual and one performance art, which would involve allowing them to take two arts Third Form year. Continued on Page 8
The Index would like to apologize to Fifth Former Sanjay Narayanan for miscrediting the soccer photo in the last issue.
Article Carreer Column Smarter Student Athletes Net Neutrality Facebook Good/Bad? Post Election Windows v. Mac v. Linux Outdex
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