Rheims Special: November

RHEIMS SPECIAL: NOVEMBER

NEWS

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2020

COVID-19 TESTING, A CHALLENGE TO CONDUCT IN EVACUATION CENTERS

photo from Interaksyon, News5

The Philippine government announced that they would start conducting COVID-19 tests on evacuees to prevent a surge in the number of cases.

“I assure you that the government policy to conduct testing in evacuation centers is in place. And now, we will use antigen in all evacuation centers for faster results,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said during a press briefing.

With typhoons coming in the Philippines one after another, over 200,000 people are now cramped in evacuation centers all over Luzon.

According to National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), a total

of 727,738 families from Cagayan Valley, the Cordillera Region, and Metro Manila are affected by the recent Typhoon Ulysses, with nearly 71,000 families currently staying at 2,205 evacuation centers.

On the other hand, NDRRMC Chairperson and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in an interview that it would be a challenge to conduct COVID-19 tests at evacuation centers.

“Are we going to do it one by one? My suggestion is to watch out for those with symptoms, [such as] fever or cough, it’s a good thing the people there are all wearing face masks, but the distancing protocol is no longer being followed,” Lorenzana said. -Jade Magno

ONCON 2020: CMLI EMPHASIZES HOLISTIC LEADERSHIP

by Lance Crisostomo

Students from Academy of Saint John joined the first ever Children’s Museum and Library Incorporated (CMLI) Online Conference to continue the formation of competent and holistic leaders that would bring radical changes amidst this pandemic.

Commission discussions are held from November 21 to November 22 tackling different topics circulating about who a leader must be and what qualities must an effective and efficient leader possess.

“Ang leader ay dapat isang leader na may puso at may gawa. A leader must have compassion, strategies, initiative and persistence,” John Joshua Lositaño, commission number 3 facilitator, said.

2

The commission discussions also highlighted that molding leaders amidst this pandemic is still important because forming and training the youth of today to be competent and holistic leaders of tomorrow would help create a radical change in society.

Commission discussions are not the only event the CMLI will hold for there are contests like essay writing, short film making, interpretative dance, and radio broadcasting, where selected ASJ students joined.

As of the moment, the contestants are in the process of making their outputs for their respective contests so that they can pass on or before December 14, 2020.

The Lasallian Rheims

facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

NEWS

RHEIMS SPECIAL: NOVEMBER

NOVEL CONTESTS ENTER ASJ’S 18TH

by Jade Magno

Academy of Saint John created new contests for the students and their families to participate in as part of the celebration of the school’s 18th founding anniversary, Nov 11.

Contests like Tiktalk, Mental Math, Dance with Joy, Sing with Praise, and Parol and Belen making were introduced.

In an interview, Ms. Victoria Gallardo said that the Tiktok Nursery rhymes for preschool, Tiktok Fairytale for Grades 1 to 3 pupils, and Tiktok Literary Drama for High School students are a way for students to take a break from academics and also a good de-stressing activity.

“This contest requires family participation, so it is also a good bonding moment with the

FIRST ONLINE CARD DAY

by Jade Magno

Sophia Labuguen performs her own rendition of Juliet from Romeo and Juliet in Tiktok Literary Drama contest as part of the celebration of ASJ’s 18th founding anniversary. Nov 11

family,” she added.

The contests Gallardo mentioned are the Parol making, for the Grades 1-6, and the Belen making, for grade 7-12, both requiring the participation of the students’ family. The same goes for the Dance with Joy, Sing with Praise contest where two teams

or families are needed to join the contest.

On the other hand, Mr. Cris Dulutan articulated that the Mental Math contest would help to enhance the ability of the student in answering mathematical equations, noting that it will also serve as an enjoyable activity of the students with their parents.

LIVING ROSARY: A WAY TO REFLECT DEEPLY ON JESUS’ AND MARY’S LIFE ON EARTH

by Jade Magno

Campus Minister Evangeline Sipat-Balais explained that the Living Rosary was observed as a culminating activity for the Month of the Holy Rosary, stating that through it, the faithful will pray and reflect deeply on Jesus’ and Mary’s life on earth.

On Nov 11, Academy of Saint John held the culminating activity for the Month of the Holy Rosary online through a live stream on the school’s official Facebook page as part of the 18th founding anniversary of the school.

“As we recite every prayer, we encourage the faithful to remember the petitions their asking from the Lord and or to offer every bead of Hail Mary to a particular person who needs prayer the most,” Balais added. facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2020

According to Balais, all faculty and staff have participated in the event, some of them were assigned to light the candles, lead in prayers, and prepare for the set up for broadcast.

The choir members including Kenjie Mongis, Ralph Poniente, Althea Leynes, and Nicole Lopez, headed by Mr. Arvie Bayan, prepared the songs for reflections.

The school also prepared the stage set up for the broadcast, the video clips for the mysteries, the prayers, and the recording of the songs.

“We encourage the faithful to remember the petitions their asking from the Lord.”

The Lasallian Rheims

“Since this is the first time, ASJ wants to ensure a seamless card day. Series of counterchecking was conducted, from exporting of raw scores up to encoding in the system.” said Math and Science Coordinator Mr. Cris Dulutan.

Academy of Saint John turned to an online version of the Card Day due to the coronavirus disease pandemic that has prohibited social activities in the Philippines.

In an interview, Dulutan said that ASJ aims to have a seamless operation for this year’s card day.

Furthermore, Dulutan added that this year’s card day was different because for the first time, ASJ will going to use the grading system that the La Salle Green Hills also uses.

Dulutan noted that the reason for card day being moved twice is to give ample time for the subject teachers to encode grades and to double-check their class records and the second time was because of Typhoon Rolly.

3

Editor-in-Chief: Christian Dave Domingo Associate EIC: Lance Jerson Crisostomo News Editor: Jade Magno Editorial: Seann Carpizo Features: Renz Bautista Mitzen Sotelo Poem: Justine Benedict Yalung Cover/Caption: Cassandra Mae Remotigue Center Page: Mr. Giann Potente Layout: Marcus Diego Mugol Adviser: Mr. Kent Bryan Colocado

WE ARE OPEN FOR

CONTRIBUTORS! Submit your work at

rheims@academyofsaintjohn.edu.ph

4

CALAMITY MEETS PANDEMIC: CAN THE GOVERNMENT HANDLE? INSIGHTS Seann Carpizo

Our country took several major hits during the past few weeks, the onslaught of typhoons that we’ve had to endure all the while facing this difficult pandemic—Typhoon Quinta, Typhoon Rolly, and Typhoon Ulysses. Tragedies befell many communities, especially rural areas, having the least resistance and highest vulnerability to these natural disasters.

According to a report by Michelle Abad, agricultural damage sustained from the calamity reached a cumulative total of P10 billion. More than a hundred thousand farmers affected, hectares of land and crops destroyed, thus it might even take years to recover. Casualties were also unfortunately an occurrence, with Typhoon Rolly (also known as Typhoon Goni) being one of the strongest tropical cyclone with speeds of up to 280 kph, at least 10 were killed in the wake of its destruction.

In light of these, one can already imply that our government’s disaster preparedness isn’t very well-handled.

The aforementioned farmers were given a P10,000-P15,000

The Lasallian Rheims

subsidy as help, along with other loan programs, and relief goods distribution in affected areas.

However, these are reactive, not proactive. We are only acting once the damage has already been done. But things start to get even worse from here.

Project NOAH has been cancelled due to lack of funding, which was supposed to be the cornerstone of our country in terms of disaster preparation and mitigation, and with the Kaliwa Dam project underway, the Sierra Madre, a mountain range serving as one of our only natural protection against natural disasters, is being slowly terraformed and potentially destroyed.

Our country is in a precarious situation, all while still reeling from the effects of COVID-19 with which we aren’t even recovering from yet. In these times, our government needs to take charge and start funnelling efforts towards solving problems one by one. Disaster-prep programs should be allocated more funding, and efforts towards preserving the environment should also be a primary focus. Our country is susceptible to calamities, and we can never be too cautious in trying to act ahead of time. Prevention is better than cure.

facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

RHEIMS SPECIAL: NOVEMBER

EDITORIAL

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2020

LASALLIANS TAKE A PIT STOP

by Seann Carpizo

Last November 3-6, we had a personal health care week to take our minds off of academic works and whatnot. A total of nine days of rest, which I think I speak for all students in ASJ when I say that it was a nice breather to at least load off some stress, spend time with the family, and do hobbies for the meantime.

Online classes have been quite taxing and has been just as mentally exhausting as to how normal classes are, and our eyes definitely needed a break after all that month of screen-staring.

With the second quarter of the first semester nearing its end, an onslaught of proj-

ects and works also got closer and closer, or so what we like to call as “hell weeks”. And it can be a chore and a half to get through. But as students, of course, it’s our responsibility to do the tasks we’ve been told.

This was also another reason why our week break was needed, it gave us time not only to relax but also to prepare for any upcoming activities, given that we often have a lot on our plate, it was the perfect opportunity to clean up a lot of it, if not all. It was also helpful for others in giving them more time to reflect on their futures and careers. But of course, the point of the break was still for you to rest and relax.

So what did you do?

Did you stay on your PC or laptop and played games instead? Spent afternoons and evenings reading books? Or maybe you just lied in your bed to sleep or be on your phone instead? Either way, it’s important that you at least had a stress-free week. It’s a reminder that our mental health needs to be taken care of and be paid attention to. Our minds aren’t slaves to work, and should be freed from stress and anxiety from time to time. Because sometimes, rest is just as important as the work. Never burn yourself out in modules or any form of workload. Instead, remind yourself to take a break from time to time. It helps.

50% OF GRADE 10 WILL DO STEM

by Dave Domingo

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Academic Strand remained as the top choice of the SHS Strand survey, consisting of 52 respondents from the Grade 10, with half of the students opting for the strand, a slight decrease from last year’s survey of 61 percent taking up STEM.

In a survey conducted last November 27, 21.2% of the respondents opted to remain undecided, 15.4% of students will take up Accounting and Business Management (ABM), Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) had 3.8%, General Academics (GAS) strand garnered only 1.9%, and Music, Arts, and Design (MAD) reached up to 7.7%.

In comparison, last year’s survey comprised of the following: 15% for ABM, 6% for GAS, 9% for HUMSS, and 12% for MAD, and Technical, Vocational and livelihood (TVL).

On the other hand, the responses for which school they will study at for the next S.Y. remained facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

relatively similar to last year’s survey with being undecided, again, topping the chart.

69.2% of the students are undecided, comparable to the 56% of last year which had more respondents, while 9.6% confirmed to stay in ASJ. 18% chose to stay last year. The remaining 21.2% considered other schools for their next school year. Last year’s was 26%.

The Lasallian Rheims

5

Courtesy of Mr. Giann Potente

A Decade and Eight:

ONLINE CELEBRATION, NO PROBLEM

by Lance Crisostomo

This year marks the first ever foundation celebration which is held online. For the past 17 years, the ASJ community gathers as one to celebrate the Eucharist and a whole day program filled with lots of activities and contests to showcase the talents of not just the students but of the teachers as well. This is one of the times where the school quadrangle would be conquered by students’ with their cheers, banners, and balloons as they support their classmates and teachers on stage.

Since the coronavirus disease threats are still present, ASJ held its annual foundation celebration online. Sticking to its roots and annual traditions, ASJ made sure that this foundation day celebration would still be as great as the past celebrations and would be one for the books. This

8

is something to be remembered and marked as ASJ continues to stand up and provide quality education.

The day started with the celebration of the Eucharist. This is to thank the Lord for the 18 years that He has blessed and guided the institution to be what it is today. As Father Julius R. De Sagun said in his homily, “Here we are, we are celebrating life, we are celebrating (the) anniversary of ASJ. We have so much to thank God for.”

Indeed, ASJ’s success is something remarkable and is something to thank God for.

After the mass, Mr. Richard R. Pineda, the new principal, gave a heartwarming message to the whole ASJ community. He thanked everyone who are a part of ASJ’s success over the years for without them, ASJ won’t be as successful as it is right now espe-

cially without the people who supported the institution since day one. As Mr. Richard said, “The foundation and materials used to build the Academy of Saint John are not the only basis of a strong foundation but the people who unselfishly gave their support to make ASJ even stronger.”

As the day progressed and lunch time hit, the students and their respective advisers had their virtual lunch.

In this virtual lunch, students and their advisers had quality time and had the chance to catch up with each other while eating their delicious lunches. The virtual lunch was filled with laughter and positivity as students and teachers really had a wonderful interaction and fruitful conversation.

The foundation day celebration won’t be complete without the different contests that

The Lasallian Rheims

are opened to all sections. These contests are the Tiktok drama contest and the Belen making contest. Both are new contests and are new avenues for students to showcase

Virtual or not, the foundation day celebration of ASJ is still remarkable. The commemoration of 18 years of its existence is really something to be happy about especially considering the fact that we are able to leap over the challenges of this pandemic. Truly, we can say that ASJ is a very strong educational institution dedicated to providing quality education by any means.

This is a testament that ASJ would have more years to come and nothing proves to be strong enough to make ASJ stop its commitment to providing quality education for the youth.

facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

RHEIMS SPECIAL: NOVEMBER

FEATURES

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2020

ASJ IS OVERRUN WITH TIKTOK RELATED CONTESTS: HERE’S WHY

by Mitzen Sotelo

On Academy of Saint John’s 18th Founding Anniversary, contests like TikTok Nursery Rhymes Dance Contest, TikTok Fairytale Dance Contest, and TikTok Drama Contests were pushed upfront in the list of contests.

Those, however, were not all of the TikTok related contests.

There were the Halina’t Umindak and Katutubong Sayaw last Araw ng Lahing Kayumanggi which were also in TikTok.

The Academic Coordinators of ASJ came up with these competitions that use the TikTok platform to direct students to a fun and educational way in using the app.

“...Besides, [the] participants would surely have fun. It is a respite for everyone, during a week-long break from school work and loads,” English Academic Coordinator Ms. Victoria Gallardo added.

TikTok, a video sharing

and social networking service, is one of the most used social media platforms today that has many genres such as dance, comedy, lip sync and many more which catches the interest of many.

“Tik Tok is very much "in" nowadays, almost everyone is familiar with it, so we thought of making it as part of the celebration,” Gallardo noted.

However, she claimed that TikTok only contributed to the delight of the contests; she argued that it was with themes, saying “...like in Preschool, it was Tik Tok nursery rhyme, for the lower level, Tik Tok fairytale, and Tik Tok drama for High School.

We chose Tik Tok drama for High school because we want to familiarize students with famous lines lifted from the literary genre. They learned it and at the same time had fun.”

The experience of the competition is described by one of the Tik-

Tok drama contest winners from the High School level, Hannah Guerra from Grade 10 St. La Salle. She stated that though the contest was hard, it was gratifying afterwards.

“The drama was a bit of a struggle since we have to think out of the box and that we don’t want our work to be similar to other participants.” She also aired, “I didn’t even expect for us to win first place because it wasn’t perfect. We are grateful to have the first place. Everything was worth it at the moment.”

Tik-Tok is easy for the students of this generation to use because it requires little background knowledge to understand how to use it.

Through this, the Academy of Saint John shows that amidst this pandemic, students can still have the chance to enhance their social skills and talents in the comforts of their homes.

FIRST ASJ ONLINE CAREER TALK ABOUT SPEECH PATHOLOGY

by Renz Bautista

ASJ held an Online Career Talk for the Grade 10 to Grade 12 Students last November 20.

The school invited Ms. Aiza Grace Joy Manalad, a speech language pathologist and an alumna of Academy of Saint John, to talk about her profession and share how she chose her field of study.

She graduated BS Speech Pathology in the University of the Philippines – Manila last 2009 and is currently working as a senior consultant speech pathologist facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

for 11 years on Collab Greenhills, formerly Speech Ladder.

She led the Collegiate Association of Speech Pathologists.

She conducts standardized assessment and speech and language intervention for various age groups. She also collaborates with other professionals to create a streamlined program for the client, just like in the show business industry and in public speaking. Her fields of expertise range from social thinking and socioemotional learning, language processing, mo-

The Lasallian Rheims

tor planning for those with articulation disorders, and early intervention for kids with autism.

Ms. Manalad also talked about career planning and gave advice to students who would like to work in the language industry. She also talked about her memories in ASJ during her time in batch 2004 – 2005.

Before ending her talk, she entertained questions from students who asked about her background and career.

9

RHEIMS SPECIAL: NOVEMBER

LOCAL NEWS

ULYSSES brings havoc to cavite

GENERAL TRIAS COVID-19 CASES DWINDLE DOWN

by Renz Bautista

by Mitzen Sotelo

Philippine’s 21st tropical cyclone Ulysses, a Category 4 typhoon, struck the country last November 11-12, affecting the CALABARZON region.

Three people including a child were killed with three others injured when a 20 ft. wall of a warehouse under construction in Brgy.

Langkaan 1 in Dasmariñas City, collapsed due to the rage of the typhoon while damaged houses reported were 1 in Imus, 2 in the municipality of Mendez, and 14 in Tanza.

Gov. Jonvic Remulla announced cancellation of classes due to the power interruptions in many municipalities brought by the strong winds and hard rain.

As for December weather report, the Philipine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) has not yet tracked any tropical cyclone or depression forming at the pacific region; however, PAGASA advised that the country must be ready for rainfall occurences that may happen within the month.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2020

The situation of the COVID–19 pandemic in the City of General Trias is better than the past months with cases down to 57 as of November 25.

The city only recorded single digit cases for the last 4 days with 8 cases recorded (6 new and 2 late cases) on the 25th of November. From the bulletin, the city has 57 active cases, 2,042 recoveries (15 new recoveries), and 37 deaths. From the active cases, 33 of these are asymptomatic cases, and 24 are only mild cases, with no severe or critical cases active.

Barangay Pasong Camachile 2 has the highest active cases of COVID–19, 8 active cases as of this writing, with Buenavista and San Francisco following, with 6 and 5 active cases respectively. The city currently has 158 suspected and 324 probable cases.

While the coronavirus situation in the city is still manageable, the city government strongly pleads for all Gentriseños to still follow the health protocols, maintain social distancing, wear facemask and faceshields, and only to go out whenever it is needed; for the success of the combat against the coronavirus disease lies in the hands of the people.

MAMARIL MENTIONS IMPORTANCE OF CAREER PLANNING

by Renz Bautista

Ms. Cyril Mamaril, the High School Guidance Advocate, propounded the importance and the need of career planning and why ASJ conducts career talks.

Mamaril said that the process of career planning is very essential to students, as career planning is one aid to determine your short- and long- term goals in life, and making a step by step process on how to achieve these said goals.

She also added that Academy of Saint John conducts career counselling, career talks, and also the administration of career interest and preference tests to help the student determine his or her ideal career based on his/her interests and choices.

She also noted Benjamin Franklin’s quote,

10

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” She furthered, “Planning for the student’s future is necessary, so that even though the road may be rough and tough in the future, every step they take is a sure step leading them to their success.”

Career planning is a step toward success starting with self – assessment. Here, you assess your strengths and weaknesses and choose the best possible career based on your talents, strengths, and abilities.

The career that you should take should reflect on these and even your personality and passion.

Once you have identified your dream career, you must now work hard on how to attain your goals and eventually, you will have a lifetime advantage in the future.

The Lasallian Rheims

facebook.com/Rheims2020 @Rheims2020

Denial Lines crossed, words spoken Futile efforts taken Curse the stars in woe

Anger My love made high Digits caress bitter lips Acceptable sins

Bargaining Warmth drips on my thigh Pale letters rest on, blazing Gather dust, forget

Depression Where is the future Set the sun alight once more There is no future

Acceptance An antithesis Once between grief and despair A stray path, unknown - Justine Benedict Yalung