By Julia Gajewski-Nemes ’15 In recent years, skepticism over standardized testing has grown tremendously. While its original intent was to determine student achievement and progress in the core content areas of mathematics, reading and writing then hone in on students struggling in these areas, standardized testing has become unreasonably emphasized in American school systems and, in turn, schools have become … Read More
Fraternities have long been a staple of college life, but have recently come under fire due to multiple scandals. University of Oklahoma’s Sigma Alpha Epsilon was videotaped singing a racist song, members of Penn State’s Kappa Delta Rho posted nude pictures of unconscious women in a Facebook group and a University of Maryland’s Kappa Sigma member wrote an email that … Read More
By Maya Koeppen ’17 As the music festival season kicks off this spring, an increasingly popular trend emerges again in festival fashion and this time its opponents have decided to speak out. The trend of bindi, henna, and other bohemian fashion statements was recently spotted at the annual Coachella music festival and immediately sparked backlash from South Asian women across … Read More
By Samantha Schwartz ’16 Most high school students’ schedules are jam-packed, and it is always difficult to fit in required courses such as an art or STEM credit. Luckily students have the opportunity to take one required credit online, Comprehensive Health Education, like I did. For six weeks in February and March I took MCPS’ online version of the health … Read More
By Madison Dymond ‘16 We’ve all seen those movies about high school life that highlight social cliques. There are usually jocks, popular girls, nerds and all the other stereotypical groups. It goes without saying that Hollywood definitely exaggerates high school, but there’s one overall fact that films got right. Many people may deny it, but there are definitely cliques at … Read More
By Gianna Bartolini ‘15 When you’re a high school freshman, it is very easy to imagine the future and think that you know the way your life will turn out. If grades are what you base this on, it may be possible, but on a social and emotional level, it will not be the case. As a senior, looking back … Read More
What issues should be highlighted next year? How can the new superintendent incorporate student voices more effectively? What can the new superintendent learn from Starr? MCPS Superintendent Joshua Starr announced his resignation after having served three-and-a-half years. While Starr may have had his detractors, there is no doubt that he had to deal with a lot of issues. If the … Read More
By Meagan Barrett ‘15 In Philadelphia, a former Wall Street worker has left his wealthy life behind to start a pizza restaurant called Rosa’s. Aside from having unusually low prices (1 slice is only 1 dollar), Rosa’s has become famous for feeding the homeless. Because the prices are so low, it’s an option for people to buy a second piece, … Read More
By Steven Witkin ‘16 It is the same routine every time. You get a field trip form and have to go around to every teacher to get their signature as some sort of approval. The official purpose of this seems to be so that the teachers know in advance when a student is out for a field trip, but many … Read More
By Maya Koeppen ‘17 Over the years, everyone’s favorite personality emoticons have been criticized for being too limited in terms of choices. Apple offers a wide variety of Caucasian skin tone emojis, ranging from two girls dancing to a small family, but no other races. The only racial emojis include a dark skinned emoji with a supposedly religious headdress and … Read More