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2020 Rewind
2020 Rewind
by Isabelle Nelson
by Isabelle Nelson
This time last year, we were told that we would have an extra week off of school right before spring break. That extra week turned into a month, that month turned into two; fast forward eight months and still there are students learning from home, at school with masks, or as part of a hybrid education plan.
Being at home alone with our thoughts, with the outside world's havoc, we have had to cope with societal changes. Now that we're hitting the year mark of these impactful events, let's look back, reminisce about the good times, and overlook the stressful ones.
Primarily, Covid-19 has been the main event of 2020. At first, everyone was confused about the whole situation. We went from talking about the virus spreading in China to finding out it had spread to the U.S., to counting the thousands of cases in our own country daily. I remember being in class discussing with my teacher whether or not wearing masks would be necessary. Now, there are thousands of cases and deaths due to Covid-19. On top of that, various protests occurred, bringing awareness to the lives that have been taken within the Black community and the need for social change. We also lost people who were very influential to the public like basketball player Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna Bryant, and actor Chadwick Boseman, among many others.
During this time, the 2020 election occurred. Joe Biden became the next president of the United States, making Kamala Harris the first woman in office and the first Asian-African American Vice President. Biden was the first presidential candidate to reach over 80 million votes. This election really showed how divided our country is and challenged many ideals of equality and freedom across the nation.
2020 was a hectic year, but some greatness came out of it. Miami is a very diverse and family-oriented area, but it wasn't until all the stores and restaurants shut down that I really saw families out enjoying each other's company. Many families have been seen biking, having picnics, or simply just going on grocery runs together. It seems families have taken this time to become closer and really spend time with each other. When restaurants finally opened back up, many flocked to go have their favorite dishes again, but a majority remained wary of the safety of restaurants.
Moving forward, we have the TikTok trends. "Ollie!" That is a skateboarding trick. You would know this if you decided to partake in the skateboarding era of 2020. Popular creators on TikTok, like Briana King and Vinnie Hacker, have shown off their cool tricks and board designs that rallied everyone into skate shops to become the next Tony Hawk. Whipped coffee was another trend that sent people to their local shops. Whipped coffee, also known as Dalgona coffee, is made by whipping equal parts of instant coffee, hot water, and sugar. The whipped coffee would typically go on top of a glass of milk, creating a flavor combination of delicious, airy coffee and warm, comforting milk.
It is only essential that I mention the reigning trend, the one trend that has never died: the dances. The TikTok dances are what really made TikTok what it is today. Everywhere you turned, you'd find a group of teens swinging their arms around in front of a camera to share 15-second videos with their friends and with the world. Today, dances choreographed by creators like Charli D'amelio become so popular because it gives people the chance to get creative and active during the pandemic. Dr. Jason Campbell, also known as TikTok Doc, dances on TikTok to get user's attention, educate them about their health, and encourage the public to continue with social distancing. With the stress of the pandemic, these dances can bring a smile to someone's face.
2020 was the year of the never-ending rollercoaster, the kind that makes you nervous while getting on. Including the lowest of lows and highest of highs, no one can really say 2020 was what they expected. However, many can say that it is what they needed. Some people needed this time to find themselves, and with the world around them experiencing the same things, these people may have felt less alone. Others cannot be happier that the year is finally over. Either way, this blast to the past hopefully inspired important insight. 2021 is sure to be another rollercoaster.
The What, the When, and the Why of the ELA Assessment
The What, the When, and the Why of the ELA Assessment
by Paulina Yu
by Paulina Yu
Every year, students take assessments in the months of March and April for both Languages Arts and Writing, as well as Mathematics. Not to be confused with EOCs (end of course exams) for Algebra, Geometry, and Biology, the FSA examinations, or Florida Standard Assessments, contain the ELA portion, or English Language Arts, which is a component of the standardized assessments that all students in grades 3-10 are required to take. This poses the question: why do we have to take it? Year after year, students must take the ELA portion of the exam in order to test their reading and writing skills. Many simply take the ELA portion without questions, just for the sake of receiving a high school diploma, as it is a requirement to graduate. Now, it is understandable that many don't question the assessment, but thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, everything was thrown into chaos, and many 11th graders now have to make up the exam or risk losing their diploma. However, many students were given the option to submit SAT and ACT test scores taken earlier during the year as a replacement for the ELA portion. Sent out by Dr. Carballo, the ELA requirements stated that students had to "earn a comparative score on one of the following exams: 480 on the SAT (Evidence-Based Reading Writing) and 18 on the ACT (Reading and Writing).
So how does one prepare for the ELA? After asking around students at Coral Reef, IB student Alisha Jafry recalled how her past English teachers would do "writing practice and class explanations" in the weeks before the ELA, as well as writing argumentative and expository essays (11th). On the other hand, Trevor Landgraf explained how his English teacher didn't feel the need to prepare them for the ELA,
as the material taught in his class was a good enough review for the end-of-year assessment (Engineering, 11th). A teacher who wished to stay anonymous mentioned that Covid-19 made it more difficult for teachers to review the material, as many classes are now online and students have a hard time paying attention. In an MSO setting, students are often seen turning off their cameras for extended periods, claiming they're "in the bathroom," or even falling asleep and logging off with the excuse of "my internet is down." As interesting and fascinating as ceiling fans are, the frustration teachers feel from seeing a zoom class full of them is often overflowing. Sometimes, teachers react by making it a requirement to have students show their shoulders and up. With the temptation of escaping class early or scrolling through TikTok during a How to Kill a Mockingbird class discussion, many students simply give in, resulting in a lack of MSO student participation. Another IB student, Justin Fernandez, spoke about how "Florida literacy rates are not very high," and students are still behind in Algebra and English classes. Many believe that remedial classes benefit students who need that extra help, but denying them a diploma simply for not taking the ELA may prove detrimental. Justin mentioned that doing so is "bad for the students mentally" and puts a lot of unnecessary pressure on them, especially during this time, considering the delicate state of people's domestic lives and the inefficiency of MSO learning.
Diploma or not, the ELA portion of the FSA, is used to assess and gauge the reading level of students from elementary to high school. Helping with placing students who need the extra review for math or reading, the ELA is seen by many as a positive assessment. However, it's essential to consider the other side of the coin because although the intentions behind the ELA are in the students' interest, their diploma at stake can result in unnecessary stress, especially in these unpredictable times of Covid-19.
An Insight on Sharing the Dream of Music
An Insight on Sharing the Dream of Music
by Katelyn Peña
by Katelyn Peña
Isabella Menendez, a senior at Coral Reef Senior High school and Silver Knight nominee is the founder of Sharing the Dream of Music. Sharing the Dream of Music is a community service project focused on “reaching out to schools and students across the world and helping them obtain their music dreams despite the financial hardships they may face.” Inspired by her love for music, especially the piano, Isabella created this project towards the end of her sophomore year to share her passion for music with others. Through this outlet of hers, she was able to “be a part of something larger than [herself].”
When asked about how she started this project, Isabella replied that her piano teacher told her about “her recent vacation to St. Lucia and how she visited a school of music there in which the kids had ripped cases, broken down instruments, and a lack of musical resources.” The lack of these resources and the fact that they cannot receive them disheartened her and led her to create this project. Throughout 2020, Isabella donated to the St. Lucia’s School of Music and is now donating to Frank C. Martin K-8 Center after a suggestion from her band director to donate items there because they are working to create a better music program.
St. Lucia’s School of Music offers education on music on the island of St. Lucia, and Frank C. Martin K-8 Center is an International Baccalaureate magnet school in Miami-Dade county. While these two schools are in very different locations, they both have an ambition to further their musical programs.
Students at St. Lucia’s School of Music with instruments donated by the Sharing the Dream of Music project.
Similarly, many low-income schools throughout the world can be helped with this community service project. Music has a powerful impact on today’s generation, and we have the power to make someone’s day by donating musical instruments/items that are not needed by us anymore. Isabella states that she is “honored to be a Silver Knight nominee as [she is] part of a group of students who are passionate about helping out the community and represent the kindness and power our generation holds.” Music is not only a form of enjoyment for some, but it is also an excellent way for children to develop their language, literacy, motor skills, and other forms of important developments in children.
Reef students can help students like those in St. Lucia’s School of Music by donating instruments or supplies for instruments that are no longer needed by us anymore. There are currently no confirmed dates to donate these items, but Isabella will be holding more days to drop off these items. Sharing the Dream of Music is an exceptional project that can lead to the dreams of many children being fulfilled, and we can help in this journey.
2021-2022 Planning for the New School Year
2021-2022 Planning for the New School Year
by Samantha Ruiz
by Samantha Ruiz
Many people can agree that with the Covid-19 pandemic, the current academic year has been extraordinarily challenging and long. But, now is the time that is important and stressful to all administrators and students: subject selection.
It’s time for kids to start thinking about what kinds of classes they want to take next year and how that’ll trigger their subsequent years of high school or college. With the pandemic, kids have reported that one of their concerns about choosing their classes is the uncertainty that comes without knowing what school will look like next year.
Many kids have had trouble coming to terms with the way schools have been run this year, including frequent quarantines, online schooling, and Zooming through classes. Teachers have also had to start adopting different teaching methods that are considerate of others and how they feel about the pandemic. Projects, assignments, and group work have all been altered and changed to fit the crisis we’ve lived with for the past year.
This year, instead of doing subject selection on paper and sending it in, students are completing their subject selection sheets online. Counselors are diligently working to continue speaking to their students in-person (or in one-on-one breakout rooms) as they did in prior years in order to keep a note of what classes students are taking. Counselors are making it a priority this year to uphold the practice of speaking to their students speaking in person; counselors are trying to ensure that in the midst of the pandemic,
students are continuing to make the right choices about what they are going to be taking next year. It is also their job to keep everyone informed as to what their options are.
This whole process can be especially frustrating because kids who are beginning to take more AP classes, or other types of college-level courses, won’t know how they will be taught next year. For some students, being online or in-person might make the difference between what classes they do and do not take.
The upside is that with the new Covid-19 vaccine, the average number of people who have Covid per day is going down in Florida, which means that hopefully, students can start coming back to school for the following year. So far, the number of cases per week has decreased to 5,000 when on January 8 (the day we had the most covid cases less than a month ago), it was an average of 17,000 cases. Now that Governor De Santis expanded the groups eligible for the vaccine, the hope is for a more significant decrease in cases per day. Administrators, counselors, students, and parents are all wanting to enhance academic performance this following academic year while staying healthy, and subject selection is a big part of planning for the academic 2021-2022 year.
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