March G

Mini Edition

life before distance learning

Quiz yourself!

teachers guess filipino slang

Reyn & Yana

How well do you really know your friends?

Jiwon, Chiara, Abby

valentine's day

Jessica, Ela, Layla

What is tik tok?

Trixie & Sofi

lifestyle

gaming during class?

Lucas K.

Lately, some students have been using their gadgets during classes for things unrelated to schoolwork. Usage varies from watching videos to going on social media, to chatting with friends. However, the most common device usage in class is for gaming. Students play online/offline games during classes and quickly switch tabs so that they don't get caught. To find out more, I asked students and teachers the question,

“Do you think students should be able to game during classes? Why or why not?”

As I interviewed, I found that the students and the teachers had very conflicting opinions about this topic. One student said, “I feel like school is putting us through a lot of stress, so we should be able to game during class time.”

However, the teachers had very different opinions about this.

“Students believe that gaming helps to rest, but it keeps your brain active. Therefore, students are not getting any form of rest by doing so,” one teacher said.

Another teacher warned, “If students are allowed to game after they are done with their work, none of them will take their work seriously and try to finish it as fast as they can, which would result in worse grades.”

When asked if they gamed in class, the majority of students said no. However, some said that they do game during classes. “I play games during class time to rest and because I am done with all my work,” admitted one student.

But, what does gaming actually do?

According to Raise Smart Kid: Parenting Smart Kids, gaming can have both good and bad effects. Gaming can increase a student’s ability to problem solve and use logic, and analysis, but it can also cause students to have more violent thoughts. Many online games are violent, and there have been many reports on how children who play violent video games often result in using more violence to solve problems.

In the end, it comes down to perspectives and practices. Some schools incorporate gaming in classes, while others strictly ban it, saying that it is a distraction to students’ learning. ISM Middle School does not allow gaming during class, unless the game is related to learning, so it is up to students to choose to act with integrity and use their devices responsibly.

kantina talk

Worth the price?

Sofia and Kay

three healthy options

Jiwon S.

2020 is finally here, along with your New Year resolutions! To start your 2020 in a healthy way, here are 3 choices to stay healthy in the Kantina.

Gokinjo: Vegetable Tempura

The menu item that the Gokinjo staff picked as their healthiest option was the vegetable tempura. Vegetable tempura consists of deep-fried vegetables and white rice. The main reason why the Gokinjo staff picked the vegetable tempura as their healthiest choice is due to the ingredients. The head chef of Gokinjo stated, “The vegetable tempura is the healthiest because it’s made from vegetables.” Vegetables contain important nutrients such as various vitamins and minerals, which are vital for our health.

2. Good Eats: Salad

The staff of the Good Eats chose the salad as their healthiest menu option. Good Eats’ salads consist mostly of vegetables and occasionally croutons, which are generally nutritious. One staff member stated, “The salad has lower calories than the other [food].” Food with lower calories, like salad, is generally healthier than food with higher calories, like cream cheese.

3. Yogi: Vegetarian Kare Kare

The food that was selected among the staff as the healthiest at Yogi Chef was Vegetarian Kare Kare. Vegetable Kare Kare is a Filipino dish containing peanut sauce and vegetables such as potatoes, pechay, and more. One of the restaurant staff stated, “ [Kare Kare] is the healthiest because it has vegetables.”

To sum up, the healthiest food chosen by the staff of the three restaurants had one main similarity: they were all vegetarian. All of the staff mentioned the ingredient of vegetables as one of their reasons why the food is healthy and nutritious. Now, every time you go to the Kantina, you know what food you should choose for a healthy 2020!

world news

The world’s happiest animal bounces back!

Abbygail N.

You know that saying, “Never stop smiling?” Well we could definitely learn a thing or two from the most jovial animals! The Quokka, a teddy bear-sized marsupial with the most adorable smile, is struggling. Found only in southwestern Australia, it has to contend for its life against invasive predators and habitat loss.

But on Rottnest Island, just off the coast of Perth, the Quokka population has exploded. The Quokkas were considered vulnerable to extinction, mainly because of their apex predators, feral cats. But the wildlife management recognised the problem and wiped out all the remaining cats in Rottnest island in the early 2000’s, which resulted in the Quokkas blossoming.

Quokkas depend on lush vegetation for food and hideouts from predators, and researcher Karlene Bain with the University of Western Australia has found that Quokka numbers are increasing in the dampest areas of their habitat where they can easily find food and maintain their well-being. Researchers like Blain aren’t concerned about the massive amount of tourism in the area because it actually helps the Quokkas socialize.

However, what worries scientists is climate change. As the climate warms, the drier it gets. And since Quokkas rely on damp areas within their native habitats to find lush vegetation, the drying out of their habitats is a real problem for the Quokkas.

But for now, researchers are happy that the Quokka population has increased drastically, taking at least some weight off their shoulders knowing that these beloved, convivial, animals should still be around for years to come.

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