We stumbled upon this post on the JCA Freedom Wall, written two years ago:

This message sparked much debate back when it was first posted, with intensive and regular students discussing it in-depth. We ourselves were inspired to write an article about the social and academic rift between intensive and regular students, and the misconceptions that came along with these classifications. But now, the three of us, having grown over the last couple years, we find that we can now revisit this still-relevant issue with fresher perspectives given that we’ve transitioned from Junior High School (where there were intensive and regular sections) to Senior High School (where classes are segregated by strands).

Our initial goal for writing this article was to clear up any misunderstandings about the intensive and regular sections, and to show that both classes can still have a mutual, respectful, and understanding relationship. While this still holds true, we’d also like to offer our current commentary based on our personal experiences on how the relationships between intensive and regular students have changed now that all are classmates.

But before we begin this article, as the freedom wall post is quite controversial, we would like to make it known that we harbor no ill-intentions in writing this article or bringing up this issue. We do not mean to attack the author of the said message, nor do we wish to stereotype intensive and regular students. This was simply written to share our experiences and promote discussion about this important issue.

HISTORY

Before we get into the topic, we must first learn the origin of the intensive section. For this, we interviewed Mr. Enrique R. Sabacan, the Junior and Senior High School Math Coordinator, who has been teaching at Jubilee Christian Academy for more than 18 years.

According to Mr. Sabacan, the intensive program “started in SY 2000-2001 with only the Grade 10. [The] succeeding year included Grade 9, then, Grade 8, and in SY 2005-2006, Grade 7 was already included.” The program was created and proposed by Mrs. Evelyn M. Bumatay, the former JHS principal, and Mrs. Anita Yao, the former Math and Science Coordinator. The goal of the program was “to nurture the likelihood of student giftedness in Math & Science through in-depth, fast-paced, more analytical and multi-step problem solving… more experiments, scientific research / investigations for Science, and wide use of technology.” This will, in turn, help students in any Math or Science-related courses they might take at the university-level.

In the first few years that the intensive section was implemented, only students who took the Screening Assessment for Gifted Students (SAGES) and got a good grade could qualify for the intensive section. Some years even had an incentive of 10% in Math and Science, but this was removed due to the obvious imbalance of grades.

The intensive program was revised for the school's PAASCU accreditation, with Mr. Sabacan spearheading the revision. The program is reviewed every 3 years or so to improve on any issues it may have. And with each revision the school makes to the intensive program, the differences between the two kinds of classes become more and more apparent. Intensive Chinese was added for Grades 9 to 10 in SY 2019-2020, Intensive English was implemented for Grade 10 students in SY 2020-2021, and for Grade 9 Students in SY 2021-2022.

One of the most obvious differences between the classes lies in the intensive Math, Science, English, and Chinese curriculum. The Math, Science, and English curriculum of the intensive students is 20% to 25% more than what is taught to the regular students, while their Chinese is 5 to 10% more. Along with the added fast-paced and challenging lessons, intensive students also have an incentive of 5% added to their Quarter Final Grade for all intensive subjects.

The increase in lesson difficulty has somewhat furthered the divide between intensive and regular students by decreasing the number of small interactions between sections. While regular students can easily talk to each other about homework or ask for the upcoming test schedules, intensive students do not share much in common with regular students since the lessons are paced differently and the test schedules do not align. Small talk that builds bonds between students such as, “Wow, the test was so hard; how did you do?”, “How do you solve question 4?”, or “When is the homework due?” no longer takes place in between intensive and regular students, thus somewhat alienating the two in terms of academic happenings — the main topic of any highschooler’s conversations.

Though of course, given that the students themselves are the ones experiencing this unique learning system firsthand, we have gathered information regarding the intensive and regular sections for a wider perspective into the topic.

WHAT JUBILIANS SAY

11 Matthew with their adviser, Mrs. Segui

11 Paul with their adviser, Mr. Sabacan

11 Peter with their adviser, Mr. Abunan

ABM Cross-over Activity

Intensive and regular students creating relationships among the batch during the SY 2019-2020 Intramurals.

Proof that booth intensive and regular students can work together to achieve one goal. Advance Placement (AP) test takers together with their AP Teachers, Mr. Verdan (far left), Ms. Bernardo (second to right), and Ms. Torela (far right).

Cover Image Reference:

Cover Image drawn by Rianne Liao

SY 2019-2020 Intramurals Photos by HS Multimedia Team

Article Image Reference:

Jubilee Freedom Wall (2019, September 18). #JubileeFW1650 // To intensive students, // Umiiyak din ang mga regular hindi niyo lang nakikita or napapansin. You think na sobrang hirapng… Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/554302741739941/posts/680659092437638/