Page 2 - Lions Pulse - December 16, 2011

INDEX

STUDENT LIFE
mr. mead/the lions pulse

Student Life Page 1 - Page 3 Sports Page 4 Standings Page 5 Feature Page 6 Arts & Entertainment Page 7 Fun & Other Section Page 8 Editor-In-Chief Remi Lu News Editor Emma Bolf Arts & E. Editor Jake Norris Sports Editor Aidan Carroll Copy Editors Jake Norris Remi Lu Layout Editors Remi Lu Emma Bolf Submissions Policy:
All article submissions are to be emailed to mpcnewspaper@live.ca as Microsoft Word attachments. Any artwork must be scanned and emailed as well. Thank you to our staff advisors Ms. Abernethy, Mr. Retson, and Mrs. Thompson, for all their help and hard work.

Getting Acquainted
CHARLOTTE ATKINS STAFF REPORTER
It is often felt that the first few months of high school define who we will be and how we will be viewed in the years to come. To help the new students through these difficult first few weeks, the school provides two trips to get to know each other: one to Camp Robinhood and the other to the Scarborough Outdoor Education School (S.O.E.S.). There were many different opinions concerning the two trips. Some people preferred the activities of Camp Robinhood while others favoured the three-day trip, S.O.E.S. So what is the compromise? Grade nine students were asked to give their opinion on the two trips and give suggestions on how to improve them. My favourite part of Camp Robinhood was definitely the ropes course, said Sally Hough, a grade nine who went to Camp Robinhood and S.O.E.S. The ropes were a favourite among many of the grade nines. Many of the students suggested more activities like that in the future. My favourite was definitely the blanket toss, said Emily Tallmeister, also a grade nine student at Monarch Park. You have something to talk about while waiting for your turn and it was funny to watch everyones reactions. So outdoor activities were definitely a hit, but the question always remains of the perfect length of a trip. Was S.O.E.S. too long? Was Camp Robinhood too short? The students responses were varied, but there seemed to be a preference for the longer trip. When asked about how effective the trips were in getting the students to bond and familiarize with one another, the students

Each year new grade nines entering Monarch Park are brought on two trips to help acquaint them with each other. The students pictured to the left are on the three day S.O.E.S. trip.

Why the influx?

HARRY COLE STAFF REPORTER
Influx continued from Page 1

New TDSB phone policy

SARAH MULLINS STAFF REPORTER
Cellphones continued from Page 1

leaned more towards S.O.E.S. Students are not necessarily with their friends on the trip, and spending three days together with other students that the students arent familiar with provides a lot of time to meet new people. When you stay overnight with someone as you do in S.O.E.S., you get to know them in a different way than if you were to spend just one day with them. Based on this we have the formula for a perfect trip for the grade nines to get to know one another. The trip should be approximately three days long with plenty of adventurous, outdoor activities. The trip could have been improved upon by adding more adventurous activities rather than informational ones. The activities that get students excited are the ones that theyre more likely to pay attention to and participate in.

Not so long ago, I came to Monarch Park Collegiate from another school. When they had their meeting for new students, there were only a few dozen students coming in from other high schools. I asked a couple of new students why they chose Monarch. A few of the answers were, Its the only semestered school in the area and, I hear the courses here are easy marks. So perhaps its not due to a prestigious level of academics or a great reputation that students are flocking to Monarch in bigger numbers than teen girls to a Twilight movie. All the aforementioned reasons still dont explain why this is all happening this year. My theory is that the word got out about Monarch Park, students were basically unprepared for University last year, and perhaps students did not know what they wanted to do in their future and Monarch was the perfect fit. Their logic would be that they would only have to do one semester and then theyd get months of free time. From there they told one friend, that friend told two friends, and the next thing anyone knew there were many new students ready to start their fifth year at Monarch Park Collegiate.

While both are valid arguments, theyre being muted for the time being while the Board deliberates on the details of this new cellphone policy. It is important to note that no matter what the Board decides, teachers will still have the ultimate say on whether cellphones are allowed in the classroom. This new policy will only allow cellphones if they are being used as classroom tools to enhance student learning and support curriculum delivery. For example, if you can research a topic online or Google a piece of information that the teacher can not provide, these are beneficial uses which the TDSB supports. Whereas in the past cellphones were merely seen as distractions and devices that could be used to cheat and bully, the Board is now recognizing their potential. Let it be said, again, that this policy is far from concrete. The Board of Education is still in the midst of designing a number of guidelines, and until those guidelines are set (hopefully in time for next semester), this remains the status quo in the halls of Monarch Park: no cellphones allowed durelizabeth hawtin/the lions pulse ing school hours. Rules are rules, and they Many students use their cellphones in school. must be respected.