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Yearly Archives: 2015
Like a Rock Star
By Charlie Sellers, Head of the Modern Languages Department
Like a Rock Star
I had a very busy summer vacation. It was also a phenomenal summer full of adventure and self-
discovery. A day after finishing my end of the year duties at St. Mark’s –advisee letters, grades, comments, and faculty meetings– I left for China with 10 St. Markers and our former Chinese teacher, Showjean Wu. After two weeks in Beijing at our partner school, I was back in the States. My wife and I were moving from the house across from the thirds’ soccer field to a bigger house at the end of the thirds’ soccer field, and I needed to pack. My wife, Michaela, was busy finishing up classes and end of the year events –she teaches 5th grade at a public school in Sharon, Massachusetts– and we had another big adventure planned for the day after she finished classes. We were about to embark on an 800-kilometer (about 500-miles, a little longer than the distance from (more…)
The Dalai Lama: A Spiritual Leader Above a Political One
By Lucy Cao, V Form
The Dalai Lama: A Spiritual Leader Above a Political One
China and Tibet have a long history of relations. Beginning with the Manchu rule of Tibet, conflicts and disputes between the Chinese and Tibetans have persisted. Unwilling to compromise with a centralized ruler, Tibet seized the opportunity to claim itself as an independent state after the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty. However, following the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Tibet became an integral part of China. From then on, numerous riots and uprisings for Tibetan independence and the preservation of Tibetan traditional culture and religion have taken place (Goldstein 84-86).
One aspect of the complex relationship between China and Tibet has some connection with the Dalai Lama selection process. As a tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, Finding the reincarnation of the Dalai (more…)
The World Behind the Curtain
By Yusra Syed, IV Form
The World Behind the Curtain
Over the summer, I was fortunate enough to travel to different parts of India and visit schools, universities, and orphanages for a ten-day service trip with three other girls from the United States. My favorite part of the trip was our first stop, Hyderabad, India, where we visited Challenger Girls Orphanage. (more…)
2015 Sri Lanka Summer Trip Scrapbook
By Gabe Brower, V Form, Daphne Huang, VI Form, Abby Moses, VI Form, and Emily Tanner, VI Form
2015 Sri Lanka Summer Trip Scrapbook
The Sri Lanka summer trip (click here for scrapbook!) was offered as one of the St. Mark’s global citizenship travel opportunities
supported by Envoys, a liaison program that seeks to educate students about the world through exposure and hands-on experiences in different countries and cultures. The St. Markers who participated in the trip applied through the St. Mark’s global citizenship program. Our days in Sri Lanka were unique in many senses. Not only were we given a wonderful travel and learning opportunity to engage in the culture and environment of Sri Lanka, but we also got the chance to partner with an educational non-profit organization called Educate Lanka. Educate Lanka provides students in Sri Lanka with scholarships by matching each student with a sponsor. By the end of the trip, we were able (more…)
“I Am” Poetry
By Miss Amanda Hultin, English & Religion Faculty, and Charlie Mosse, Gillian Yue, Cooper Giblin, Hailey Dubose, Peter Ackerman, & Mark Wang, IV Form
“I Am” Poetry
In the first days of school, there is much that I want to learn about my students. I ask them to write, “How can I be a good teacher for you?” “What do you want me to know about you as a student? As a person?” The answers are read only by me.
I also want my students to learn about each other and to begin creating the learning environment unique to each class. I assign the “I am” poem as an exercise in thinking, writing, and talking about (more…)
Optimism About Positive Psychology
By Sarah Eslick, Associate Director of The Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning
Optimism About Positive Psychology
What allows humans to thrive? What conditions, actions, or qualities contribute to well being? How do we help kids become resilient?
Historically, the field of psychology has focused on mental illness. Depression, schizophrenia, and other disorders of the mind carried far more intellectual gravitas than the psycho-emotional characteristics that lead to happiness. Certainly these illnesses are less subtle, easier to categorize, label, and examine. In striking contrast, the field of positive psychology studies how people do well: how we cultivate positive emotions and optimism and how we develop grit and self-regulation. It explores how we benefit from resilience and gratitude while recognizing our (more…)
Searching for a Theme Song
By Colleen Worrell, Director of The Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning
Searching for a Theme Song
This is not an article; it is an invitation. I am searching for a theme song to define the work that The Center will do with and for St. Mark’s students this year (and beyond).
I cannot do this work alone and am inviting students to lead this process.
Why? (more…)
Drunk Worms: My Internship and Research on Alcoholism
By Marissa Huggins, VI Form
Drunk Worms: My Internship and Research on Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a serious disease that affects 7.2 % of the United States adult population.¹ This illness is often influenced by genetics; more people are predisposed to develop alcoholism, or alcohol addiction, based on their DNA. While significant discoveries have been made, there is room for growth in the scientific research field surrounding the genetic factors that contribute to the development of alcoholism.This past summer, I engaged in an eight-week long internship at Rosalind Franklin University under the mentorship of Dr. Hongkyun Kim. Dr. Kim’s work focuses on researching muscular dystrophy, ion channel localization, and alcohol and excitability using Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) as a model organism. (more…)
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