Interviews
What’s Up With The Break Homework?
Written by Elene Dvali
From the twenty-second to the thirtieth of April, New York City Public Schools had Spring Recess. At Manhattan Hunter Science, this was a long-awaited break that had everyone excited. There was so much anticipation leading up to it that people were counting down the days until they could have their well-needed time off from school. Over this break, students planned to go out of state, hang out with their friends, and just relax knowing that they did not have to worry about their classes for a bit. But did they not have to worry about school? Well, even though there was a break, most students had homework assigned from at least one class, if not more. To this, people had different reactions. To find out what people thought, some Hunter students were interviewed about their opinions regarding break homework. So, what did they think?
A large number of students stated that they are not necessarily fans of break homework. One reason that was brought up was that they wanted a mental break from their day-to-day work. They explained that it would be good to take this time to rest and recharge rather than focus on getting more schoolwork done. Students also mentioned that if they did not have any homework over Spring Recess, they would be able to come back to school refreshed and ready to learn. Many shared these sentiments, even adding that they had plans that would not leave much time for completing the homework assignments. But despite this, there were still students who said that they welcomed a little bit of homework. Those who did not have plans expressed that homework seemed agreeable because it would give them something to do and would allow them to stay productive. Additionally, there was a common consensus, even among those against break homework, that review-based assignments can be beneficial. Though some may not enjoy it, they still agreed that review-based homework would be able to ensure that students did not forget everything they learned before the year. Essentially, even though not everybody found break homework necessary, they still admitted that it can have benefits.
Overall, though some students disagreed with the idea of break homework, most agreed that it can be advantageous. As they said, it would help keep their minds sharp and would keep them from forgetting everything. One of the downsides that was shared, though, was that people simply did not have the time to complete it. I believe that a balance is necessary. If the amount of homework that is assigned is small, then it will be easier for students to make time to do it. This would also allow students to rest while still keeping their memory to its fullest. By having only a little bit of work to do over the break, the benefits of homework can be reaped while its negatives are minimized. But what do you think, is break homework necessary?
Super Socials : Hero or Villian
Written by Jay Rubin
In this society social media is something that has become a part of our day to day lives. Kids download them younger and younger throughout generations and it has definitely left an impact on adolescents and how they grow up, whether that be good or bad.
Junior Harpal Bharati had Instagram, Snapchat, and Tiktok downloaded for the simple reason that everyone else had them. She uses Instagram on a daily basis, TikTok when she needs something to pass the time, and Snapchat for extra storage. Bharati stated, “I downloaded Instagram and TikTok during middle school and I think that’s an okay age to have social media. I think downloading it earlier would not have benefited because kids that young shouldn’t have access to the media. I don’t regret downloading it because it’s a way for me to connect with my friends and other people but I do think we’re spending a little too much time on social media.”. She believes that social media has the capacity to harm people’s mental health. A plethora of drama erupts specifically among younger generations such as ours. However, it can also be a good way to connect with friends and share your experiences visually.
Sophomore Zsófia Rácz has Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and Whatsapp downloaded for communication and entertainment purposes. She uses them on a daily basis for an average of about 3 hours collectively. She got Instagram and Whatsapp at 12 followed by Snapchat and Tiktok a few years later. Rácz was not affected by it that much, though she is glad she didn’t get it any younger. There were no regrets from her when it came to downloading them because she has long distance friends that she enjoys being able to talk to. Rácz states, “ I think social media does more good than harm because unless we're talking about children who have their faces on screens all the time, I don't think it's too big of a distraction for people our age. It's also a platform to promote many important things, though it can be toxic. I think as long as people are educated about the dangers of coming into contact with strangers on social media and about not believing everything they see there, it's overall a positive experience for most people.”.
Sophomore Afsara Monzur has Instagram and TikTok downloaded. She uses them frequently and on a regular basis. She downloaded Instagram at 11 years old without permission from her parents because everyone else had an account. She was desperate to fit in and allowed it to consume all her time. She regrets this because like many others, she became addicted. Throughout middle school she slowly transitioned into being extremely antisocial and she wishes she had downloaded it at around the age of 14 instead. Monzur stated, “I feel like being on social media does more harm than good more to our youth in general. Because society is so opinionated, and how people look or do anything that if you do one thing you’ll get dragged for it so being on social media is pretty hard and sometimes you might feel insecure or not yourself because of how people might perceive you. Which is why sometimes I feel like I’m not old enough to be on Instagram but it’s all about the person that you are and how You can keep a good balance of social life with your real life.”.
Sophomore Vi Huang has Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit downloaded for entertainment. They use these apps a few times a day. Huang began to download social media at the age of 11 and does not believe it had an effect on them. They do not regret it as they don’t believe the world around them would have changed if downloaded at a different age. Huang believes there is a mix of good and bad when it comes to social media. They state, “There’s toxicity, but there’s also acceptance. Online bullying is very toxic, but also finding out about communities that you are part of can be very accepting.”.
Sophomore Cris Guncay has Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and Facebook downloaded in order to be able to connect with friends (with the exception of Facebook). She also uses social media to relax and be entertained with the new trends. Guncay uses Instagram and TikTok daily whereas the others are used infrequently. She downloaded social media at the age of 10 and believes she would have benefited from downloading it at an older age. Guncay feels that she had too much exposure to online content at such a young age. Though, she does not regret having it because she enjoys being able to connect with her friends and other people in the world. Guncay states, “I think social media is more harmful as it has set standards that people feel a need to follow. The beauty standards or seeing how children are adapting to feel much older. Also the double standards that appear on social media or seeing how kids screen times are much higher in comparison to free agents nowadays. If you see how others experienced screen time by itself there’s a drastic change.”.
In conclusion, there are many mixed opinions on whether social media is good or bad. Social media is negative in the sense that it can be unsafe, as well as the fact that many people end up spending all their time on it instead of socializing. With all of this, social media does have good aspects such as being able to bring people together and allowing them to connect in ways that they otherwise would not be able to.
Autism Acceptance Month
Written by: Gianna M. Rodriguez-Cerda
Autism spectrum disorder, or rather autism, is a developmental disability that affects how a person interacts with the world. This disability comes in many different forms, creating the result of each autistic person having different symptoms for the same disability. For example: Sam and Alex are both autistic, but both have different symptoms from the other. Sam is nonverbal and participates in repetitive behavior, while Alex avoids eye contact and has a hyperfixation on tigers. Both are autistic but have completely different signs of autism. No two autistic people are the same, just like how no two allistic (non-autistic) people are the same.
Society and Autism
A great deal of people know of autism but not many know about autism. Most ideas of autism are based heavily on stereotypes and misconceptions, or ableism.
Believing that autistic people are unintelligent/geniuses is one of the bigger stereotypes out there. Many believe that autistic people are unintelligent and unable to care for themselves, which simply isn’t true. While it is true that those considered to be more “low-functioning” need more support in their lives, to suggest that these autistic are unintelligent isn’t true and doesn’t help anyone. Autistic people who need more support are just as capable of thinking as an allistic person. The same goes for believing that all autistic people are savants, as this can undermine autistic people who need more support, as not everyone is a super genius.
A misconception about autism that’s commonly believed is that women cannot have autism. Due to this misconception, many girls and women go undiagnosed leading them to go without the help they need. The reason this misconception exists can be found when you realize that mostly boys were used to base the criteria for autism and that due to social factors, autistic women tend to mask (act allistic) due to pressures by society for women to act a certain way (social, being ‘soft’ and delicate, not being rowdy).
Ableism is the discrimination of neurodivergent and disabled people, and when it comes to autism one of the most concerning ableist ideas is that autism needs to be ‘cured.’ This notion is heavily rooted in eugenics (the belief that some people are inferior and should be erased from the gene pool), and shouldn’t be taken lightly. While discovering a ‘cure’ doesn't sound bad at first, we as a society should ask ourselves why we would want a cure for a disability that doesn't cause harm to the recipient, and that isn't even feasible to create. Not only that, but autistic