Author: 20wanga

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by Allen W '20

Choosing the Right High School: 3 Case Studies

Every year around early March, eighth graders have to make the decision of whether they want to stay in BSGE or attend another school for high school. Though many students decide to stay in this school, some decide to switch. Their new schools are different from BSGE and students take time to adapt to their environments. Two former BSGE eighth graders and a current BSGE freshman were interviewed about their thoughts on their current high schools.

The first student interviewed was Sasha Spajic ‘19. She chose to go to Stuyvesant High School, a Specialized High School in Manhattan. Sasha commented that there are many more clubs and activities offered at Stuyvesant, which she attributed to its larger physical size and student population. She also said that people appeared to be in a greater rush to get somewhere during and after school, which was different from the somewhat laid-back atmosphere at Baccalaureate.  She continued by saying, “Stuyvesant was hard to adapt to at first, unlike BSGE where I was able to make friends quickly.” Nonetheless, she chose to attend Stuyvesant rather than BSGE because she believed that Stuyvesant offered more courses, academic activities,  and after-school activities to choose from. The major downside for her is that Stuyvesant is less accessible, since she lives in Queens but Stuyvesant is downtown. The only similarity Sasha mentioned is that she didn’t feel a change in the workload in either school.

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by Allen W '20

New CAS Requirements

The Creativity, Activity—formerly called Action—and Service Program, usually referred to as the CAS Program, is an essential part of the International Baccalaureate Diploma program through the 11th and 12th grade. CAS, one of the three core parts of the IB program in addition to Theory of Knowledge and the Extended Essay, promotes personal development as well as expanding creative interests through work that challenges individuals and helps others. In Creativity, creative thinking and the arts are the main focuses. Activity focuses on “physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle.” Finally, in Service, volunteer work is a platform for gaining a learning opportunity for the student. In addition to participating in such activities, students must make personal and group reflections to show how their work is interwoven with the CAS learning outcomes.

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by Allen W '20

BSGE’s Welcomes a Class of New Ninth Graders

As the new 2015-16 school year kicks off to a start, many new seventh grade students find themselves quickly adjusting to BSGE’s atmosphere. However, another new group of students is a handful of new ninth graders who were accepted to BSGE through the high school application process, in order to fill the empty seats left by eighth graders who transferred out of BSGE. Each year, some students leave BSGE to attend other public and private high schools, and as a result a limited number of seats are available for applicants. In the end, fifteen lucky ninth graders students from all over the city were admitted to BSGE.

Though most current ninth graders (Class of 2019) have been in BSGE for a good two years, these few new high schoolers are just beginning to adapt to the IB-focused environment. They have mixed first impressions about the school, but most of these students agree that the school offers a different perspective on education.

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