Crafting a New Way of Teaching: Could MEE Change the Way Schools Teach Students?

With the passing of Minecon 2016, held in Anaheim California, many new features were introduced to the popular game Minecraft, including another version of the game that may be appearing soon in grade schools across the country. Minecraft Education Edition will be launching on November 1 for the PC. The purpose of this project is to use the game of Minecraft to invoke creativity and thoughtful thinking in schools, and it seems to be working.

The difference between MEE and vanilla Minecraft is quite significant. There are no mobs (or “bad guys” for all of you non-crafters), which takes the discouraging aspect out of the game. Classroom servers can currently hold up to 30 players, plus an additional one to two non-player-characters, usually played by the teachers. The class is given a task, and students then have to work together to complete it. The task is usually based around building something they have learned, or learning how to craft different things.

Minecraft Education Edition is doing four things, the first being student engagement. Most students are constantly around electronics whether it be the TV or their cellphones, and when you introduce that into a learning environment, kids become more passionate and engaged as to what the instructor is teaching. Secondly, Minecraft Education Edition is designed in a way that requires students to collaborate. This includes solving a challenging problem by working together as a class. Thirdly, students are getting a chance to use their creative minds. Minecraft is a game based off creativity and imagination; thus, students are able to playfully express themselves in the classroom. Lastly, this game will provide satisfying learning outcomes. When a child finishes a task in the game, they feel more confident with him or herself, and they learn to be more independent.

In a video on Youtube, Lydia Winters, Brand Director for Minecraft, said, “Minecraft Education Edition will prepare students for their future education, and how they work together with others.”  

By: John Erickson, Editor

SALT: It's Purpose

Christians can sometimes feel like they have to have it all together, but what happens when a Christian school or church becomes a place where someone can’t really share what’s going on in their life? This can lead to discouragement, loneliness and a lack of community.  

SALT is a student-led group that strives to give people a place where they can be honest and open with each other.  Calvin Christian High School student Trokon Karngar describes it as, “a place where you can talk about the real things in life”.  Another one of SALT’s goals is to have spiritual openness with each other and to pray for the school and to do God’s kingdom work in it. “SALT’s goals are to spiritually impact those around us and in the school,” said Trokon.

Trokon says, “There's been a stereotype over private schools that say we are perfect people and don't have problems like anxiety or depression. The fact of the matter is we are all still human and live in a broken world. But God gave us people to share our struggles.”

SALT always welcomes additional people to the group, and anyone interested in seeing what SALT has to offer should come visit during a SALT meeting.  SALT takes place on Friday during lunch in the Breakout Room (located off of the Upper Room).

Q&A with Trokon Karngar

How would you describe SALT?

“SALT is a place where you can talk about the real things in life. There's been a stereotype over private schools that say we are perfect people and don't have problems like anxiety or depression. The fact of the matter is we are all still human and live in a broken world. But God gave us people to share our struggles.”

What would you say are SALT’s Goals?

“SALT's goals are to spiritually impact those around us and the school. I'd say the another goal would to have people be more trusting with each other and recognize each other's fault and support each other. I'm not say the whole school has to share deep stuff with the whole school but more of have one or two friends to talk with.”

How has SALT impacted your life?

“SALT has impacted my life by allowing me to talk about things going on in my life that brings me down or I see as flaws. They are flaws, but I can now see I can do something with them and make my life better.”


By: Anna Silker, Writer

The Harmful Gap Between Christian Media and the Secular World

At CCHS, or any Christian school for that matter, if you ask a student what kind of music they listen to, “Christian music” will likely be somewhere in their response. At Barnes & Noble or the library, you may see a section labeled “Christian fiction.” Movies that are specifically “Christian” come out every year. In an odd manifestation of Christian detachment from culture, Christian media has become its own genre.

Christian media, whether it is intended to reach a secular audience or not, often remains untouched by non-Christians. And who can blame them? With all the half-baked, sugarcoated, “inspirational” movies, thriller novels with Biblical messages tacked on in odd places, or enormously bizarre manga versions of the Gospels, it’s no small wonder that Christian media is largely ignored by the rest of culture. But, the second-rate quality of much of Christian media, though it is certainly detrimental, is not necessarily its biggest issue. In fact, the most significant problem with Christian media is that it exists at all. When “Christian” exists as a genre, it creates a barrier that is difficult for someone who is not a Christian to cross over,

To illustrate why the separation between Christian and secular media is a problem, let me give an example from the days before “contemporary Christian” was a music genre. Rock bands expounding Christian messages, though they generally did not enjoy the success that mainstream bands did, played at secular venues and were published by secular labels. A band like Glass Harp could open for The Kinks with rock versions of hymns,  and though the venue owner might cringe in embarrassment when they sang, “I took Jesus as my saviour, you take him too,” he couldn’t deny the quality of their guitar solos. And the band couldn’t go to a Christian venue or a Christian label, because there weren’t any. That kind of evangelism is much more uncommon now.

Admittedly, many of the first Christian media companies were made because of secular companies’ unwillingness to accommodate entertainment with an obvious Christian bent. But to the people who think that the answer is to keep on writing books for Christian publishers, making music for Christian labels, and creating movies for Christian companies, I would say that they are preaching to the choir. Similarly, when Christian media producers use increasingly peculiar methods to attempt to get non-Christians to even glance at their work, I would say that they are only further widening the gap.

So what is the answer? I would say it is to create art and entertainment within the secular media. Here, we can go back to the issue of quality. We, as Christians, must make works of truth that are good in and of themselves; not “Christian” books but good books, not “Christian” movies but good movies, not “Christian” music but good music. These are the vessels that can display Christian truth, whether it be obvious or not-so-obvious to the larger world, not via an outside-in method (how can we get non-Christians to like Christian media?), but rather a method focused on changing things from the inside.

By: Nicole Krueger, Writer

The Rise of Hurricane Matthew Ravages Haiti, Causes Wreckage in Southern United States

On September 22, Hurricane Matthew began as a tropical wave that originated from Africa’s coast. On September 29, it was officially classified as a hurricane 190 miles off of the North East coast of Curacao. A day later, with record-breaking speed, it achieved Category 5 intensity, the highest category possible for a hurricane.

“It stayed a Category 4 or 5 hurricane longer than all Atlantic hurricanes from the past eight years combined,” said CNN’s Holly Yan, in an hour-by-hour update of the hurricane. Coming into contact with land mass, as well as cool air, tends to help kill a hurricane. Matthew, however, avoided contact with land as long as it could, which made it the longest-lived October hurricane yet, according to CNN.

Haiti was devastated by this hurricane. Just six years ago, it was struck by an earthquake that killed at least 100,000 people. Many Haitians were just beginning to recover when Matthew hit, killing 804 in less than a week.

From as far north as North Carolina, floods have been reported in the US, causing some 2,000 people to evacuate. “In Fayetteville, North Carolina, water levels have reached 22 feet above flood stage,” said Rick and Bonnie Wiersma, World Renew relief workers in an interview with Disaster Response Services. “Some rivers there are still rising and have yet to crest.” As of right now, there have been 47 fatalities in the United States.

Although the hurricane has now receded (as of October 10), there are still evacuations going on. AirBNB has offered 3,000 houses — free of charge — to people displaced by Matthew, in an effort to bring relief to the victims. Help can be brought by the Calvin community too; donations toward a relief fund can help make a big difference. The aftermath of the hurricane is still claiming lives.

By: Sophia Marcus, Writer

Student Highlights 2.0

Annika Dykstra

Age:

14

Birthdate:

07/11/2002

Biggest fear?

Life.

Favorite quote?

“Lemons can be used to make lemonade.”

What’s on your bucket list?

Come up with better quotes!

What’s your favorite TV show?

Friends, Bones, The 100 and Stranger Things.

If you had a time machine where would you go?

Back in time. I would also like to go back in time to my parents’ proposal to see my mom sitting alone at a restaurant.

Describe yourself in five words?

Fun, Cute, Sarcastic, Volleyball, God.

If you could vacation in one country where would it be?

The country with the least amount of people.

If a genie appeared and offered you one wish (besides more wishes) what would you wish for? I would wish to be really smart so that I could do my homework right away, then after that I could do whatever I wanted to do like watch tv.

Lydia Eidsvoog

Age:

15

Birthdate?

07/18/2001

Biggest fear?

Spiders

Favorite quote?

“When life gives you lemons make lemonade.”

What’s on your bucket list?

To bring one person to Christ.

What’s your favorite TV show?

Race to The Edge

If you had a time machine where would you go?

I would love to go back in time to my parents wedding.

Describe yourself in five words?

Funny, Books, Smart, God, Kind.

If you could vacation in one country where would it be?

England.

If a genie appeared and offered you one wish (besides more wishes) what would you wish for?  

I would wish for my money to never run out.

By: Emma Natedal, Writer

Student Presidential Election Poll

A poll of Calvin Christian High School (CCHS) students shows that as of October 19, 50 percent of students said that they would vote for Donald Trump in the upcoming presidential election if they had the chance, while a mere 7.1 percent said that they would vote for Hillary Clinton. Numbers like this may be caused by an apparent interest in the libertarian candidate, Gary Johnson, as he gained the hypothetical vote of 42.9 percent of polled students.

The poll was sent out to CCHS students asking a simple question, “If you were able to vote in this upcoming presidential election, who would you vote for?” They were given the option to cast their vote for any of the four running candidates, or write in an alternative (which, no students did).

Third party candidate, Gary Johnson, fared almost as well as the official Republican candidate, Donald Trump, while Jill Stein, Green party candidate, did not get any votes from students. While it is not unheard of for a third party candidate to poll as well as Johnson did, it is interesting to note that the official Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, received only a small fraction of the student support that Johnson did.

These numbers only further prove that this election is a unique one. While most CCHS students will not be casting their vote in November, it is still important to be thinking about the tough choice America will make on Election Day.

By: Miriam Nelson, Writer

A Plague of Frogs: Pepe and Hillary Clinton

Recently, Hillary Clinton’s website has added an entire section dedicated to calling out Donald Trump’s campaign for associating with white supremacy. Why is this? Well, it’s because he retweeted an image of Pepe the frog, a popular meme. In Clinton’s mind, it seems as if retweeting Pepe makes you a white supremacist. Ah, yes! Guilt by association!

Pepe’s first appearance was in a 2005 comic named Boy’s Club, then exploded in 2008 when fans of the comic started uploading images of the cartoon frog online. Pepe soon became popular on many sites, such as 4chan, an anonymous image board. Then, on May 26, 2016, the Daily Beast published an article entitled, “How Pepe the Frog Became a Nazi Trump Supporter and Alt-Right Symbol.” Clinton’s website declares, “In recent months, Pepe’s been almost entirely co-opted by the white supremacists who call themselves the ‘alt-right.’ They’ve decided to take back Pepe by adding swastikas and other symbols of anti-semitism and white supremacy.” So, now, because the alt-right has used this meme for anti-semitic and racist purposes, Pepe has been declared a hate symbol.

Could this be an overreaction? Clinton believes that Pepe has been entirely co-opted by the alt-right. What Clinton appears to be unaware of is that on 4chan, 8chan, and other such forums, people will use various images to promote their racist agenda. It doesn’t mean that those memes communicate a racist or anti-semitic connotation to those outside those contexts. If she is aware of this, then it’s a sweeping generalization unjustified by context. Consider that the Anti-Defamation League, who include Pepe as a hate symbol, acknowledge that most of the time he is not used in a hateful context. Pepe is often used outside of alt-right groups and forums. For example, Tumblr, which was one of the places where he became famous, still mainly uses Pepe in a neutral context.

We should note that an image is not anti-semitic just because it is used by racists to perpetuate anti-semitism and white supremacy. Indeed, much of the posting involving Pepe in anti-semitic contexts are spread by trolls who take delight in stirring up trouble. So, some may believe that all this is evidence of racism, but it really is not. For example, anime is not anti-semitic, but people still edit anime girls and put them in Nazi uniforms.

What’s disturbing to me about Clinton’s campaign is that, with some research, they should have known that they were misrepresenting Trump. While I may disagree with Trump, it seems unethical to misrepresent someone to hurt their election. Clinton is making it seem like Trump is anti-semitic because he retweeted an innocent picture of a frog. It’s unlikely that Trump even knew that Pepe was sometimes associated with anti-semitism. Surely, Clinton’s campaign knew that Pepe is not an anti-semite. Pepe is a frog.

By: Ava Krueger, Editor

The CCS Challenge: Being active, and strengthening friendships

The Calvin Christian School Challenge, which took place on Saturday, October 1, was a great time where students from all three Calvin campuses gathered together around Lake Harriet for a time of bonding and friendly competition.

The purpose of the CCS Challenge is to bring all campuses together in an effort to fundraise and connect the three schools. Caleb Modder, a 10th grader at CCHS said, “I just love how it builds community and shalom so well; it just brings us together as a school.”

This year’s event gathered almost twice as many participants than in previous years, amounting to at least 400 people registered. “The 5K began as a bikeathon, combining private schools in the area. The organizer of the event retired, but Calvin wanted to continue the tradition in an effort to engage the Calvin community, ” said Lisa De Kam, the CCS coordinator.

Hopefully everyone had a fun time and will come again next year!


By: Sophia Marcus, Writer

Student Highlights

Kaatje Bruin

Age:14

Birthdate: February 5, 2002.

Biggest fear:

Needles. I can’t stand getting shots.

Favorite quote:

“I see now that the circumstances of one’s birth are irrelevant. It is what you do with the gift of life that determines it.” ~Mewtwo

What’s on your bucket list?

I want to go to France and Ireland because they are really pretty.  

What’s your favorite TV show?

I have multiples: Over the Garden Wall is very good.

If you had a time machine where would you go?

I want to go to the 1980s, when they had vinyl and stuff, because that’s cool.

Describe yourself in five words:

I’m an introverted meme, yo.

If you could vacation in one country where would it be?

New Zealand, because it’s really pretty there, and there’s a lot of green.

If a genie appeared and offered you one wish (besides more wishes) what would you wish for?

I would want to wish for Christianity to be spread throughout the world so that more people would know about it.

Connor Distad
By: Nicole Krueger, Writer

Age: 14

Birthdate: May 26, 2002

Biggest fear:

Falling from heights.

Favorite quote:

Marty McFly: Hey, Doc, we better back up. We don't have enough road to get up to 88.

Dr. Emmett Brown: Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads.

~ Back To The Future

What’s on your bucket list?

Go to New York City.

What’s your favorite TV show?

Spongebob, because it’s been my favorite since I was a kid.

If you had a time machine where would you go?

The past, to see the first atomic bomb.

Describe yourself in five words:

Fun, cats, music, food, energetic.

If you could vacation anywhere where would it be?

Europe, because I’ve never experienced anything like that; it would be a new, fun way to explore.

If a genie appeared and offered you one wish (besides more wishes) what would you wish for?

A billion dollars.

Rick's Rant: Denying the Flag by Exercising What it Stands For

The singing of the national anthem is symbolic of the great freedoms that this country has to offer. It honors the sacrifices that have been made to preserve these freedoms, and reminds people that they have a lot to be grateful for. How though, should someone respond if they do not agree with the way this country is handling certain situations?  

In response to the police violence incidents raging throughout the country, several athletes have began protesting. The first incident came in an NFL preseason game, where San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem, and since, others have been doing likewise. Athletes have access to a lot of publicity, and the protest has successfully focused the attention of the public to the key issues of police violence and racial tension.   

This protest is not controversial because it brings attention to the issues that it does, but because it also makes another statement. Standing for the national anthem is a way that people honor all of the good things that this country stands for. This method of protesting also dishonors those who have fallen for this country, whether that was intended or not.

The same freedom of speech that is celebrated by the national anthem also allows people to dishonor it, and to protest by not standing for it. The issues of police brutality and racism need to be made known, but the method of protest should be more respectful of the country.  

By: Rick Derfus, Editor