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Students on the quad

CA Curious

Education in the Round

October 10, 2019

The junior was standing in front of U126. Twenty students had scattered themselves about the classroom, slouching in chairs, sprawling across the couch, or propping their elbows on tables. They were chatting and surreptitiously scanning their phones and trying to ignore my presence.

I had walked in, a few moments late.

“Ok,” the junior said, raising his voice above the general murmur. “So pay attention. It’s intricate, but if you watch, you’ll start to understand.”

He paused, making sure that he had everyone’s attention. The chatter subsided.

I was intrigued: he was about to address a subject that had mystified me for years.

“So, I’m going to show you this YouTube video. Here are the basics of how you play cricket,” he announced.

***

I’ve made a habit of stepping into the student world whenever possible. Certainly, I visit classrooms, watching the teachers work their magic and the students grow through the curriculum. But I’ve loved witnessing the education that occurs in the spaces between—the breaks, the outdoor sojourns, the club times; in other words, the education that blossoms outside classrooms.

Consider the hallway conversations. Yes, I hear the expected—the drama, the grumblings, the anxiety over grades, homework, and tests.  But I also hear something else: curiosity.

The discussions from math and English, history and science, art and languages spill into the Collabalounge and CMS during free periods because the students, so inspired, can’t help but move beyond the expected. So, I tiptoe past intense arguments about literature, even though no teacher is grading the seminar.

Or students will strike up a conversation with their language teachers in German, French, Chinese, or Spanish in the middle of the Dining Hall, because that’s what one does at CA.

Or students will practically squeal about the intricacies of a math problem as they debate solutions over the white board in the CMS hallway.

The outdoor education extends to the Quad. Several weeks ago, a group of students filtered into the sunshine, guitars in hand, Mr. Qiao trailing after them. I watched for a few moments from my office, then wandered outside. One ninth grader, sitting off to herself, smiled as I asked what she was working on. “I can show you,” she said. “Want to hear me play this piece?” And she treated me to an informal concert, all the more impressive considering that she had been playing for only a few weeks.

Outside learning isn’t limited to the academic or artistic. Consider Spike Ball, that phenomena that has swept the CA campus. Haven’t seen the game? Imagine playing racquetball, but using one’s hands instead of a racquet, and employing a trampoline in place of a wall. Formal and informal tournaments have developed on the Quad, students diving and cheering and groaning, depending on how they served the ball, setting up (or failing to set up) their partners. And best of all, the participants referee themselves, relying on honesty as a guide. I marvel at the lessons in teamwork, fairness, and organization that I see every day.

For the past few Fridays, I’ve also visited several affinity groups. Almost all the students were grappling with challenging questions. One cadre was debating the nature of identity, especially for second-generation Americans. Another group, on a different day, was analyzing the nuances of gentrification. A third cohort was discussing citizenship and ethnic identity and the crazy, clashing, wonderful definition of self that emerges as a result.

Or, in the case of the students in U126, they tackled the importance of a world-famous sport, attempting to explain its intricacies to those Americans unschooled in the rules. That short video lecture was followed by an abbreviated game on the Quad, along with delicious treats.

In that twenty-minute lesson, I learned about a game played by a large portion of the world, a competition involving passion, intricate rules, and a weighty history.

All of these examples illustrate how our students have embraced the ethos of learning. They delve into the messiness that is learning, the color-splashed area beyond tests and grades, focusing on reasoning and discussion and performance and feedback and honesty.

So, as I wander through the hallways and across the Quad, I always experience that hush of expectation born from the understanding that I will witness, in some manner great or small, a beautiful act of education.

Written by Robin Follet, Head of Upper School

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CA Speech and Debate had one of its best showings ever at the 27th annual Yale University Invitational Tournament, with four students placing in the top 10 of their respective events.

Congratulations to:

  • Casey Powell for reaching the Semifinal round of JV Lincoln Douglas (Top 4)
  • Allie Chandler for reaching the Quarterfinal of JV Lincoln Douglas (Top 8)
  • Natasha Sachar for getting Double-Octos in JV Lincoln Douglas
  • Colin Zhu for getting 9th in Parliamentary “Debate”
  • Alex Lim for reaching the Semifinal round of Humorous Interp (9th)
  • Bayla Sheshadri for reaching the Semifinal round in Original Oratory (14th)
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The American Baseball Coaches Association has awarded the Spring 2019 varsity baseball Chargers with the “Team Academic Excellence Award.” Cary Academy was only one of two high schools in North Carolina to receive this national recognition, awarded annually since 1949. In order to be nominated for the award, teams must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (without rounding-up).

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Upper School students gathered in the quad on Monday for their annual club fair. Over twenty student-led clubs and organizations were present, each one encouraging fellow students to pursue a long-held passion, or perhaps even discover a new one.

“Most clubs are almost entirely conducted by the students,” says director of experiential learning Michael McElreath. “The faculty supports them, of course, but the clubs don’t exist without the student’s passion and drive. Since we put more emphasis on student leadership, campus involvement has flourished, and the joy and creativity fostered by the kids in their respective clubs definitely has a spillover effect into other aspects of their lives on campus. For many students, the clubs are a way to find their ‘niches’ at Cary Academy.”

In accordance with Cary Academy’s dedication to fostering a diverse level of interests in its student body, the club fair displayed a wide range of subjects, from competitive robotics to step team to indoor track.

“I joined the step team in ninth grade, and I’ve had such an amazing experience,” says Oyinlola Iowal ’20. “In fact, I met my best friend through step.”

Many clubs even seek to combine many interests into a single, immersive learning experience, such as the World-building Club, which challenges students to create their own fictional worlds, complete with unique atmospheres, societies, and political systems.

“World-building blends elements from a variety of subjects, including physics, language, biology, political science, and even astronomy,” says Sam Dietrich ’20. “Even you if you don’t have an interest in writing fiction, there’s something for everyone.”

In addition to providing a wealth of creative outlets, Cary Academy’s clubs also seek to foster a sense of community amongst every demographic of its students, such as the African-American Affinity Group, a club that seeks to unify Cary Academy’s black student population.

“It’s an honor to be a part of one of the oldest clubs at Cary Academy,” says the club’s president, Mesha Mumford ’20. “We promote interdisciplinary discussion on a wide variety of current issues that affect our community, all while uplifting one another.”

No matter the focus of the club, each student organization adds its own unique flavor to life at Cary Academy.

“There’s a lot of diversity in what we do,” says John Kesler ’20, a member of the robotics team. “I program, others build, but we’re all equally important, and none of us can succeed without the other.”

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Competing in the 2019 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships, in Budapest, Hungary, Charlotte Hook ’21 earned a bronze medal in the Women’s 200M Butterfly. Hook, who already made waves in July, becoming the all-time third-fastest 15-16 year old woman in U.S. swimming history, missed out on the Junior World Championships silver by .07 seconds, finishing in 2:09.00. Following her performance, Hook is now qualified for the U.S. national team, based on her Women’s 200m Butterfly time being in the top six times for all U.S. female swimmers, regardless of age. Hook will compete for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team in June 2020.

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The 2019 International Leadership Conference (ILC) of HOSA-Future Health Professionals (formerly Health Occupations Students of America) was held June 19-22 at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Orlando, Florida.

Cary Academy had two students who qualified to represent North Carolina at the conference after placing in the Top 3 in the state at the State Leadership Conference (SLC) in Charlotte in March: Liya Chen (Class of 2019), who placed 3rd at the SLC in Pharmacology and Eric Wang (Class of 2020) who placed 1st in Epidemiology.

At the conclusion of the 2019 ILC, Eric Wang was awarded 1st place in Epidemiology of all secondary students worldwide!  This is a phenomenal accomplishment and a HOSA first for Cary Academy!

According to HOSA advisor, Troy Weaver, Liya invested tremendous preparation for her competitive exam and will now take her knowledge to UNC-Chapel Hill, where she was admitted to their competitive pharmacy program!

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Cary Academy’s Speech and Debate team is in Dallas this week competing in the National Speech and Debate Association’s National Tournament. We are pleased to announce that Becca Segal (Class of 2020) has advanced to the final round of Extemporaneous Commentary which will take place at 2pm CDT (3pm EDT) on Friday, June 21, 2019.

Tune into the live stream (https://live.speechanddebate.org/) to see Becca speak at 3pm EDT, as well as to see the results as they are announced at the awards ceremony at 8:30pm EDT.

Eleven CA Speech and Debate Team members have been competing in Congress, Extemporaneous Speaking, POI (Program Oral Interpretation), World Schools, LD (Lincoln Douglas) since June 15. The National Debate and Speech Tournament has been held across the country since 1931, and today is the largest academic competition in the world. Each year, more than 4,500 high school students and 850 middle school students compete in a week-long competition to claim the prestigious title of national champion within each division.

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Over Memorial Day weekend, in May, Speech and Debate traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin for the National Catholic Forensic League Championships, where Alex Lim (Class of 2022) took 4th overall, nationally, in Declamation Speaking, out of approximately 250 students who won a place at the tournament. Alex delivered a speech: “What I Learned from 100 Days of Rejection” by Jia Jiang.  Alex, a ninth grader, interpreted the speech incorporating humor, a couple of funny characters and an important message about why we should all embrace rejection to help us grow.  Declamation doesn’t ask the competitors to copy or mimic the original speaker, but instead to take a new spin on it and interpret the words for meaning and clarity.

Will Aarons (Class of 2020) also broke to Double Octos in Lincoln Douglas Debate.  Colin Zhu (Class of 2020), Georgia Moorhead (Class of 2021) and Han Zhang (Class of 2021) came very close to breaking in Debate, and Sydney Tai (Class of 2022) was close to breaking in Declamation.

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