Volume No.

The Wah Yan Times

Published by Wah Yan College, Kowloon

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Investigative Challenge: Which teacher graduated from HKU with a firstclass honours degree? By Junior Editor, Herman Lam 3W and Junior Reporter, Jason Wong 1W;
Edited by Senior Editors, Jonathan Wong and Isaac Tam
me Master Philip Chan. First of all, during the Middle Ages, the relationship between a teacher and a student was known as master and apprentice. Second, according to one of Master Chan Visiting the Taer Monastry the aims of Jesuit in Qinghai Province Photo: Master Chan education, the relationship between a Master Chan is the Histeacher and a student can tory teacher for most junior be described as a master and students and the panel head a student. Finally, a master reof History. Most students in treats from the material world Hong Kong may think that to a certain extent. He wants History is not a pragmatic to emphasize that he centres subject, but Master Chan on spiritual instead of material chose it as his major in unipursuits when he teaches. versity due to his love of this He is enthusiastic about subject. He believes that it can the history of China and in enhance ones analytical and particular Buddhist art along communication skills. the Silk Road - an important A Diverse Student Life gateway to the West in ancient Master Chan was born in times. It was through this Hong Kong, and studied in a network of trade routes that prestigious Catholic school. China communicated with He was a student leader in Central Asia, India, Persia, the Students Association, Syria, and Rome. the Catholic Society and the Editorial Board. He went to college in the U.S. and studied Liberal Arts in Austin, Texas. He widened his horizons by meeting different people like AsianAmericans, African-Americans and Hispanic-Americans. This also gave him a chance to learn the proper way to interact with others. For the third year of his Bachelors degree, he attended the University of Hong Kong, where he spent another two years for his Masters degree in addition to one more year for his postgraduate Diploma in Education. He graduated with a First-Class Honours for his history degree and attained a scholarship for his postgraduate studies. monuments and religious sites there.

A HEATED DISCUSSION
By Junior Reporter, Timothy Yeung 2W

Teaching Life

Love of Travelling

The Master Mystery

There are three reasons why I let my students call

Master Chan believes travelling can help him understand more about a place beyond the knowledge in books. When conducting research for his Masters Degree, Master Chan spent one year travelling along the Silk Road, both the Chinese section and the Central Asian section. He learnt Mandarin in Northern China and communicated well with the other scholars in his field in Xinjiang and Uzbekistan. Besides China, he has also made countless trips to Japan. He travelled across Kyoto, the capital of Japan before Meiji Reform, to Tokyo, the current capital since 1868. His most exciting journey in Japan was to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the two places devastated by atomic bombs in WWII. He took many pictures of historic

He became a teacher because teaching is his lifelong goal and he believes the job safeguards a stable pension. Prior to teaching at Wah Yan, Master Chan served in some other band one schools where he taught English Language as a core subject with History and Geography as minor subjects. He had been a panel head of History for three years in another well-established coeducational school. Students selected him as one of the ten most popular teachers there. He thinks that Wahyanites are the best students hes ever taught. He said that his current students are extremely passionate about studying. Master Chan said that he appreciated the academic freedom in Wah Yan. During his lessons, he insists on using English though its difficult to explain some historical terms without Cantonese. Its simply because Cantonese is not allowed here as Wah Yan is an Englishmedium school, said Master Chan. He accepts the reality that the majority of Hong Kong students do not like studying History, but he supposed that they have not used the right method. In order to make studying history a pleasure, he suggests students to transform boring texts into funny images, including concept maps, political cartoons, fine art and world maps. Errata Oops, the winner of the Chinese New Year photo competition in last issue was Matthew Lau from 2W not 5K.

council meeting was held on March 30 from 4 pm to 7 pm in the Student Activity Centre concerning the reformation of the Sports Committee and the issue of the Coach Fee. The Sports Committee was seeking approval to be reformed into the Sports Association, stating that it would increase efficiency and enhance sports development. The main reason to reform is that communication between the Liaison Board of Clubs and Societies, the Sports Committee and Clubs takes a lot of time, and by reforming the Sports Committee, the communication time could be greatly reduced, claimed Fung Kwun Ping, chairman of Sports Committee this academic year. In the Premiere Leagues, referees are needed from other clubs. We first had to contact the Liaison Board, then [the Liaison Board] contact the clubs. This process is tedious and inefficient. If the Sports Committee could be reformed into the Sports Association, all the

The fourth extraordinary

Sports Clubs would be under the Sports Association. Communication could be ameliorated. Funds specified for sports could also be received sooner, as procedures would be less wearisome, said Fung. Ever since the school's controversial policy to collect Team Coach Fees from students has been imposed, there has been much criticism. According to the School Management, on the eve of the final day of the InterSchool Athletics Meet on February 23, the principal noticed six athletes still had not paid the fee, so the school administrators withheld their Hong Kong School Sports Federation (HKSSF) cards. One athlete, who had not yet competed, refused to pay and expressed that he would withdraw. His fee was finally paid by the athletic team captain and several members. No team members had to withdraw from the competition because of inability to pay or non-payment of the coach fee, according to a statement from the School Management. (Cont. on page 2)

Photo Competition Winner

(Topic: Biodiversity)

A dragonfly at Li Cheng Uk Swimming Pool Photo by Michael Yeung 4C

Judges Words: Its really hard to take a still shot of a dragonfly. This photo shows Yeungs skills on taking dynamic targets. It also reminds us that wildlife is always around us, no matter when and where.

Edited by Senior Editor, Jeffrey Fong 4K

Page 2

A HEATED DISCUSSION
(Cont. from page 1) The School Management Committees Statement on the Collection of School Team Coach Fee avowed that the policy aims to relieve the financial burden of the school and to encourage better attendance. Although the statement claimed that the number of team members with 80% attendance had risen from 42%-78% in 2009/10 to 79.4% in 2010/11, the data is misleading. Data in 2009/10 was calculated differently than in 2010/11. In 2010/11, if absentees have an excuse like choir practice, training would not be considered during calculation. Therefore, the real attendance rate remains unknown. Principal Dr John Tan promised to give data with the same calculation method later. There are alternative techniques to boost attendance. In La Salle College, when team members reach a certain attendance rate, they get PARKnSHOP coupons, said form three student Yan Kang Hong. He asked the principal to consider similar techniques. On the other hand, Ms Lisa Wong criticized the negative approach toward the policy. Why are you expecting other people to pay everything for you? Why cant you pay it yourself? said Ms Wong. P.E. teacher Mr Tse Chun Ming said that things could always be considered through two perspectives sense and sensibility. There would be no problem at all if I had to ban a student from competing because he had not paid the coach fee, but considering my own feelings, I could not do so. In 2010/11, the school collected $93,300 from coach fees, and gave out $74,100 for attendance awards, only a mere $19,200 revenue. How can $20,000 relieve the financial burden? a student challenged. The principal claimed that $20,000 is the whole budget of the table tennis team, and it may not be significant for the school, but it is significant for a team. But is it worth $20,000 for all the trouble it has caused? a student asked. The principal said: I dont see any link between the media attention and the school, but see a rise in attendance. The media tends to be negative, and neglects the positive things that are happening, like the increase in attendance. The principal promised that [the policy] was not designed to be permanent, if the coaching expenses in sports would be trimmed or if recurrent subsidies for sports from the Wah Yan One Family Foundation (WYOFF) increase to a level that could sustain the existing level of recurrent expenditure, collection of coach fees might be stopped. Wah Yan One Family Foundation will be asked about the possibility of recurrent subsidies in sports in the next five years (to replace the existing practice of a year-by-year subsidy confirmed around December in each school year), and other sources of donations will also be explored. The feasibility of resurfacing the grass pitch will be explored together with potential external partners, said Dr Tan. The principal also urged students to think of ways to help the school.

COMMENTARY
Means And Ends
By Senior Reporter, Billy Wong 5S As you may know, one third of the coach-fees has been paid by school team members since last semester. There have been so many disagreements among the school team members. On February 23, the day before the Inter-school Athletic Championships final, six participants registration cards for the competition were held by the school authorities. The reason was that they had not paid the coach fee. At the end of the day, other members of athletic team paid for their teammates, so that they could finally take part in the competition. Regarding this issue, some students were heartbroken. Some were disgusted. Others disappointed. Most of the students were furious. They condemned the policy of the school. So what is wrong with the policy? Students have been told that there are two main purposes of the coach fee policy: first, to share the financial burden with the school; and second, to promote the punctuality and attendance of school sports teams training. First of all, it is reasonable for students to pay to alleviate the financial difficulty of the school. With the development of many new kinds of sports such as hockey, ice hockey, baseball, volleyball and golf the original resources will be dispersed, and consequently, the money spent on each team will decrease. In other words, you will get a smaller slice of the pie when sharing it with more people. Therefore, it is reasonable for athletes to shoulder part of the expenditure on coaches. Some may argue that the school should focus on popular sports and sports with advantages for developing. These may include sports that the present school facilities can support and sports in which school teams had past achievements. This is unfair and selfish. Every student should have the chance to play his favourite sport. Students should be glad that the school has worked hard to provide a wide platform for many kinds of sports.The school has always worked hard to provide as many opportunities as it can for students. Besides, if the school only developed and put most resources on sports that bring medals or trophies, I believe this would not be Wah Yan College, but schools that buy players. In addition, in many other schools, coaching fees are very common. School team members, of course, hope for better training with better coaches. Thus, the school has to hire professional coaches. What do you think a team would be without a coach? It would soon collapse. So would you rather pay several hundred dollars (or have your parents do it) or see the school team fail? Some students blame the school for supporting music more than sports. Choir members can go to Korea and the U.S. for only about $3000 - $4000 for two weeks while the proposal for athletic teams training in Mainland, which costs the whole team $60,000, was rejected. This is a misunderstanding. The Music Association raises funds for their activities. They hold the Annual Concert every year to raise money. Should we do the same for sports by separating the sports committee from the Students Association and setting up a Sports Association which can control and manage fund-raising functions for school sports activities? In this way, the fund-raising programs can be organized in better way, and so the team can use funds that have been raised. The idea of students paying a coaching fee isnt a problem, but when the coach fee becomes more of an admission fee, it becomes a big problem. Our athletes have to pay or be forced to

Dr Tan at Student Council Meeting; Photo: Ivy Zhang

pay in order to participate in the inter-school competitions. This doesnt make any sense. Taking part in a competition for the school is a source of pride for all students. We work hard and train hard because we all want to compete for our school in the end. Now, let us talk about the second purpose of the coach fee, which is to enhance the punctuality and attendance of students in school team training. In order to raise the attendance rate, the students are told to pay the coach fee and when they have reached 80% attendance, they can get a full refund. This sort of fee is commonly known as a down payment. Students are discontent with this policy and the coach fee will, in fact, only bring about an opposite effect on attendance. This policy has made the school teams seem like extracurricular classes, interest classes or training courses and thus students lose their determination and do not devote themselves to training. Some others are simply unwilling to pay the down payment. More absences will result, and for those who attend the training, they will have less concentration. Comparing the overall results in all kinds of sports in the Bank of China, Hong Kong Bauhinia Bowl Award of the Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation, we can find that Wah Yan College, Kowloon had a total of 100 points in 2007/08, 87 points in 2008/09 and 84 points in 2009/10, but the number dropped to only 66 points in 2010/11 when the coaching fee was first introduced. This shows a possible relationship between the coaching fee policy and our results in sport. The main reason is that the atmosphere in training has grown worse because of this policy. Of course, there are other reasons for the low attendance rate and the decreasing dedication of students in school teams. (Cont. on page 3)

Layout by Junior Designer, Jason Chung 2W

Should Athletes Pay Coach Fees Every Year?

By Junior Reporters, Niko Tang and Matthew Lau 2W

He Says, He Says
M: Isnt it our schools vision statement to provide a holistic, liberating, and transforming education, in particular the poor and the neglected? If we charge school fees, how will the poor stay on the teams? Forget about the refund, they cant even pay the initial fee! N: Poor students can apply for exemptions.

Page 3

Means And Ends

(Cont. from page 2) In parents minds, academic results, and extra-curricular activities can create a better chance of university admission. Students are told, without any degrees, they will never find wealth-generating jobs. In the end, they only care about money. Sports? They disregard it. It is seemingly unimportant to their future. Brainwashed, they would rather go the tutorial classes than join sports teams. They would rather do revision in PE lessons than play sports. Some may even not change into their PE clothes. This mindset is very wrong. Besides, it is contradictory that while the school says the policy is to share the financial burden with students, students who meet the 80% attendance critieria will get a full refund. Thanks to our past students who also disagree with the policy and who have donated so much money for sports events, students can get their money back. Then is the coach fee really necessary? Another problem is the sense of belonging to WYK. Students should be responsible sports team members who attend training regularly. Do they take pride in their membership? Wahyanites should also be proud and grateful for the environment. We have a big campus for sports training. Although the quality of the football pitch is not perfect, our school is still better than many schools which do not even have a football pitch. When every member devotes himself to training and every competition, sports teams will have excellent results and the school will be willing to give more support. The school can also help in this situation. The school can put more effort into promoting sports and separating sports into the elite and local types. For the elite type, or the school teams, who will take part in inter-school competitions and fight for glory. Students can join the school team

Niko (N): I support the

school to charge students coaching fees. Matthew (M): I think its a horrible idea, why would the school do that? N: That is for the huge amount of money that the school pays to coaches who teach the sports teams. M: The resources for that should be provided by the school, if not, request it from the Wah Yan One Family Fund. The school pays for trips to music competitions which are in excess of $10,000, I cant see why it cannot afford a bit more to help with sports? N: Of course, there are millions of dollars in the foundation, but if we spend without control, there wont be much money left. Moreover, a few years ago, our school wasnt good at music, but we got good athletic results at that M: That is exactly why we need to allocate more resources for sports. If we charge students, some may be unhappy and quit the team, resulting in a loss of talent. As I said, we have a fund that provides resources for us, why would we need to charge that much from our students then. N: As it is named, most of the fees would be the salary for coaches.

For example, the swimming team is coached by a parent of an old boy, who works voluntarily and that is why the swimming team does not have to pay a coach fee. Also, the school holds student vs teacher soccer matches on Monday after school, some of the teachers are actually very good at soccer; they could teach our soccer team in turn to spread workload.

Coach fee is an annual fee paid by students in sports teams and it varies from some hundred to $1300 (tennis team) With over 80% attendance, fee will be returned You may receive exemption from coach fees, if you are an applicant of subsidy from the government

A Few Facts

Matthew Lau 2W

M: But the exemptions need family income proof. Some people may be just out that bracket.

N: Well, I feel extremely sorry for those who are not able to apply for scholarships. Sports are about team spirit, and we should care about our teammates, and try to help them out. Moreover, many of our coaches do not work for free. In fact, some of them charge very high fees because of their high qualifications and fame.

N: However, there may only be a small number of parents who are skilled in a particular sport, and the practice timetable may clash with their jobs. It will be very hard to find such parents. I know teachers with excellent flair, but they have their own work to do. They need to teach, organize sports events and other jobs that they won't have much energy left to coach the team. Thus, there are no other solutions to fund the soaring M: Isn't that what a teacher is supposed to do? Heavy workload? That's why I suggested for them to share it with other teachers, so you just need may be an hour every week, there is more than one teacher who is good at football in the school. There are more solutions to this problem, I'm sure we can find other ways to fund our sports development which are better than requiring our students to

Niko Tang

M: Maybe it is not necessary for these coaches to teach here at Wah Yan. I'm sure some parents are good at sports, and the school could ask whether any parents want to volunteer.

by screening, and those with excellent performance will be selected. For the local type, the main purpose is to develop students interest in different sports. Holding training courses for students that cost less than those offered by other organizations would be appropriate. It is not the policy itself but the way that the school introduces the policy that is problematic. In November 2010, all school team members were invited to the hall, where each of them was given a notice on the costs of each kind of sport. The Principal, Dr Tan informed the team members that they would have to pay the coaching fee because of the schools financial difficulties. Some were pointing to the issue while others which, sadly, included the media were inappropriately pointing at individuals, and that caused disharmony between students and the school. This would have been avoided if the policy had been introduced in a more transparent way and with more communication. To make it clear, in my opinion, paying the coaching fee is reasonable, but the school should not forbid students to take part in competitions because of their inability to pay the fee. Is it the rule and money that matter or the pride and glory of the school? The school can collect the fee after the competition. Why carry out such a policy that damages the relationship between students and the school? It is all about the way to carry out the policy. The end is correct but the means are wrong. I am grateful that the Principal has communicated with the Student Council. I hope the misunderstandings and disagreement will be resolved, and sports teams will continue to receive support from the school. And, fellow students, once again, please devote yourself to all sports training. Be proud of being Wahyanites and be proud to compete for your school.

Page 4

Picture Narative: The Hike

By Curtis Cheng 1W

By Ian Shue 5Y Task: You need to write a letter back to Karen, a friend of yours whose family has moved Illustrated by Ben Chan 1J to Australia a few years ago. Karen is worried about her son Jason because he is not doing well in school.

CLASSWORK
Letter to Karen
Dear Karen,

with my friends through the hills near Sai Kung. I was the one who carried the map and so, I told my friends which way to go since I was the only one who knew how to read a map. We will turn left at the next sign. I told my friends, then I found myself tumbling down the hill at blinding speed! Ouch! Ahhh! I cried out. Luckily, the slope was covered in grass, so I just got some minor bruises and a bad headache. My friends called me from above. They told me that there was no telephone network nearby and they would walk to the next village for help. Down in the valley,

Last Sunday, I went hiking

I found a wooden box. Inside the box, I found a satellite phone. I dialed the emergency hotline 999 and the operator said a rescue team was on its way to help me. About half an hour later, some firemen arrived on the trail where my friends were and they made their way down the hill. The firemen told me they had requested a helicopter from the Government Flying Service and it would arrive in another half an hour. Finally, the helicopter came. A man on board climbed down a rope and carried me up to the helicopter, and then they flew me to the hospital to see if I had any internal injuries. Thankfully, I was not

It has been a long time since we last met. I am glad to hear that you guys are doing well in Australia. We are all fine in Hong Kong and days are the same, so theres no need to worry about us. Im sorry to hear that Jason didnt want to go to school. Maybe he has problems in school? Can I help by giving you my advice? I think the reason why Jason could not learn with others there is due to the differences between Hong Kong and Australia. There are several differences, namely cultural, educational, and language. Firstly, for the cultural difference, I think Jason still hasnt got used to life in Australia. For example, Australians prefer outdoor activities such as swimming, wind-surfing and sun-bathing as entertainment, rather than playing mahjong or singing karaoke. Also, the weather isnt the same as Hong Kong. Australians celebrate Christmas in summer while Hong Kongers in winter. Such differences may make him fail to fit into life in Australia, so he couldnt learn with others there. talkie. Bruce acknowledged that there were many robots around the campus catching students for Evil Lee. He had to hide. Bruce knew immediately one place that robots wouldnt search for boys: the womens toilet. When he got into the womens toilet, he took out his phone and dialed the police. It was either engaged or a recording saying that the police were very busy. He knew one thing in his mind, if there was no support from outside, he would be the only one who would be able to stop the kidnapping. He peeked outside through a ventilation fan, and saw students being tied and dragged

Secondly, the mother tongue of Australians is English. It may be hard for Jason to communicate with others in English only. Therefore, he couldnt express his own feelings directly. Besides, since Jason may not be familiar with English, he may not understand the instructions given by his teachers. Thus, he may get frustrated and pay little attention in class. This hinders his learning. Lastly, the problems may arise from the differences in the education system in Hong Kong and Australia. Western education emphasizes the importance of students creativity and self-motivation. They prefer students to do whatever they want so as to develop their own potential. Unfortunately, in the education system in Hong Kong, students do what they are told. As a result, Jason may lack creativity and be lost. To improve, I think Jason should join his peers more often, in order to get used to his life in Australia. He may participate in activities held by the locals, such as parties, sports friendly matches or simply hanging out with them. Through interacting with

locals, he can make friends with whom he can give a hand when they need it. Moreover, Jason should find an English tutor to improve his English skills (for example listening skills, writing skills and oral skills), then he can easily learn with others. I think you can also do something. You may have a chat with his class teacher, so as to understand your sons situation more thoroughly. For his idea of learning at home by visiting educational websites himself, I dont agree though its not a bad idea. Visiting such websites might help, but spending too much time alone may hinder the development of his communication skills. School isnt only about gaining knowledge, but also about learning how to cooperate and communicate with others. If Jason is lacking interaction skills, his interpersonal relationships may get worse and finally he may become self-centered, which is not beneficial to his future. Well Im sure things will improve soon! Your friend, Ian

Fiction: The Kidnapping

of stairs towards the western gate of the school. It was usually crowded and noisy upon students arrival in the morning. It was abnormally quiet and everyone seemed to have disappeared. Bruce rolled up his sleeves and looked at his watch as he walked through the gate. 8:19a.m. It was one minute before the first alarm and six minutes before the time Bruce usually arrives at school. What is happening? Bruce asked himself. As Bruce walked towards his classroom, he heard students sobbing. Suddenly, a voice boomed, Ill kidnap

Bruce ran up the flights

all of the students and teachers here! I was disappointed in all of you when I wasnt promoted to the panel head of science! Wahahaha! Bruce recognized the voice immediately. It was Evil Lee, the science teacher who always had an evil grin. He must have kidnapped all the students in order to take revenge. How evil he is! Then, an electronic voice came through a walkie talkie in the classroom. Master Lee, this is Captain Robot 13425. We have just caught six students. Which classroom would you like us to put the prisoners in? Almost immediately, another similar message came through the walkie

By Justin Tse 2W; Illustration by Jason Chung 2W

by green robots which had vines and leaves around them. He thought of a tactic against these robots: plants without light cannot carry out photosynthesis. If he attracts the robots into the toilet and switches off the lights, the robots will stop moving. At least, he can save a few students. He carried out his plan and amazingly, the robots morphed back into science teachers. These people are saved, but they need to get out. Bruce remembered an advertisement about a phone which could be dialed directly to the person you wish without any beeps. Luckily, a teacher had one of those phones so Bruce dialed

999. Bruce and the survivors stayed in the toilet while the police officers raided the campus. At last, a police officer found them and told them that the chaos was over. Since Bruce helped save the whole school, he was praised as the bravest boy and got the science award for his use of science knowledge to stop the robots.

Edited by Senior Editors, Jonathan Wong 5K and Alister Wong 5S, and Junior Editor Mathew Ho 2W

Devoted to Wah Yan

teacher is nicknamed Mr Bean and makes students laugh in lessons? Yes, it is Mr Percival Ho. Mr Ho said it was in 2008 when his 2Y students called him Mr Bean during history lesson. He said he has never been angry about it. Mr Ho said he joined Wah Yan in September 1996 by accident. One day, he had dinner with his old classmates from Wah Yan, and the former school principal Mr Norman So invited him to come back to Wah Yan to teach. And he did. He has been teaching in Wah Yan for many reasons. He said that the campus is large and he also enjoys the freedom of teaching in Wah Yan. By the time I became a teacher, I could prepare my own material for classes, said Mr Ho, I enjoyed the work and most of the students liked me, so I continued. Mr Ho teaches both English and History. When asked which subject he would choose if he could only teach one

TEACHER PROFILE
subject, he said that he would choose English because he studied Linguistics as a major subject in university. Mr Ho believes teaching is not only about course content; its more about preparing students lives in the future. Furthermore, Mr Ho has been managing the CAL room, where students gain access to links on global teaching and learning English through different types of media, since 2000. "Mr Ho was always very polite and has been treating us quite well. He helps us whenever and wherever we are in trouble," Yeung Chun Him, a CAL room prefect from 4W said. When asked if he had any special experience in Wah Yan, Mr Ho said, Two years ago, one day after school, I was in the Staff Common Room. There was a phone call. When I picked it up, a student told me hed found a vet because he knew one of the teachers pet was very sick. This is just wonderful, said Mr Ho, Its not about homework, or complaints. It feels like it is not just teachers who care about students. Students also care about teachers!

Jesuit Heritage

SCHOOL NEWS
Ms Cecilia Chow, the advisor of the Men for Others Organizing Committee, said Jesuits follow the example of Jesus. Teach us to give and not to count the cost. St. Ignatius of Loyola. The Jesuits have always aimed to lend a helping hand to those in need, especially the poor and the neglected. Missionaries were sent out across the globe in a large number of regions across six continents. The Jesuits have had a long history of helping others. They never hesitated to help others, whatever the cost. During the Holocaust in WWII, Jews were rounded up to be killed by Nazi Germany. The Jesuits priests risked their lives to rescue the Jews. Yad Vashem, Israels official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, has formally acknowledged the Jesuits efforts

Page 5

By Junior Editor-in-Chief, Ronald Chiu 3W

to save the Jews during the Holocaust. In April 2007, in Rockhurst University, a Jesuit university, located in Kansas City, Missouri, a plaque commemorating the 152 Jesuit priests, who sacrificed themselves during the Holocaust, was laid down. Our school is a Jesuit school which belongs to the Jesuits. The Society was formed 477 years ago by St. Ignatius of Loyola, who was its main creator and initial Superior General. Saint Ignatius sent his companions as missionaries around Europe to create schools, colleges, and seminaries. The Society of Jesus has set up numerous schools and universities around the world ever since its establishment. Its schools cover six continents and 112 countries.

By Junior Reporters, David Chan 1J, Tim Fan 1J, and Arthur Lau 1J

Guess which Wah Yan

Teaching is more about preparing students lives in the future.

on the education they have received at Wah Yan. Students enjoy the Jesuit Education offered by our school, which aims at making its students progressively competent, committed, compassionate, spiritual, and ethically discerning. Although I have no religious beliefs, it is still an honour for me to receive a Jesuit education from Fr Naylor, said Mickey Ma, a F6 student. The mention of Jesuit education stirs up memories of his F3 school life, when he was taught by Father Naylor, a dedicated Jesuit father teaching in Wah Yan for over 40 years. Wah Yan emphasizes self-discipline. Our viceprincipal, Ms Eva Chau, once remarked Freedom is not for everything, you need to take responsibility for your own choices. Thats what freedom truly is. Gavin Chan, another F6 graduate, said, Our school has done well to cultivate selfdiscipline. In addition to self-discipline, students of Wah Yan College, Kowloon also learn thinking skills. Cri tical thinking is widely taught in our school. Claudio Alan Ip, another F6 student, said, I have an interest in debating. One thing I learned is to distinguish fact and fiction, and to use my own thinking skills. teacher in Wah Yan, when asked the cause for students sleeping late, students should carefully plan their days so they might sleep early. Ms Choi, however, said that its hard to define what is late or evaluate the reasons behind, because how could you define too much homework? And when is too late to sleep? For some people, 10:30 may be late, while for others, 12:00 am is still acceptable. Also in this group of students who go to sleep late, 16 (34%) spend one hour on homework every day while 18 (38%) use two hours and

Form six graduates reflect

Class 6Y with Mr Seto on their last school day

11 (23%) need three hours. However, students who go to bed early tend to spend less time on homework. Among the 17 students who sleep at 10 pm, seven (41%) of them spend one hour on homework every day, eight (47%) of them spend two hours while 2 of them need three hours or more. As for ECA, eight (12.5%) of all surveyed students said they dont join any or only one ECA, 23 (36%) have two to three, another 23 have four to five, while the other ten said they participate in more than six activities. Asked if tutorial classes are helpful, half of them consider it is while the other half do not think so. Among the students who think tutorial classes are useful, half of them attend one to two tutorials every week, eight attend three to four while four of them go to more than five and the rest four do not go to any. For those who think there is no need for form one students to go to tutorial classes, the majority of them do not go to any and only eight go to one or two a week.

Mr Ho in 1Jclassroom; Photo: Arthur Lau to bed at or Why Form wentevery day.10:30 pmthese later Among students, 21 (45%) said it is Ones Sleep homework that keeps them awake late and the rest said other things like tasks from Late? extra-curricular activities By Junior Reporters, Jason Wong 1W, Joseph Wu 1Y, Brian Yeh 1Y, and Arthur Lau 1J

In March, a total of 64 form one students were surveyed and 47 (73%) said they

(ECA) or their own interests and hobbies keep them busy. They may have some chats or meetings with their girlfriends, or they would surf the net, worry about the next school day, or have stress, said Mr Daswani, an English

Page 6

SCHOOL UPDATE
United in Brotherhood
By Junior Reporters, Ronald Chiu 3W and Karson Yu 2W
Rhythm Of Life, in particular, was really a challenge for the Junior Choir because it was a difficult choice for our level. However, we memorized the lyrics within a short period of time and we tried our best to go through all the details of the song. We also learned to sing while enjoying our own music so people enjoy our music, too. We aim at singing with our hearts and passion, and to communicate with the others through music. We treasure the precious friendship that we built up within the past several months and I can tell you a little secret: our Junior Choir boys have a dream - to become the best Junior Choir in HK! said Ms. Agatha Fung, the Conductor of the Junior Choir. The Cake S Ensemble, formed by several alumni who played string instruments, gave a wonderful performance of Paul de Waillys "6 Pieces for Two Violins and Cello." The Greener's Sound, a mixed choir founded by members of the choir in Belilios Public School and Wah Yan College, Kowloon in 2010, then proceeded to sing "After that were Come Away, Death." The group was named after the colour of our school and Belilios Public Schools uniforms. Our principal, Dr. Tan sang "Funiculi, Funicula" with an old boy. It is a famous Neapolitan song written in 1880 to commemorate the opening of the first funicular cable car on Mount Vesuvius in Naples. The Pop Music Society had two bands performing two different songs. One consisted of old boys and one with current students. Although one of the main vocalists lost his voice towards the end of "Blackbird," their performances were still outstanding. Mr Lin, a talented tenor, then sang "The Night on the Plain" and "O Sole Mio." His performances were nothing short of amazing. According to the introduction by the Master of Ceremony, he was a parent of a student, so the meaning of "Brotherhood" can extend to the relationship between parents and sons. Last but not least, the Symphony Orchestra performed "Pictures at an Exhibition" by Mussorgsky. Their performance of "The Hut on Fowl's Legs" and "The Bogatyr Gates" were excellent that they could have been mistaken for professionals. This was the fruit of their labour throughout the year. Despite their rigorous, even strenuous practice, the Orchestra members enjoyed themselves very much. Jason Cheung, a member of the String Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra, said, "Although the practice sessions which are held almost every lunchtime cause a lot of inconvenience to me, I still enjoy them immensely." The School Hymn marked the end of the Homecoming Concert. To conclude, this year's Homecoming Concert, Brotherhood, was extremely successful and provided a rare chance for the audience to enjoy different genres of music from rock to choir, and from a cappellas to orchestras. The Homecoming Concert was held in the School Hall on February 25, with a total of 19 programmes by 13 different performers and groups. It was organized by the Past Students Association.

Intermediate Boys Choir Photo: Joseph Wu and Brian Yeh 1Y

"Brotherhood represents the

bond between brothers across generations," said Mr Lesley Chan Ka-Hei, the Conductor of the Senior and Intermediate Choirs. This year, the Homecoming Concert, Brotherhood was named so as to highlight the special relationship that exists between peers and alumni. The Old Boys Choir was the first to appear on stage. They sung Stand by Me and 'One Voice' in a cappella style, which is solo or group singing without musical instruments. The Senior Choir performed "Over the Rainbow," a song made famous by Judy

Garland. The Intermediate Choir performed "Felszallot a pava," an adaptation of a Hungarian folk song. The Junior Choir performed "And This Shall Be For Music" by Robert Louis Lightfoot and Mary Lynn Lightfoot, and "Rhythm of Life" by Cy Coleman. The choirs used the concert for practice before the competitions in March. In preparation for the Homecoming Concert, the Senior, Intermediate and Junior Choirs practiced harder than ever. Junior Choir members were excited and we worked very hard practicing the two songs. The second song, The

Number of Christians Decreased in Wah Yan

By Junior Reporters, Timothy Yeung, Justin Tse , and Matthew Lau2W

the cause of the huge decline math and number games with in Catholics in the current the pupils. The students were form one is not understood. very dedicated to winning the Meanwhile, the Pastoral Com- game and the prizes! Paul Ip, mittee, which is made up of from 2Y, a student who went devoted Christians, continues on the trip, said The trip was to hold a number of services, very inspiring. I really experiincluding a service trip to the enced the life of the students city of Luo Ding during the there. It was fun playing Easter Holiday. games with the students in the The city of Luoding is the school. Most importantly, I hometown of Mr Wan, one of learnt how to find love and Wah Yans janitors. In the trip, god in all things. fifteen students gave out learning materials, food and drinks to students of various primary schools in the city. At Luoding Central Primary School, Wahyanites played The St Ignatius Chapel; Photo: Ivy Zhang

The Pastoral Committee meets students in Luo Ding during Easter. Photo: Mr Ching Wing Kee Despite the overall growth Christianity is currently the of Christians in Hong Kong, dominant religion in Hong the numbers are decreasing Kong, and is growing. The number of Christians in Hong in Wah Yan. According to Mr Ching Wing Kee, a Science Kong has proliferated from teacher in Wah Yan, in the 670,000 in 2009 to 833,000 past, about 15% of all students in 2010, an increase of 25%, were Catholics. However, in according to the Hong Kong this years F.1 the number government Yearbook.

has ebbed to 11%. Meanwhile, Christian Fellowship, a Protestant group that meets weekly, has diminished from 14 students to a mere seven students in just three years, according to Mr Yep, the pastor of Christian Fellowship. Facing the declining number of Christians, Principal John Tan stated that Promotion of Christianity is not just the work of the principal, but the duty of all the staff. Promotion of Christianity should not promote just Baptism, but also the core values of Christianity: freedom, hope and love. The principal believes that the decrease is more or less in line [considering the total number of students], and that

Edited by Senior Editor, Isaac Tam 5K

Page 7 By Junior Reporter, Karson Yu 2W

saved our place in Division One. However, most of last years athletes have either graduated or left Hong Kong. The first day (16/2) was quite disastrous. One of our C grade 200M runners fell before the finish line. Luck didnt change in the afternoon. All 4X400 teams failed to reach the final and there was one controversial judgement. Our B grade team accidentally exchanged the baton with another school. Our school was disqualified but the other school was not. Although Wahyanites complained, the officials didnt change their judgement. At the end of the first day, Wah Yan ranked 12th out of 16 schools with 34 points. We had more luck on the second day (22/2). Most of our athletes reached the standard (1 point) and some of them advanced to the semifinal or final. At the end of the day, we were still ranked 12th. The last day (24/2) was the most exciting. Since it was a school holiday, many nonathletic team students came. The principal was also there to show his support. Some old boys came to support us too. We were determined not to be relegated. The Students Association produced some towels with our school motto In hoc signo vinces. Wahyanites were united and it seemed that nothing could stop us. All of the best young athletes around Hong Kong gathered in the sports ground to help their schools gain points. Cheers from other schools were deafening. Nearly everyone had a sore throat. At the end, we were ranked 14th with 72 points and we kept our place in Division One. The crowd went crazy and athletes thanked our teacher, Mr. Tse and team captain, Felix Cheung for their contribution over the year. WYK will compete with our brothers in Wah Yan College, Hong Kong in Division One next year.

27 Years, Still Conquering

Cosmos Chan 4K in the Inter-school Athletic Meet Photo: Jeremy Lam 5S The competition held at The Inter-School Athletics the Wan Chai Sports Ground Championship took place in mid February. Our school has was split into three days. Last been in Division One (the top year, our school beat another school by just one point and class) for the last 27 years.

Build the Time Machine

After practicing for more than two months since the end of the Christmas Examination, the Drama Team, presented Time Machine on February 17 for the Hong Kong Schools Drama Festival. The story is about a boy Ian Chan (portrayed by Tony Tsang, 3W): who likes to dance but is not good at studying. He even wishes to join the dance competition with his friends, but his father (portrayed by Timothy Wat, 3W) refuses to let him go because of his bad performance on a Mathematics test. With help from the janitor (portrayed by Ivon Sit, 1J), Ian is sent to the 70s by the time machine, when his father is studying in the same school. Ian then learns about the past school life of his father It was dark in the School Hall. Lights were up on the stage with a wooden cubicle sat on the centre stage. The audience from Class 1J and 1S sat and waited. There were a few highlights in the drama. First and foremost, there were a lot of dance moves in the drama. Some of the actors, like Tony Tsang and Jason Wong, had never danced before. At first, as expected, the dance moves were terrible

The Drama team members share their experience in Hong Kong Drama Festival.
By Junior Reporters, James Lo, Timothy Tung, and Timothy Wat 3W
and not up to par. Fortunately, Derek Lum, a past student who is an expert in hip-hop, volunteered to teach us dancing. The actors then spent a lot of time practicing with Derek Lum during the Chinese New Year Holiday. Our moves improved a lot. Although some may say that its foolhardy to perform what we are not good at, I think that our courage should be appreciated. If we never try new things, we can never succeed. The curtain was drawn and all the stage-lights were dimmed. The only thing left was silence. We, all the crew members, were very nervous since we wanted to know the response of the audience. After a few seconds, applause from the audience could be heard. At that moment, we felt relieved. Although we are still waiting for the result of the Hong Kong Drama Festival 20112012, we are all pleased already. For us, being supported by teachers and schoolmates is more important than a trophy or a medal. As Ms de Leon said, I enjoy practising with you guys, and Im proud of you. Its a bonus for us if we win a prize. (Update: Results of Hong Kong Drama Festival was announced on April 18 and our drama team won three prizes: Outstanding Script, Outstanding Coorporation while Timothy Wat and Jason Wong got the titles of Best Actors.)

By Junior Reporter, Timothy Yu 1Y; Edited by Jonathan Wong 5K

ior Boys Choir faced rival schools, DBS, Kings College, and St Pauls at the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival. Wah Yan was awarded first runnerup in the competition while St Pauls took the championship and DBS was third. That was a big day for everyone in the choir, including their tutor, Ms Agatha Fung. Ms Fung had various experiences in other competitions, but the Hong Kong Music Festival was not a game about technique. Actually, it's more like a game of luck, as Ms Fung said, It is 70 % of luck, and 30 % of technique. Our choir was surely scared although we had practiced the two songs for many months. "And This Shall be for Music" is a song about nature. The other song is "Rhythm of Life" by CY Coleman, a fast and rhythmic song. Wah Yan was the seventh team to sing, but the show after the interlude started from the sixth, so it turned out that we were the second to perform. The first team

On March 10, the Jun-

did not sing well, but we sang with great emotion. In the first song, the boys clearly sang the natural and beautiful emotion of the song. In the "Rhythm of Life," the boys did a great job of saying the fast words in a dymanic way. But no one knew St. Pauls College could sing much better than us. St Pauls chose a higher and more complicated song than Wah Yan. They sang in great unison, and when they sang, the harmony echoed in the hall. When the judge commented on Wah Yan, they said we need to improve the lower notes. Well, that's the REALITY.

Ms Agatha Fung Illustrated by Austin Ng 2W

Next Photo Competition Topic: Submit your work to wytimes2011@gmail.com Before May 15

ARCHITECTURE

Drama Time Machine

Photo: Ms de Leon

Page 8

Football Players Not Easy Jobs

Sports Commentary
By Junior Reporter, Timothy Yu 1Y; Edited by Junior Sports Editor, James Lo 3W
European Football Association (UEFA) holds the UEFA Champions League. It is a competition for all the top European football clubs. It is the worlds greatest football competition. Last years final was between Barcelona (Spain) and Manchester United (England). Both are famous and powerful teams. Most footballers agree that Barcelona has been the strongest team on earth in recent years and they didnt disappoint anyone. They defeated the Red Devils (Manchester United) 3-1 in Wembley Stadium. This year , things have changed. The Red Devils were eliminated early while Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich from Germany and also Chelsea from England entered the semi-finals. The semi-finals are Real Madrid vs Chelsea and Barcelona vs Bayern Munich, and the final will be on May 19. Now let me analyze the qualities of these four teams. Barcelona Winning rate : 90% Key players: Lionel Messi, Cesc Fabregas, Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernadez, Alexis Sanchez. Barca has the biggest opportunity to win as their past results are great. They mainly rely on ground passes, which players in the opposite side may find it hard to get possession and then counter- attack. With Messi, the worlds topstriker here, the opponents goalkeeper will never have a chance to catch his fast shots, while defenders Xavi, Iniesta and also Fabregas will be extra tired! Anyway, they have been the champion of this tourament for four times in the past two decades, so they have more experience in the finals. They have already won ten games in a row just now, so they have a lot of confidence to defeat the Blues (Chelsea). They seem to be unbeatable, with wonderful football skills and amazing short passes. fered a similar heart attack and died in 2007 at the age of 23. He collaspsed in the penalty area while playing for his club Sevilla. Three days later, he was officially reported dead. The doctor said he died of multiple organ failure. Some may wonder: did they receive medical checks before the match or if they did so as many major matches actually required, why did the tragedy still happen? After this incident , the international football governing body FIFA has already encouraged clubs to have more heart screenings before games. However, clubs could not provide medical checkups frequently due to the high costs. Believe it or not, even checkups cannot eliminate 100% risk, so there is still a high risk for football players. Muamba was saved this time mainly due to the immediate health care he received in a hospital specialized in heart diseases. Moreover, the medical care for heart diseases has advanced greatly in the past ten years. Londoners who have suffered a cardiac arrest in public are six times more likely to survive than 10 years ago, Dr Aseem Malhotra wrote in an article on the Guardian website. Football players are playing for their passion in football, so clubs and teams should give excellent medical treatment plus checkups for players so that they can be in top form while playing.

By Junior Reporter, Timothy Yu 1Y; Edited by Senior Editor-in-Chief, Alister Wong 5S

Analysis on the UEFA Champions League - Who has the biggest chance to win?
Every year , the Union of
Real Madrid Winning rate: 70% Key players : Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema, Mesut Ozil, Gonzalo Higuain. Real Madrid is one of the best teams in Europe and it has many skillful players. They are good at both attacking and defending. They usually rely on C.Ronaldo and Benzema to score. Their counterattacks are efficient and fast. With numerous world-class players, they all have excellent techniques and can usually outclass opponents defenders with their dribbling skills. Their shots are powerful too. In addition , their team manager Jose Mourinho is a fully experienced and witty man. He often lets his assistant manager manage the first half, while he would write notes on the opponents performance, and in the second half, the players would follow his new strategies to win the game . However, Real Madrid has never defeated Barcelona in 90 minutes, even under Mourinhos leadership. It is their weakness. They have a great chance getting into the final as well as Barcelona but most footballers dont think that they can defeat Barcelona and win the tourament. Bayern Munich Winning rate : 40% Key players: Mario Gomez , Thomas Muller, Frank Ribery, Arjen Robben, Bastian Schweinsteiger. They were once the winner of the UEFA Champions League. They won the UEFA champions in San Siro, Milan, in 2001 and entered the final again in 2010 but the history is not likely to be repeated in Allianz Arena, their home stadium and where this years final will take place. Although they have many great German players like Muller and Gomez, it is difficult for them to defeat an all-rounded team like Real Madrid. They usually rely on their wingers, Robben and Ribery (also called Robbery as a combination of the two names.) They always pass long shots to the middle from the corners to the poachers in front of the goal. Mario Gomez, their key striker, is now on fire and cannot stop scoring. He will surely cause troubles for Real Madrid in the semi-finals and fight for the final. Chelsea Winning rate : 30% Players to watch: Juan Mata, Fernando Torres, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and John Terry. The Blues did badly in the Premier League and hence nobody believed that they outclassed Napoli in the 16th finals, after losing 3-1 in the first leg. Then, they knocked out Benfica with a satisfying perfomance in both legs in the quarter-finals, even though Terry was injured. Now theyve come to the semi-finals, and are going to play against Barcelona. Well, Torres must be a danger to Barca. When he was playing for Atletico Madrid years ago, he scored a lot of goals whenever his team played against Barca. Moreover, Chelsea was defeated by Barca once in UEFA, only by a mistake by the referee, so old teamates like Drogba, Lampard would like to defeat them to clear their unhappy memories. Chelsea always relies on counter-attack, and fast-running wingers and fowards to score, while their back has ironman Terry and newcomer Gary Cahill. Branislav Ivanoic may even score as he has scored in the past few games. Among the four teams, will they outclass the other three teams that have managed to win the UEFA? This is surely a cloud of mist to the Blues. All the British are hoping so but we all know that they dont stand a great chance this year.

Illustrated by Junior Designer, Austin Ng 2W

When

you think of football players, do you think they have the best job on earth? Do you think they earn a lot of money, and can be very famous, just like Wayne Rooney and David Beckham? Now thats wrong. Football is a high risk profession and players do not always get enough medical care or checkups. As you may know, Fabrice Muamba, a midfielder for Bolton Wanderers in the English Premier League, fell down in a quarter final match with Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, March 17. He had suffered a sudden heart attack. Several hours later, the 23 year old player was unconscious in the London Chest Hospital, accompanied by team captain Kevin Daives and manager Owen Coyle. Luckily, two days later he started to breathe independently again. Other players from Bolton Wanderers like Jermain Defoe, David Luiz and Phill Neville had sent their prayers to Fabrice. There is another case. Spanish player Antonio Pueta suf-

The Wah Yan Times thanks the following students for their hard work: Senior Editors-in-Chief Alister Wong and Paul Tan, Senior Editors Isaac Tam, Jonathan Wong, and Jeffrey Fong, Chief Photo Editor Jeremy Lam, Junior Editors-in-Chief Ronald Chiu and Timothy Wat, Junior Editors Timothy Tung and James Lo, Junior Fiction Editor Mathew Ho. The Wah Yan Times thanks Dr John Tan, Principal, Ms Eva Chau, Vice-Principal, and Mr Ashok Daswani, Panel Head of English. Publication of The Wah Yan Times is supported entirely by the EDB Refined English Enhancement Scheme Grant.