If I were Bonita…

Caminaria with confidence

Estaria content with mi misma

No sentiria the world’s stare on me

I would smile more, una sonrisa verdadera

A smile that no one podria borrar, 

Take away, nor eliminar

If only society no definiera 

Humans based on los números

My weight would be una medida solamente

My clothing size would only be un número in a tag

If only no nos definieren by our skin

My acne wouldn't make me insecure, no usaría tanto makeup

Different races no separarian the world

No importa how much melanin tenemos

If only no nos definiera by our body types

Entonces my curves no me molestarian

Entonces transgenders, agenders and other 

members de la comunidad LGBTQ tendrían derechos

 

Sin embargo, if you had not noticed, we are defined por estas cosas

Beauty, in our society, se define por numeros, skin and body type

For this reason, soy como soy, solía ser happy, proud, content with myself  y tendria confianza.

Pero hoy, I am not happy, contenida with myself, ni tengo confidence

Sobre todo, no soy bonita

If I were bonita, I would smile all the time,

Bailaria a lot y seria less timid or embarrassed

Pasaría more time with other people, publicaria more selfies, si fuera bonita… 

Pero no soy bonita, not in my eyes nor society’s.

Private school can be hard. Keeping your social life afloat while maintaining your grades gets increasingly difficult as you make your way through high school. The rigor of classes, the commute to school and the extracurriculars all add to the challenge. Being one of the few students of color in a primarily white school can prove to have it’s own challenges. High school can be tough, but with these four tips in mind you can navigate the halls with confidence!

Feeling out of place is never fun, especially when you look around and notice most people are wearing clothes and talking about concepts you don’t understand. Giana De La Cruz, a Boston resident and private school student at Noble and Greenough in Dedham, said, “The only challenge [I faced] as a student of color was learning how to accept myself, and realizing I wouldn’t fit in with some of the other white girls or kids. They didn't understand my culture and where I come from. But later on thankfully, I found white, Asian, and black friends who did understand and still loved me.” Finding friends who look like you or have similar interests as you always helps in easing the burden of going to a school where the majority of people look different than you. Olivia Martin, a freshman at Noble and Greenough said, “A problem I face[d] is relating to people. The only other black girl in my grade stopped being friends with me, so it's weird trying to find someone to relate to. But Sister 2 Sister helped.”

Making friends and forming connections can be difficult; the majority of the white kids who go to private school all flock from the same towns, which leads to them already having connections. Don’t be alarmed! Affinity groups, common at private schools, are a safe space for people of color to go to discuss their shared experiences in an environment where they’re the minority. Affinity groups unite people of color and help them form bonds to strengthen their place in the community. 

Trying to change your appearance and the way you act is common for new students of color. Dr. Jennifer Hamilton, a school psychologist at Noble and Greenough, said many students struggle with assimilating to their school culture, especially when it is different than a previous school, home or neighborhood. It is natural to want to relate to other students by dressing and acting like them. “It's a perception that everyone is the same,” said Dr. Hamilton. “The impostor syndrome... feeling like everyone else fits in but you don’t, is common. It’s seen in schools and workplaces across the world.” However, it isn’t worth sacrificing your own identity in order to fit the ‘mold’ of your school. Even though ‘everyone’ may be wearing the same thing, that doesn’t mean you need to dress the same way.  

In the wise words of Dr. Hamilton, “Never worry alone!” High school is difficult for everyone. On top of your circle of friends, you should have an adult to rely on and confide in. Even though it might not always seem like adults give good advice, they’ve gone through high school so they might know what they’re talking about. 

Every teenager can relate to this experience: carrying a two pound book bag home, settling in, pulling out your English, math and science homework and simply staring at the wall because you know it’s going to take you two or three hours to complete it all. You sharpen a pencil but gaze at the floor. You grab a calculator and wonder why you were assigned so much homework. Where did the idea of homework even come from?

Although there is no definitive proof, many credit Roberto Nevilis as the creator of homework. As a teacher in Venice, Italy back in 1095, Nevilis used homework as a form of punishment to his students.

Fast forward hundreds of years. Many questions about the effectiveness of homework started to rise. According to an article in the Los Angeles Times, the state of California was on the forefront of the anti-homework movement. In 1901, the California legislature banned homework for students under the age of 15 and ordered high schools to limit the amount for older students. This law was later repealed in 1917. 

What has affected the American ideology of homework from 1901 to present day?

Sputnik. 

According to NASA, Sputnik was the first ever artificial satellite sent into space in 1957 by the Soviet Union. How does this connect to homework for American students? 

Competition. 

In 2007, The Harvard Gazette reported that the launch of Sputnik triggered reforms in science and engineering education in America so that the country could stay technologically competitive with Russia. Part of these reforms were more homework.  

Now, the big question everyone has been asking for years: is homework hurting or benefiting students? There are currently studies that prove both theories. Some researchers argue that the heavy load of homework is getting in the way of kids ability to go outside and play. Children who aren’t active throughout the day are at a higher risk of obesity. On the other hand, others argue that homework is helpful for students as a way to reinforce what they learned in school or allow them to practice. 

Students in other countries across the globe get little to no homework at all. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development showed that American 15-year-olds spend an average of six hours a week on homework in 2012.

Gavin Smith, a Psychology and Biology teacher at the John D. O’Bryant School of Math and Science offers his view on homework. “...If you ask the most successful people what got them to where they are, many of them will say it was the countless hours they put in when nobody else was watching. That's what homework is to me - it's the piece that can take you from a good student who can catch most of what a teacher says, to a great student who understands the essence of hard work,” said Smith. 

Nallely Demera, a student at New Mission High School, takes five classes and receives homework from each. She says it takes “forever” for her to finish her homework and she doesn’t see how it helps her in class.  

All this information and we still ask: what’s the point of homework? Is it Nevilis idea a form of punishment or does it have the same idea that it feared students were falling behind and wanted to make sure they got extra work. It could just be that school just want to have something students can do. What do you think? Is homework necessary?

During the 1970’s, hip-hop music began underground in local areas. Today, music is more accessible because of the evolution of technology. 

The streaming platform SoundCloud plays a big role in today’s society because it makes it easier to share your music with anyone in the world. Some of our favorite rappers, like Lil Uzi Vert, Chance the Rapper, Post Malone, Bryson Tiller, and Lil Yachty, all started off streaming their music. Tyrese Depina, a 17-year-old senior at City on a Hill Dudley Square, states, “SoundCloud is the reason everyone blows up now. Back then, you had to go spit a hot 16 bars in front of a rapper before his concert.”

In the past, it was difficult for artists to get their name out there because it was harder to spread the word quickly. The majority of people started selling CDs and cassette tapes in public to gain a reputation. Legends like Jay-Z, 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., Lil Wayne, and 50 Cent gave away their CDs at the start of their careers, for the public to either enjoy or end up throwing in the trash. 

Artists had to hustle their CDs in the streets and still got hate for pressuring people to purchase their music. These artists took time out their lives to record a project and spread the word, only to be dismissed by the public. 

Today, a new music genre teenagers are listening to is “ignorant rap.” This genre is all about how catchy a song is and how “lit” you can be when the song plays, without thought to how many times the hooks are repeated.

Dopeman, a local SoundCloud artist, states, “Mainstream businesses are seeking the new wave of hip-hop mostly through social media. They tend to gravitate all of their time to try to find the new things kids like us are listening to. But once they get a hold of it, they have the power to shut it down, which is the only part I hate.”

Mainstream businesses try to get new artists they find online to sign, but this leads to the artist not hustling as hard as they were before. The label gains control of what the artist should do and when. This takes away the artists’ hustle to grow on their own, which is how the whole hustle movement in hip-hop began.

Some argue mainstream hip-hop is dead because the lyrics have lost meaning. A perfect example is artists trending on SoundCloud charts like Lil Pump, XXXTenatcion and Famous Dex. These artists started the new wave into hip-hop culture that is becoming more popular. Their excessive style of rap keeps teens intrigued because of how catchy their songs are.

Not only are the lyrics catchy, but productions that artists use go amazing with their flows. In the past, it was difficult for artists to find producers that had similar tastes as them. Now with the power of the internet, it’s easier to hustle with producers and other artists from all over the world.

Juan Gonzalez, a 17-year-old senior at Boston Community Leadership Academy, states, “Before, music was more of the same beat with a little extra sound. Now, it’s a big difference with more beats, adlibs and more. This taste in music is what is now bringing many artists all over the world together.”