27 January – 2 February WHOLE SCHOOL If you would like to have copy of NH weekly bulletin please click: http://nh.piagetacademy.org/wpl.html Greetings!

Disadvantages of Social Networking: Surprising Insights from Teens by Marilyn Price-Mitchell, PhD SOCIABILITY “Honestly, I sometimes truly wish that ‘tools’ such as the iPhone (or any smartphone), laptops, iPads, tablets, etc. hadn’t been invented. Sure, they’re great, incredibly useful, and fun timekillers. But the way teenagers abuse them, and turn them into mini social control rooms is frankly awful.” At first glance, you might think this quote came from a parent or grandparent lamenting on the disadvantages of social networking and how social media has doomed today’s children. But it was written by a Seattle-area tenth grader as part of an assignment to answer the question, “How has online social networking influenced your relationships with friends and family?” This student goes on to write, “The teenage way of life has completely changed from what it was only twenty years ago. Now, there is a dramatic decrease in face-to-face communication, which reduces our generation’s ability to interact with others on a speaking level.”

2. Gives People a License to be Hurtful “I do think it has gotten to an extreme point where you can say things you can’t say or get away with in person.” “I’m disappointed whenever I hear about social media being used as a way to hurt people. I wonder if this happens when the writers forget that there are real people behind the screen.” 3. Decreases Face-to-Face Communication Skills “Computer reliance could hurt a person’s ability to have a face to face conversation by making it awkward and unusual to hear something and respond with a thoughtful message through the spoken word because of one’s dependence on a keyboard to convey a message.”

4. Conveys Inauthentic Expression of Feelings “Social media conversations today are filled with “haha”, “LOL”, and other exclamations that are meant to represent laughter. This shorthand has become second nature and is often used when the sender is not even smiling, much less laughing, in real life. On the occasion that our “roflcopter” is actually put to use at a funny moment, we are replacing actual laughter with, in this case, a simple ten-letter acronym. According to Robin Dunbar, an evolutionary psychologist at Oxford, the actual physical act of laughter, and not the abstract idea of something being funny, is what makes laughing feel so good. If we are so willing to replace Not coincidentally, this same message was echoed by the young the act that, honestly, we all love, with an artificial, typed people interviewed in Tomorrow’s Change Makers: Reclaiming the representation that doesn’t even bring the same joy, what else Power of Citizenship for a New Generation. Youth engaged in their would we be, potentially subconsciously, willing to exchange?” communities claim that face-to-face interactions is what motivates them to make a difference in the world. This is a two- 5. Diminishes Understanding and Thoughtfulness part article gleaned from reviewing the essays of a class of tenth “Since the inception of social networking, the quality of graders, with their permission, of course. It is meant to generate conversations has dropped. I believe that people are spending so additional discussion on the benefits and disadvantages of social much time online that they don’t always understand the feeling, emotion and/or character of the person they are talking to. When networking and its effect on healthy youth development. you talk to someone through a message or even a voice, you can’t Below are the most discussed disadvantages of social networking always fully understand them.” according to these tenth graders, including quotes from their essays. In a similar format, you can also read reflections on the benefits of social networking in my column at Psychology Today. 10 Disadvantages of Social Networking 1. Lacks Emotional Connection “A couple weeks ago, one of my friends and I got into a fight and she told me all of her feelings as to why she ignored me for two weeks. Assuming it would have been really hard to say it to my face, she sent me a text message. The negative side was I didn’t know if she truly felt sorry because I didn’t hear it from her. The quality of a conversation using social media is awful because you cannot sense the emotion or enthusiasm from the other person. It makes you wonder if they actually mean what they say.”

“Social networking has ruined the thoughtfulness in basically saying hello in person. For instance, you could say hello to your friend in Germany with Facebook, chat in seconds; but what if there was no way to communicate via social networking? Well you would have to write them a letter and that is something very thoughtful.” 6. Causes Face-to-Face Interactions to Feel Disconnected “When I see my friends on their phones and I am around them, I feel disconnected even though we are only two feet apart. Unfortunately, sometimes friends use their phones so much that it is difficult to have an actual conversation with them. Sometimes friends can get so socially attached to something such as a blog or gaming console that they lose touch with friends, creating small gaps and holes in close friendships/relationships.”

T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com

7. Facilitates Laziness “The new socially active era causes laziness because instead of running to your friends you can message them. Or instead of walking upstairs to notify the family of dinner, I can blog it. Social networking makes life so convenient that it creates laziness. In my opinion staying fit is important, but it is difficult to go beyond the newly developed status quo.” “It’s really easy to spend hours doing nothing…. It’s a fantastic way to waste time.” 8. Creates a Skewed Self-Image “We tell ourselves lies about ourselves and develop something we are not. We post pictures of us looking perfect and share the good news. We never post pictures of ourselves when our dog dies, when someone we love leaves, and when we lose a job. We never share the bad news that always clouds our lives. We all develop this perfect image of ourselves and some of us actually try to rely on this imaginative thought we have of ourselves instead of staying true to who we are.” 9. Reduces Family Closeness “Texting, Facebook, Twitter, and Gmail alienate us from our families more than we actually think it does…. When my family is spending family time together and watching a movie, in reality my brother and I are on our phones rather than actually watching the movie with our parents.”

an abundance of evidence to suggest needed reform. Using an ecological, systems framework to delve into this topic, he challenges parents, educators, and citizens, to see the connection between youth development and what he describes as a “vast sociological experiment” that may forever change human relationships. In the coming months, I plan to interview Raffi for more details about his ideas, which I know have evolved from conversations with great thinkers and researchers around the world. What do you think? How will we ensure the healthy growth and development of children and teens, given the known harmful effects and disadvantages of social networking? Article taken from: http://www.rootsofaction.com/disadvantages-of-socialnetworking/

>> SMP ACCREDITATION RESULT We would like to inform you that our Secondary/SMP NationalHigh Jakarta School has achieved score 'A" for National Accreditation with SK BAP-SM No. 500/BAP-S/M/DKI/2015.

Thank you for all support and best effort from all teachers and 10. Causes Distractions admin staff during Accreditation process. “When I have my phone out, it makes me feel like nothing else is Next school year, we will do re-Accreditation for SD. going on around me. I use social media as a way to feel popular, important, and also just to fit in. My friends and I always compare ourselves to each other, wondering who has more Facebook friends or Twitter followers. But what really ends up happening is >> SCHOOL EVENTS – TERM 3 I begin to talk less and end up relying on text for a conversation. 5 February Chinese New Year Celebration Ever since I got a smartphone I have been distracted from everything. I watch television less, do homework less, and even 5 February OPEN HOUSE spend less time with my friends and family.” Addressing the Disadvantages of Social Networking The disadvantages of social networking and social media will continue to be studied for decades to come. In the meantime, we already know it is a significant source of concern among privacy advocates as well as parents who worry about their children’s safety. But clearly, the disadvantages of social networking go much deeper than privacy and safety. These high school students described some of the serious drawbacks to relationships — the foundation of human development.

12 February

Friendship Day

29 February - 4 March

Inter-Disciplinary Week

29 February - 6 March

NationalHigh Cup

4 March

Sports Day

12 March

MULAN Musical Drama

19 March

Fairground

The disadvantages of social networking strike at the very heart of healthy youth development. In his recent book, Light-web Darkweb: Three Reasons to Reform Social Media Before It Re-Forms Us, musician and child advocate Raffi Cavoukian provides T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com

>> REALMADRID FOUNDATION CAMPUS EXPERIENCE (RMFCE) JAKARTA - JUNE 2016 The school would like to extend our great appreciate to Ms Rebecca Aman (parent of Timothy and Aaliyah Aman) for her strong support and kind assistance in securing Adidas as a sponsor for our soccer team. We have received a good number of soccer balls and bags for our players. Given the opportunity for character building through sports and the possibility of reaching out to less advantaged children, the school will continue and organize the Campus Experience in June 2016. We look forward to more students joining this event to hone their soccer skills and build their character.

>> WEEK 3 PROGRAMMES 1. IPW Judging and Presentation (Sec 1 - Sec 3) Time: 2.15 - 4.30 Dates: 25 - 29 January 2016 2. Success Workshop ( Sec 4 - JC 2) Date: 29 January 2016 Venue: Multipurpose Room 2

>> Registration for HSK (Level 3-5) Written Test The HSK Test will commence on 20 March 2016 (Sunday). Our school encourages JC1-2 students to take this examination, and P4Sec4 students who are interested can also take this examination. Registration deadline is 18 February 2016. Submission form is 25 January 2016 Payment deadline is 16 February 2016 For more information pertaining to the HSK tests, kindly refer to website: http://www.chinesetest.cn The registration and administrative fees are as follow: HSK (Level 3) Written Test Rp350,000 HSK (Level 4) Written Test Rp470,000 HSK (Level 5) Written Test Rp550,000 In line with this, a supplementary class will be conducted in Week 5-10 Term 3. It will be held on every Saturday at Sec2 P class. The times are as follow: HSK (Level 3) 8:00-9:00 HSK (Level 4) 9:15-10:15 HSK (Level 5) 10:30-12:00 If you have any queries, please contact Mr Chen Qiang Ming at 02158902962 or email: [email protected].

>> SECURITY MATTER

3. Ujian Sekolah Try Out 1 ( Sec 3) All students to report as usual. Classes resumes

DROP OFF & PICK UP OF STUDENTS In our effort to ensure the safety of our students, we would like to remind all parents to please note the following information: - Your car must have pick up label and car sticker. It must be clearly displayed. - Anyone assigned to pick up your child must wear school ID for Parent/Driver/Nanny. - Email the school if you change car, driver or nanny. - All vehicles have no sticker and pick up label CAN NOT enter the school ground and pick up the students. Kindly check your car and remind your driver/nanny to support this safety measure. Starting THIS WEEK, 25 Jan, cars without sticker or label cannot access the school ground. Should you need pick up label, car sticker, the school ID please email [email protected] . Thank you

>> CCA STARTS Please note that CCA has commenced this week, started on Tuesday, 26 January 2016.

>> SCHOOL FEES INVOICE AND ADMISSION DOCUMENTS >> OPEN HOUSE We are having an Open House on Friday, 5 February at 7.30 to 11am (This day, we also celebrate Chinese New Year).

We have sent letter of school invoice, open letter to parent and checklist admission documents to all parents. Please check and contact the school if you haven’t received. Thank you

We offer 50% discounts of registration fee if parent registers on that Day. Please help to share this information to your colleagues. Thank you for your continued supports. T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com

>> NATION BUILDING

>> NO STUDENT LEFT UNATTENDED

The Student Council comprising Nicholas, Dalton, Elaine and Rachel had the opportunity to present to senior government officials on the role NH students will be taking to engage in Nation Building through Character Development and Shaping of the heart. They presented on Wednesday 20 January in Balai Kota (Governor office), attended by Lurah, Camat, Walikota and other DKI Jakarta government officer from province level and district level lead by Bapak Ryas - (Kepala Bidang Pembinaan dan Pemanfaatan Aset Daerah) from BPKAD (Badan Pengelola Keuangan & Aset Daerah). The presentation was well received and the Student Council will take on the leadership in driving this.

This is to inform everyone that effective 20 January 2016, all our students is allowed to enter their respective classrooms the moment they arrive in school in the morning. Classrooms will be opened by 6.45am. Security guards will be assigned to monitor each floor from 6.45am to 7.05am. All Mentors are also welcome to help in monitoring our students in the morning.

We hope to impact the community and country through our established and new programmes such as character building through sports and engendering passion to care for the environment through our recycling programme.

>> Career Consultation Time with Sec 2 Parents How can parents/families participate?

We will still continue with our policy of no student left unattended in the classrooms during Snack Time, Lunch Time and After-school.

We are starting this programme on February 1, 2016. The consultation time starts from 2 to 4 pm, 20-minutes session/parents. Please register your name at the receptionist (CSO). We’d like to invite you to engage you with this programme and help the students reach their post-secondary education and career goals. Feel free to contact the school (Ms. Martha, Mr. Leonides or Mr. Dexter) for details.

>> Year End Musical Free School Programme (Ayo Belajar Bersama) In regards to the above, our Student Council is planning to organize a programme “Ayo Belajar Bersama”. Currently, they already got about 33 children registered. Let’s support our students for doing this great social programme!

>> SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES We are looking for sponsors for school events: Mulan Musical, NH Cup, Fairground and Real Madrid. We are also offering rental of booth such as food stalls, stationary stall, etc for our Mulan Musical events (Deadline by 10 February). Interested parties may contact Ms. Ermien at [email protected].

As we for prepare for the much awaited School’s Year End Musical, Mulan, which will happen this coming 12 March 2016, all classes in Primary 1 to Primary 5 and some Secondary 1 to 3 will be busy with practices. We would like to inform you that practices of each class would take place during Mentor time, Assembly time and Music classes. On Wednesday after school, classes from Primary 1 - 5 will practice at 1.30 to 2.30pm. Aside from this, we will be having Saturday practices as well, from 8am to 11 am, which will be supervised by the class Mentors starting 13 February 2016, until 12 March 2016. Thank you and we are looking forward to your utmost participation and support.

T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com

T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com

PIAGET 12-Year Education Journey – 6 Over-arching Objectives (Part 1) Self-Efficacy: The Power of Believing I Can

In an earlier issue, we described the PIAGET 12-Year Education Journey (P12YEJ) with the number 13651 – 1 direction, 3 pillars, 6 over-arching objectives, 5 milestone programmes, and 1 leadership platform. This is the first of a 6-part series that unpacks each of the over-arching objectives. In the first part, we will explore in greater detail the idea of self-efficacy, focusing on the what, where, why, and how.

What is Self-Efficacy? James Maddux, the emeritus professor of clinical psychology from George Mason University, is among the world’s key researchers on self-efficacy. He defines self-efficacy as our beliefs in our abilities to succeed in situationsi. It is important to emphasise that self-efficacy is related to but is NOT self-esteem. Martin Seligman, one of the world’s key researcher on depression, lashed out a strong critique against the self-esteem movement which started in California in the 1960sii. There is a difference between feeling good and doing well, which then leads to feeling good. To be it simply, self-esteem is about feeling good, regardless we do well or not. Self-efficacy is about doing well, which then leads to feeling good – hence affirming our beliefs in our abilities to succeed in other situations. Mentoring a child to successfully overcome a challenging situation will cultivate both self-efficacy and self-esteem. However, having the child think that he or she is good without real effort from the child raises self-esteem but not selfefficacy.

Where does Self-Efficacy come from? The development of self-efficacy in early childhood is influenced by two interdependent factorsiii. First, the capacity of the child to understand cause-effect relationships, that he or she can cause an effect in the environment. Second, the responsiveness of the environment towards the child’s attempt at controlling it. Self-efficacy continues to develop throughout the child’s life through the following five sources (Maddux, 2009).





Performance experiences. This is the most effective source in cultivating self-efficacy. If we successfully exercise control over our environment and we attribute that success to our ability, we are more likely to develop self-efficacy in that domain. Vicarious experiences. When we observe others succeeding at a situation through their efforts, and if we believe that we are similar to them, we develop an expectation that we will succeed through similar actions. T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com

  

Imagined experiences. Imagining ourselves succeeding in a situation is more likely to cultivate our self-efficacy. Verbal persuasion. What others say about their beliefs of our abilities influences our self-efficacy. Physiological and emotional state. When negative emotions are associated with poor performance and positive emotions are associated with success, our emotional state influences our self-efficacy. Comfortable physiological experiences and positive emotional states are more likely to cultivate our self-efficacy.

Why is Self-Efficacy important? Individuals who are high in self-efficacy set more ambitious goals, are more persistent and have more confident in overcoming obstaclesiv. How do we cultivate Self-Efficacy? Parents and teachers play an instrumental role in either promoting or hindering the child’s development of self-efficacy. Parents and teachers can enhance a child’s self-efficacy by encouraging the child to explore and master his or her own environments or by their responses towards the child’s actions. In school, we want our children to feel good because they have done well. We do this not by setting simple tasks. Rather, we set challenging tasks, carefully scaffolded, so that our children experience success through personal effort and perseverance. This does not mean that we do not welcome failure. Rather, we will help our children to learn that through effort and perseverance, they can overcome challenging situations to experience success. In conclusion, Maddux has this to say about self-efficacy: “Believing that you can accomplish what you want to accomplish is one of the most important ingredient – perhaps the most important ingredient – in the recipe for success”v. As such, it is imperative to cultivate this important quality early in the child’s life and to continue to reinforce it throughout the child’s 12-year journey with us.

Simon Leow PIAGET Academy Director/ Special Projects

i

(Maddux, 2009) (American Psychological Association, 1998) iii (Maddux, 2009) iv (Maddux, 2009) v (Maddux, 2009, p. 335) ii

T: 6221 5890 2962 |E: [email protected] | www.nationalhighjakartaschool.com