Zaman International School Magazine Issue 100

TABLE OF CONTENTS ACADEMICS

6 14 16 17 24 42 43 44 46 61 68 69 74 79 90

Lead The Path For School Improvement Hello Mr. Smart , This is Your Heart!

H.E. DR. VISALSOK TOUCH At The Campus ZAMAN Alumnus Returns From The USA With An Inspiring Story

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SASMO Grade 12-A Grade 12-B Grade 12-E

Interview

Grade 12-F Why do cats land on their feet?

Puzzle Contest Artificial Intelligence It’s Business Time In Phnom Penh I-SWEEEP Results Reflections On The 99th Issue

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SASMO 2015 Prize Giving Ceremony

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The 11th Annual STEM Festival

100 ISSUE

CULTURE

41 Time to Help Nepal 52 Happy Mother’ s Day 62 Handover Glee Club 70 Trip to Siem Reap Concert 64 71 Trip to SihanoukVille 72 Trip to Thailand 75 Math Department’s Trip To Malaysia & Singapore 80 Internationalism at ZIS 86 Fidelity

May-Jun 2015

SPORTS

34 The Third Place 36 Running Contest, Battambang, 2015 37 ZIS Football Tournament Champions

Training for Tournament in Thailand

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Editor in Chief: Kudret Dogan Editor: Katherine Lorene Hart and Ivy Dawber Layout Designer: Kheang Sileab Zaman International School Magazine is dedicated to training young journalists.

Published in Zaman International School.

Copyright 2015 by the Zaman International School.

All rights reserved.

No part of this periodical may be reproduced in print or electronically without the consent of Zaman International School.

EDITORIAL

C

lock is ticking. Time is flying. The academic year has come to an end. We are registering new students and saying good bye to our graduates. Our students who have participated in the International Olympiads and tournaments are returning with medals to Cambodia. Plans for next year are in progress. Some teachers are leaving and some being taken on. All in all, ZIS is following its busy schedule.

There are some important numbers for human beings such as ten, twenty-five, fifty, a hundred or millennium. While millennium keeps its superiority among all of them, “centum” follows it. Why is 100 very peculiar?

Because of its three digits, it stands for maturity and a long history. Zaman High School Magazine started its journey in November 1, 2003 and continues to be published as a periodical in its 12th volume. The first issue’s lead article was “Our School”. Many people contributed to the former ninety-nine issues and were looking forward to write in this centennial publication.

The avid readers of our school magazine will be perusing a special one: the centennial issue. To celebrate this, quiz shows were organized in the Secondary classes and the winners were awarded with cinema tickets. Additionally, the front covers of all the previously-published school magazines are displayed in this centennial issue. The last activity to be held for the celebration of this long-awaited publication will be blowing out the candles and enjoying the cake with the magazine team and the class monitors on the day this issue will be distributed. By the way, this special issue has been published with 100 pages in which you are bound to find articles of your interest.

With this issue, we enclose our teachers’ reflections on the 2nd STEM Festival, which was held at Diamond Island on March 24-25, 2015. It drew lots of attention from our students’ parents and the students from the other schools in the city. As Miss Ivy points out, she has never seen anything like STEM in her home country and English schools could learn new things from ZIS STEM Festival.

Mr. Adashev’s article on “Lead the path for school development” is very noteworthy. Zaman hosted Mr. Bill and Mr. Martin from Council of International Schools. Besides welcoming the CIS recommendations that will improve our schooling, we hosted our alumnus, Sothira Toch, from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), whose interview can be an inspiration to many of our pupils on their academic journey.

Another guest at our campus was Mr. Henry Ong, founder and executive director of SASMO, who brought medals to the students who did well in the Math Olympiad. He also met Math teachers and briefed them about SIMOC, which will take place in Singapore in mid-August. You will see the photos of gold, silver and bronze medal winners in this issue. Hard work always pays off.

One of our graduating students, Priyanith, is a very talented and influential writer. She penned down the feelings of the senior students and how time flies by on a six-year course. They are so excited about their graduation ceremony.

One of the highlights of this periodical is Mother’s Day on which Mrs. Katherine Hart, mother of a twomonth baby, shared her opinions and emotions about the Mother’s Day and where it was originated.

Full of mysteries, joy, excitement, sorrow, disappointment etc., life for humanity starts in the wombs of the mothers to whom we must be obliged for what they have done throughout our and their lifetime.

You will enjoy reading the articles and the excerpts of the essays that were sent as entries in the Mother’s Day Essay Contest.

Last but not the least, the activity which finished off the month of May was the Friendship Concert, organized by ZIS Glee Club. It was held at CJCC on May 30 and brought many experienced musicians and young talents together. You may read the articles jotted down

by Mr. Adashev and Miss Sibel. It was a must-hear event. If you could not attend this year, do not miss the next concert.

I strongly recommend that you stay tuned with the school magazine or the faster way, check out the new blog site: www.zisnews.com.

More articles on various topics can be found in this issue, dear avid reader. We thank all the columnists, both academic staff and students for sending their articles. Your feedback and suggestions are always welcome and can be sent to magazine@zamanisc.com.

We wish good luck and success to grade 12 students in the next chapter of their life.

Thank you for reading this centennial issue.

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LEAD THE PATH FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT Running a school is not an easy affair. Putting a teacher and a group of students in a classroom, as well as dictating curriculum, does not constitute schooling. In order to keep the school improvement on track, there are many organizations that help individual education institutions in any part of the globe align with global education standards. These standards are the outcome of the collective work of experienced educators that pervades all the aspects of schooling.

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Council of International Schools is one of them. Let’s look at how the CIS introduces itself to the broad community: n July 2003, the Council of International Schools (CIS) took over responsibility for the Accreditation Service which the European Council of International Schools (founded in 1965) had been offering to schools since 1970. CIS is an independent, non-profit, membership organisation of approximately 650 international schools in approximately 110 countries throughout the world. It serves the interests of some 340,000 young people, a constituency which represents many nationalities with varied cultural, religious, and linguistic backgrounds.

CIS also includes universities and colleges, to which students from international schools apply. Presently over 280 CIS member schools have been granted accredited status following a directed comprehensive self study and a rigorous, thorough evaluation by a Visiting Team, which found them to meet the CIS Standards for Accreditation. Accredited schools are subject to regular monitoring through routine progress reports and visits, and they must undergo a full re-evaluation every ten years. CIS accreditation is accepted throughout the world, including in the USA through the recognition programme of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).

The school evaluation programme consists of three main stages: the Self-Study conducted by the professional staff and other members of the school community, the evaluation by the visiting team, and the follow-up programme carried out by the school under CIS monitoring to implement the findings of the Self-Study and the valid recommendations of the visiting team.

Zaman students will consider their needs and preferences. When do I learn best? What type of learner am I? What tools and skills have I already acquired; and, what is missing to succeed in my university applications as a 7 May-Jun 2015 lifelong learner?

Zaman International School - High School Magazine

CIS recognises that schools which are different may be equally good. The fundamental premise of the accreditation programme is that an educational institution must be evaluated in terms of the CIS Standards for Accreditation and the degree to which the school is putting its own Philosophy and Objectives into practice. The school’s Philosophy and Objectives statement is therefore a vital document, and it should express the principles which guide the governing body, school management and professional staff in their efforts to meet the needs of the students enrolled. The visiting team’s observations on the school’s philosophy are found in Section A of this evaluation report.

As the responsible body for matters of evaluation and accreditation, the CIS Board of Trustees charges visiting teams with the responsibility of assessing the degree to which evaluated schools are putting their own Philosophy and Objectives into practice and the extent to which they are meeting the published Standards for Accreditation.

At Zaman International School, we are committed to become an accredited school in the long term. As an explicit sign of this commitment, we had a Preliminary visit in March and received the visit report in April.

We will not enclose the details of the report as the space does not permit us to do so. Instead, we will give you some details of the school assignment in order to align with CIS standards better.

In today’s education, we speak about mission-driven, vision-led schools. What this implies to you, and every one of us at Zaman, is an understanding of the Zaman’s guiding statements: Vision, Mission, Philosophy and Objectives. We sparsely refer to the Mission in our programmes and activities. In fact, all the activities and programmes stem from the school’s mission and vision. We will work on documenting how mission or vision leads us to reach the top and keeps us focused by making more explicit references to them.

Zaman’s diversity is quite distinct. The faculty ranges across many nationalities and our international student body is increasing. However, that does not completely imply we understand what international-mindedness is.

One of the most challenging tasks in this process will be defining the internationalism for Zaman and applying it across the disciplines including the subjects in the National Curriculum.

Every discipline, regardless of the language medium, will incorporate internationalism and interculturalism in the instruction process. Bringing in a broad outlook to our conceptual understanding, considering the multitude of perspectives, as well as learning how to be sensitive towards different cultures, while treating concepts and approaches to dealing with dilemmas and ambiguities in any given discipline, will develop the international mindset, consolidate understanding of interculturalism and, most necessarily, be useful in the 21st century challenges.

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This leaves us with a task to revise teaching and learning through Zaman Guiding Statements. Challenging Zaman students and inspiring them to become global and committed local citizens is not an easy task, but with a dedicated faculty we will keep improving the teaching process. We will voice learning styles and differentiation, interactive methods and assessment types, backward mapping and intentional goals.

All the same, Zaman students will consider their needs and preferences. When do I learn best? What type of learner am I? What tools and skills have I already acquired; and, what is missing to succeed in my university applications as a lifelong learner? These questions may expand into a long list; reflection will help you generate more.

As Zaman students, parents, faculty and staff, we believe we will embrace all the developments and improvements in academic programmes and guidance as well as building renovations of Zaman. CIS standards for school improvement will be instrumental in our “Journey to Excellence in International Education.�

ACADEMICS Mr. Muhtor Adashev Vice Principal

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www.stemcambodia.com

11 Annual STEM FESTIVAL

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aman International school is proud to organize the 11th Zaman STEM Festival on Friday and Saturday, April 24 – 25, 2015 at the Diamond Island Building A, from 9am to 6pm.

Zaman STEM Festival is a strong example of Zaman’s mission: while students are inspired and challenged with scientific processes and projects, they will acquire the necessary skills through firsthand experiments. Zaman STEM Festival has a long history, as it goes back to 2004. The science fair grew up to acquire a title of Zaman STEM Festival. Zaman students have the opportunity to experience global scientific developments in the Cambodian context. The STEM Festival preparation offers a unique opportunity for Zaman students

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to explore their local context, its opportunities and limitations, and build a wealth of scientific knowledge and skills. As students conduct independent research, each has the opportunity to individually learn, grow and develop. Today, they are showcasing the outcomes or the processes they have experienced to their parents, peers and public. Visitors will observe the best examples of the combination of theory and practice through live experiments, demonstrations and poster presentations.

ACADEMICS Mr. Mustafa Ozgur Head of Physics Department

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he two days of the STEM festival have been very enjoyable and fun. It has opened my eyes in that I have never seen students so passionate for learning. Their eagerness to learn and pass on knowledge to other students is inspirational. Whomever said learning wasn’t fun has clearly never seen these students rushing around to see the projects of their peers. Over the two days, I have seen students creating fire in their hands using washing-up liquid, a group explaining how dry ice works by freezing chocolate, and demonstrations of how fake blood is used in films through “cuts” on your arm with a rubber knife.

The entertainment which accompanied the science was also very fun and enabled students to show off their other talents while also offering students who are more creative a performance space. I have seen many parents showing small children around to see that the youngsters had looks of awe and amazement on their faces. In my opinion, this is one of the best things about the STEM festival – young children becoming excited about science, technology, engineering and math.

The festival is certainly helping science become more popular while also ensuring that it becomes more available to students in Cambodia. In fact, I have never seen anything like STEM in my home country of England and certainly English schools could learn a few things from this STEM festival, and Zaman’s skill in having been able to organize such a large and wonderful event for the 11th year running.

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ACADEMICS Ms. Ivy Dawber English Teacher

The STEM festival continued to be a great success in 2015. The STEM festival has built on its previous successes, year after year. Fundamentally, the STEM festival’s objective is to showcase students’ projects and exhibits to as large an audience as possible. The audience primarily consists of fellow Zaman students, invited guests and dignitaries, public school students and the general public.

As usual, in 2015, the turn-out for the STEM festival was extremely encouraging. It emphasises the interest that has been generated around STEM over the last decade.

The variety and range of projects was immense, as usual.

Projects ranged from things such as ‘Blood group testing’ to Rebus puzzles.The preparation that went into ensuring the projects were of the highest possible standard was superb. Students worked diligently on their projects for over a month before the STEM festival. They incorporated advanced technology into their projects as much as possible. For example, one of the projects named ‘Swinging Pendulum’ managed to integrate a tablet into the actual display board, which allowed them to visually display relevant examples and experiments to the audience. They informed me that in future STEM festivals they hope to incorporate more tablets into the display board, in order to give the overall display an even more ultra-modern look.

Finally, it is the variety of the STEM festival that makes the overall experience so rewarding to the audience. As well as the plethora of varied projects, there are also other surrounding displays, performances and activities of interest. For example, musical performances, from a variety of grades at Zaman school, were performed; art exhiACADEMICS bitions were displayed; award ceremonies were conductMr. Thomas Javanaud ed; and, international food and social activities were sold English Teacher and advertised over the course of the two-day festival. It is, therefore, the rich variety of things to do, see and learn that makes Zaman’s STEM festival a truly memorable 13 May-Jun 2015 event.

Zaman International School - High School Magazine

ACADEMICS Mr. Kudret Dogan Ms Marilou L. Cabigkis

Mr. Smart, This is Your Heart!

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Dear Mr. Smart, know you better and more than you know (about) me. I started functioning months before you opened your eyes to this world.

I work the whole day beating ceaselessly, but you do not notice until you feel some pain in your chest or you are taken to the hospital after a heart attack. Mr. Smart, it is high time that I, your heart, revealed some facts about myself.

I am a muscular organ in humans and animals, which pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The average adult heart is the size of a clenched fist and weighs approximately 300 grams. However, you should not be taken in my size when compared with your 70000-gram body. All the cells, the building blocks of your body (maybe 100 trillion of them ) need me for their nutrition, breathing, digestions, waste disposal and carrying out their particular tasks.

You can feel me thudding away every time you put your hard to chest.What you feel as pulse is when all my cells contract together to beat. When

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you play football or run faster, the beating gets faster. The biology teacher sometimes talks about me and you may suppose that what I do is a simple pump. You need to keep in mind that if blood pumped by me does not go to your brain, which explained about itself in the previous issue, you cannot even move a finger. Though I operate day and night, do not make a wrong assumption that I will never get tired and beat forever.

Every day, your heart beats about 100.000 times, sending 2.000 gallons of blood surging through your body. Despite the tiny size, it carries out the mighty job of keeping blood flowing through the 60.000 miles of vessels that feed your organs and tissues. I can see your surprise and excitement when you read these lines, my avid reader. In fact, there are lots of fascinating facts about the minor and major galaxies.Human body is a minimized sample of the universe, which needs to be covered in another article.

The muscle tissue which makes up my main structure is designed as an intricate ball of fibers, so I am able to function without changing my shape too much as I contract and relax. The surface of my walls is wrapped up in a double layer in order to prevent harm from rubbing the ribs, whose duty is to protect me . Moreover, there is a special liquid between these two layers to decrease the friction further. You may visualize me like a car engine with four cylinders. My upper chambers are called atriums while lower ones are named ventricles. The aorta, a large vein, has been programmed to send blood to each organ in the required amount and at the right speed.

If something goes wrong with the timing or closing of my valves, they are blocked with fat or calcification resulting in blood leaking. This is what you call a disease. As I have told you, you are at times lazy or fall asleep after a tiring day. While you are asleep, I work at an easier tempo. Sometimes you get upset and even harm me, though. Here is my complaint: When you are hungry, you gulp down lots of food to my downstairs neighbor, which puts pretty much pressure on me. Mr. Smart, let me remind you that I can not put up with very much pressure and stress.

There is a little confusion that I need to correct.

People think of me as the center of the emotions and draw my shape to show their love and compassion.Nevertheless, the nerves in the brain affect my operation. All the emotions such as anger, love, hatred, sadness, joy etc. occur in the brain.

I cannot tell all about myself in these few lines. My purpose of introducing who I am is to arouse curiosity not in the sense of “curiosity killed the cat”, but to help you search and find out about the minor and major galaxies, one of which is a splendid and outstanding structure, the human body. As I fulfill my duty 24-hours, you need to know, read and think of me at least one hour of the week to show your appreciation and be grateful for your health.

Always keep in mind what Mahatma Gandhi said, “ It is health that is real wealth, not pieces of gold and silver.”

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H. E. DR. VISALSOK TOUCH at the campus

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aman International High School campus received a visit from Dr. Visalsok Touch, PhD, Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport.

We had a brief tour around the school facilities; Dr. Visalsok Touch closely scrutinized the laboratories, asked questions about the developments in the labs, projects and the curriculum. He commended Zaman’s commitment to the international project Olympiads, and the success we brought back to the country. We discussed about developments in the fields of science and technology in Cambodia and their implications for Zaman International School students. His Excellency mentioned he was willing to share more updates in science and technology in the region.

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ACADEMICS Mr. Muhtor Adashev

Vice Principal

ZAMAN ALUMNUS RETURNS FROM THE USA WITH AN INSPIRING STORY

ACADEMICS Mr. John Money Johnny Chung (11-A)

Education can open new doors of opportunities for people.

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veryone has heard the ageold saying about how education can open new doors of opportunities for people; but, at times, these doors seem like merely a mirage in the distance for students who work tirelessly day-today in their classes. Every student should be reminded that with hard work and perseverance, these doors may even lead them to studying at one of the most prestigious universities in the U.S., as it did for former Zaman High School alumna, Soungsothira Toch.

Last week, Zaman’s junior class received a visit by Ms. Sothira, the first Cambodian female to study at one of the highest ranking institutions in the world, MIT, located in Massachusetts in the U.S. Studying abroad can be a daunting idea for many students but Sothira was able to take the students step-by-step through the process and inspire them to follow their dreams. She was able to convince the students that they, too, could have the ability to one day study abroad.

As Sothira flipped through her powerpoint slides, the students were captivated by her stories about the modern dorms she lived in and her famous professors, some who advised President Obama.

She told stories about all the places she

visited and all the new things that she was learning in the U.S. Her high energy and approachable charisma allowed the students to ask a number of questions about her life in the U.S. One student, Johnny Chung, said that Sothira’s visit was “proof that even though you may be from a poorer country, you can still achieve higher goals in life.”

Sothira’s visit brought with it a wealth of valuable information for Zaman’s junior class, not to mention a re-energized sense of opportunity for their future. The students listened closely as Sothira provided advice on various topics, from the application process to good study habits.

And, she even offered advice on being more independent. Of course, she also reminded the students that such opportunities only come with lots of patience and planning. Only after preparing well for her SAT, TOEFL, and applying to fifteen different universities, was Sothira able to take the first step to her new journey in the States. She summed up her presentation with a very sincere statement about how much she loves college and studying biological and chemical engineering, and how she wants the students to really realize how incredible studying in the U.S. can be, but, they need to start planning, NOW!

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INTERVIEW

“success” was… I had no idea.

My ideas developed when I got to see the world and meet new people.

My overall views are still forming, and sometimes Cambodia is a bit close-minded for me. Right now, my plans are also still forming. I just go one step at a time.

What is so special about MIT?

Sothira : My mom’s vision was for me to grow up; go

You are the first female Cambodian student attending MIT? What does it feel like?

Sothira : When I found out that I was accepted into MIT,

study banking; sit in the office with an air conditioner; and, “do it” (succeed) from there. It had always been my dream, too. But, I realized that I have a lot of opportunities. Mrs. Els, a teacher here at Zaman, was the one who made me fall in love with biology. She once told me that our stomach holds a certain amount of acid and I was amazed. Later on, I met an important Cambodian, who was someone-like …the director of nuclear in the UN… , and he encouraged me to do what I love. But, the reason why I applied to MIT, was a bet with a friend. He said he would buy me a pair of Christian Loubontin, my favorite dress heels, if I got accepted. And, so, I applied and got in! The motto at MIT is "Mind and Hand." We do a lot of thinking. The people and professors there are great. The facilities are amazing.

It offers me a lot of opportunities. So, yeah, MIT is #1.

it made me feel so proud; but, there was a lot of pressure.

I am still not sure if I’m the first Cambodian ever to attend MIT, or if I am the first to enter MIT straight from Cambodia, as compared to the children of Cambodians who were born overseas and attended MIT when they got older. This really has to be clarified. In terms of coming straight from Cambodia, I think I’m the first one; and, that makes me really proud. It helps a lot during tough times. As I already have a great opportunity, I have to try really hard to succeed. But, I don’t go to class thinking, “I’m the first Cambodian to be here.” You have to have the correct mindset.

2)What were your dreams at the beginning of your Secondary Education?

Sothira : I was never sure of the exact path, but I knew

that I wanted to be something “big” or at least that was what people encouraged me to do. My parents were really good students when they were growing up, and every time we met their friends, they would tease me and ask if I was as smart as my mom or my dad. So, all I wanted to do was be smart like my mom. But, as a child, I was really naïve and I didn’t know the extent of what I could do. I wanted to be successful. What

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What type of qualifications/traits does MIT seek in the students?

Sothira : We're still not sure. A lot of MIT students ques-

tion why they're at MIT. Obviously, MIT wants people who are hard-working; but, the most common need is to have someone who stands out. Show them that you're willing to stay up all night working. Show that you also have a broad-mind and are a well-rounded person. There's no typical MIT formula to “getting in.” There's no specific cookie shape. Still, we have to fit in. Everybody is special. There's a lot going on at school.

What special skills do you think you possess that make you stand out from the other candidates?

Sothira : Think of it this way: I'm Cambodian and I'm

female. So, that already puts me into a small category. A lot of it has to do with a lot of talking about what you're passionate about, and how you want to change the world as a part of the society. I tend to be very opinionated over certain stuff. I studied under Kim Henry for two years.

She was an amazing woman. She changed my world view.

Kim taught English at a foundation, and the director of the foundation was a professor at MIT. Three weeks after I met him, MIT asked me for an interview. It was amazing.

What are you long-ranging goals and how are you planning to achieve them?

Sothira : I wanted to be a doctor, a surgeon. In the U.S,

it’s not like here. In Cambodia, when you get out of high school, you go to medical school. In the U.S., you have to have a bachelor degree. Then, after you earn a bachelor degree, you have to go to a medical school. So, right now, I’m in my bachelor degree period and medical school is afterwards. So, hopefully, I will get into one of the medical schools in the U.S.; and, the end point would be when I become a surgeon. This is the plan. Hopefully my plan will work out. I don’t know how long it will take or whether I’ll actually achieve becoming a surgeon.

I may practice medicine for a little while in the U.S., maybe fifteen or twenty years. I have to have experience. Maybe I will travel around, either in Africa or Asia for medical camps. Then, at the end, I will be here. Regardless, I will be here. Maybe I will open up my own NGO and start vaccinations and stuff like that, because health care systems in Cambodia are really over-burdened.

Recently, I’ve discovered that another one of my passions is to talk about social problems in communities. I also learned from all of the people I am working with, especially the young generations, that they all want changes in the world, like “I want to change this” and “change

that.” Then, when you ask them, “How are you planning to do it?” or “How do you feel about politics?” they reply that they don’t care about politics. “I don’t want to be a politician.” But, I’ve realized that these people, including myself, want change, but we don’t want to do it in the fastest way. The fastest way to achieve change is to be the person in power. The most powerful aspects of Cambodian policy are held with political power, which is why I’ve told you guys that I might want to go into political science. I don’t trust anyone in Cambodia in terms of politics right now. So, I might as well try to be a politician; but, it’s still a farfetched plan. So, maybe I’ll change to a political science major. Or, maybe I’ll study to work in the Ministry of Health, so I can create more drug regulations and place more emphasis on how doctors should treat patients.

But, change can only be achieved if you’re at a high level.

Maybe this is an end goal. I have to tell you… my dreams are still forming. I don’t know what to do with my life.

What is your most interesting experience as freshman in MIT?

Sothira : There have been a lot of interesting experiences,

like the first time I saw snow. Yeah, there are a lot of interesting experiences. But, in terms of being at MIT, I guess I can talk about my first job. I was a research undergrad at a laboratory. I was working in the lab. And, of course, on the first day, I broke a beaker. And, over that first week, I broke three beakers. I was so scared. I was like, “Oh, my God! She’s going to fire me.” Instead, she was like, “Sothear, just clean it up and get another one.” So, I went into a closet, which is just for lab materials, and it’s like miles and miles of beakers, test tubes, and everything. It’s like a huge warehouse. You can take anything. You can steal from the lab if you want. That’s when I realized the opportunities that I have.The professors don’t care if you break stuff, unless you ruined your supervisor’s twelve hour experiment. Anyway, as I was saying, she doesn’t care if I break stuff and makes mistakes along the way, as long as I get it done.

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You know, in America, there is a lot of Obama-care, there are a lot of health care reforms and things like that. Then, in the Summit, you see this guy sitting next to Barack Obama. It is Eric Lander, a very well-known professor. He just passed you in the hall. And, you just saw Eric Lander on TV next to president Obama. That was when I knew that I was at a really, really huge place. So, sometimes you just have to pinch yourself and know that you’re not here by mistake.

8) How do your professors react when you tell them that you are from Cambodia?

A: Usually it started out with an explanation… like, I didn’t have to tell them… I’m from another country. It started out with my name. And, they asked, “Where are you from?” Which would be followed with: “That’s a really interesting name.” …because they couldn’t pronounce it. But, trust me, my story is not as unique as you might think, compared to the other stories at MIT. Mine is more general.

You have students who were in Africa and escaped different political powers, who came here as refugees. They got into MIT. There are a lot of illegal immigrants in the U.S., who got into MIT and are under MIT’s protection.

MIT protects illegal immigrants, too. It’s like, if their parents are illegal immigrants, even if the MIT students were born in the U.S., they also don’t have official papers. So, MIT declares that these are MIT students, so that the government can’t take them away.

Also, you have other people from all over the world. You have people from Pakistan, Israel, and Iraq. So, professors know a lot of stories already. Mine isn’t always as interesting. So, when they start asking, “How did you know about MIT? How did you prepare yourself to be here? Was it as you expected?” they don’t usually jump up in surprise at anything. They usually just say, “That’s amazing. Congratulations.”

What was your favorite course this academic year?

A: I took four technical classes and one humanity class this past semester. My technical classes prepared me for thermal dynamics and fuel mechanics. I was studying pipe flows. So, it was very basic and not very interesting. I liked bio-chemistry and genetics. Those subjects are also very broad, but are still very interesting. I even learned random stuff, for example: vitamins are called vitamins because they are vital amines, which means important amines for your body. I just know that from lectures. And, I learned why birds don’t pee -- they have their own biological reasons.

My favorite class is actually a humanity class, Psychology of Gender and Race. You get to learn how a person develops their own identity of gender and race, especially in America, which is a diverse country. So, you learn the psychological aspects, like: “Why do you form this idea?” You learn a lot of theories. My professor is actually a psychologist, and our assignments were to analyze her patients. A case might be: this girl complains of this-andthat. So, what do you think? Why do you think she’s going through anxiety? Why do you think she’s having that stuff?

And, it’s really interesting. I really love that class. It’s still something new for me. So, to be able to understand a person, find out about their personality, is so interesting.

What do you see as your strengths to help you accomplish in your university?

Sothira : I think the answer is perseverance. I had a hard

time getting into MIT. Then, like for the first semester, I was a mess. I was a mess mostly because all of my life, in Zaman or in any other school that I went to, I never tried. I never tried. You think you’ve tried. But, really I just studied for an hour, and then I took the test. I would just be done with it. I never tried at anything. And, at MIT, I tried so hard, but I still failed. I failed my first test at MIT. I studied real hard. I just realized that I didn’t know how to study. Only studying the day before a test, even if you study eight hours straight, won’t help you. So, you have to learn how to study. You have to take it step-by-step. This is one of the struggles at MIT, because many people who are there were usually at the top of their classes. They were the 20 May-Jun 2015 best at whatever they did. Then, you put them into MIT, Zaman International School - High School Magazine and they realize that they’re not the best anymore. There

are people who are better than they are. I was not the best.

I still am not. There are a lot who are really good. It’s really interesting. So, I think my biggest strength is knowing my situation and adapting to it. I know that I’m not going to be the best at MIT; but, I know that I am at this place for a reason. I try hard to schedule my learning. I try hard to adapt to lesson plans. It’s more about flexibility, assessing your situation and coming up with the best solution. You cannot be rigid. You are not going to survive MIT if you are rigid and think: “Oh, I have to try so hard to be the best, because I was always the best!” Just be normal. Go with the flow.

Are you the same as you left Cambodia for MIT last year?

Sothira : I hope not. I have grown a lot and got to see a

lot of places, problems. And importantly, I’m more reasonable than I used to be before, and I’ve gotten to know myself a little bit better. Especially, I am not dramatic as I used to be in high school and I tend to let thing go a lot more easily.

Do you miss your family and homeland?

Sothira : Yeah! During school, you don’t really feel any-

thing, but when Thanksgivings, Christmas and all of those long term breaks come where people leave school and celebrate the occasion at their homes, the feeling of needing you family starts to come back. Like my roommate-my best friend- she has to go back and celebrate Thanksgivings with her parents and family while my parents are like half the world away, so I decided to celebrate that holiday with her and her family. And also when you are sick, you just want to go back home and sometimes feel like you need to get out of this place and go to your precious family.

But after the sickness has recovered and when school has started, you will probably be okay once again.

What would you recommend to high school students for their academic path?

Recently, John Nash has passed away in a traffic accident. Do you see the potential in your being John Nash of Cambodia?

Sothira : Well, first of all, know what you like or love,

Sothira : Well, you can have that kind of person to be

because knowing what you like or love and what you are willing to fight for will really help you a lot since it’s going to be a hard journey of your life. If you don’t love it or even have any interest in doing it, it will just bring you down by making your life’s journey harder. So, find out what you are passionate about or your own interest first. Make sure it’s your own journey and not anyone else’s. After that, do a lot of research or reading about the university/college that you like because you get a lot of privileges. Most people would have to find suitable scholarships first before they enroll, but you get the opportunities to enroll and ask for financial aid or a scholarship later on. So I suggest you should do that. Like me, I can choose to go to a school that I don’t even have to pay a dime for, still, I chose MIT even though it’s not financially the best, but I know that I am going to take back as much as I have invested. And the most important things, you must know the application process- how to apply for it, the deadline etc. – and study hard for the tests- SAT, IELTS, and TOEFL etc. So yeah, know what you want first, and aim for that.

your inspiration, but for me I try to stay away from being someone or somebody, if I have to be someone/somebody, I will just be myself- Sothira of Cambodia. I definitely have my own inspirational model, like the CEO of Facebook, Hillary Clinton, and Marie Curie-the one who discovered radioactivity. If I choose to believe in something, I will just go for it.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Sothira : Hopefully, finishing medical school and work-

ing in a hospital somewhere or maybe I will be travelling and working at the same time because I love to travel a lot.

Maybe I will work in New York or in Africa, or some place that I haven’t been to before.

ACADEMICS Interviewers:

Kristine Marina Chann Keo(11-E) Monineath Bunyay (9-F) Mei Lan Loh (10-E) Arya Leng (10-F)

21 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

10-B Seuchhav Ea

10-B Rothvichet Poch

10-B Theanhok Lim

10-E Soyean Chea

10-E Saophea Luu

10-E Mengchu Ngor

10-F Sundayna Huot

12-F Sereyvothny Um

8-E Sok Heng Soung

10-B Sokheang Dieng

10-E Puthina Keang

10-E Sahasvichni Chou

10-E Sokunmerdey Dara

10-E Geech Hor Huot

10-F Linna Heng

8-E Rita Kanika Chim

8-E Chanmoniratana Vornvann

W

S A S M 24

hen I heard the abbreviation “SASMO”, the first thing which came to mind was a kind of dessert. However, it has no relation to eating.

If you think that maths are very delicious food, which many students are hungry for, then it turns out SASMO is a maths dessert. It stands for SINGAPORE ASEAN SCHOOLS MATHS OLYMPIAD. A great number of students from several countries and schools have been joining SASMO for a decade. SASMO is devoted and dedicated to bringing a love for Mathematics to students.

Unlike most Maths Olympiad Competitions, SASMO caters not only to students in the top 5%, but to the top 40%. It aims to arouse students’ interests and enthusiasm for mathematical problem solving, develop mathematical intuition, reasoning and logical thinking, as well as creative and critical thinking. In addition, this can help improve the students’ maths grades, because they can apply problem-solving strategies learnt during their training on their daily school mathematics.

Zaman International School is the representative of SASMO in Cambodia. We hosted the competition this year for the first time with 200 participants from 5 distinctive schools in Phnom Penh. I am very happy and proud to announce that 15 ZIS students from grade 2 to 10 have received the Gold Award. In total, a significant number of students, 89, received an Award. The awards ceremony of SASMO will be held on May 31st at CJCC. Moreover, those who have obtained an award, Gold, Silver or Bronze, seize the chance to join Singapore International Mathematics Olympiad Challenge (SIMOC) which will run from 14th to 18th August 2015 with around 1000 of the finest mathematics students from 15 countries. It will be held in Singapore in August. An amazing three-day trip will be organized for participants. Those prominent students will get a certificate of achievement which makes a considerable impact on being selected to prestigious universities in many countries such as USA, UK, Singapore, Australia, Turkey, Netherlands, and so on.

Besides providing information to let readers know what SASMO is all about and the benefits it creates, I would like to point out the importance of Maths in growing the leaders of tomorrow.

It is an undeniable fact that the great thinkers and leaders of the future will require a strong background in logic, reasoning and critical thinking. One of the best ways to achieve this is through the wonder of Mathematics. Therefore, these kind of Olympi-

May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

ads turn out to be crucial and critical to the future social success of the nation which is one of ZIS’ objectives as indicated in the school Guiding Statements.

We at ZIS Maths Department aim to ignite the students’ passion, help develop their confidence, stimulate and foster their interest in learning Mathematics, strengthen their ability in creative thinking and widen their international perspective as pointed out in the school guiding statements, “vision and mission.” Undoubtedly, SASMO has made a huge contribution to these goals.

As a result, I would like to express my appreciation and gratitude to Mr. Gurkan CIL, Principal, to Mr. Kasim, Head of the Maths Department, the Director of SASMO in Cambodia, to my colleagues, Mr. Ibrahim Yalcin, to Ms. Nesibe Nur Celik and to our great students, who are so passionate in joining the competition in their hunger for success.

ACADEMICS Mr. Mehmet Esen Math Teacher

25 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

SASMO 2015 Prize Giving Ceremony – Cambodia

It

gives me great pleasure to see many dedicated teachers and students in pursuit of Math Olympiad competitions with the strong desire to do well academically. Education is the fastest way to improve your life. In Singapore, we have seen tens of thousands of miracle transformations for families whose parents have toiled as taxi drivers and cleaners. Then, within a generation, their children have gone on to attend universities and secure high paying jobs, hold important posts in society and drastically improve their families’ standard of living.

I spent one morning with ZIS teachers sharing Math Olympiad topics. There are many International Math Olympiad competitions available, as well as access to playing games and puzzles that help hone and improve mathematics skills.

This is my first trip to Cambodia. I am very impressed with your people. We are working with Singapore schools to offer more learning, competitions, and scholarship opportunities for your teachers as well as students in the area of Mathematics first; then, later on, in other areas like Information Technology, Science and languages.

We are very keen to set up a Math Olympiad training school here with our partners. We will be offering more scholarship opportunities for Cambodian students to study in Singapore.

I would like to invite all of the SASMO 2015 winners to join our next event, the Singapore International Mathematics Olympiad Challenge (SIMOC) 2015, which will be held in Singapore from August 14th-17th.

You will be attending a very interesting Math Olympiad competition while getting a chance to test out your mental arithmetic. You can also improve your critical and creative thinking skills by working with foreign students, honing your team building and social interaction skills, as well as making life-long friendships.

So, I am looking forward to seeing all of you along with the participants from 14 other countries in Singapore in 2 months.

I see a very similar development in Cambodia. I can see many of you winning international scholarships to improve your life, your family’s fortunes and the development of Cambodia.

ACADEMICS Mr. Henry Ong Founder of SASMO

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

27 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

CONGR ATULAT I O N S GOLD MEDAL WINNERS OF SASMO 2015 CAMBODIA (P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, S1, S2, S3, S4)

15

GOLD MEDALS

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

S4

S3

S3

S3

SEUCHHAV EA

KIM LENG

PICHPANHA OUCH

RITHYA MONG DOM

S1

S2

S2

THANAN NETH KOSAL

LAY SOVANN MUNI VISAL

SOPHEARA CHEA

P5

P6

P3

P3

KOLSEREYMEAS LAY

JUSTIN CHIN

TITH NGOUNSENG

JESJES HENG

P4

P2

P2

P2

OLI TINO TEP

CHHUNKIM ER

SAM VOLLEAK

RATANAKMEARLEA SEANG

CONGR ATULAT I O N S SILVER MEDAL WINNERS OF SASMO 2015 CAMBODIA

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

(P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, S1, S2, S3, S4 )

24

SILVER MEDALS

S3

S3

WINJING UNG

DALUX BE

S4

S3

S2

CHANVATHNA CHEA

S3

P6

CHHORN RITHICHAN

S1

P5

P4

P3

P2

MONITA THAI

ADMADSAIFUDINE LIM

SAMBATH LAY

AIMEE TRA

P6

P4

P3

P2

TEP ARUN SOK

SARAKVIKOMA

KHUNKIMPOR SUN

VANNARA SOM

KEOSOTHEANY PHENG

LISA TAUCH

LIN HOU

SOVUTH VISA

S4

S3

S3

S2

P6

P4

P3

P2

PICHSOVANN THYDA AN

SHIENNITH KEA

SHRUTI DASH

RAYOUNETTE CHHAY

EANG POV

MEYLING TAING

KHOV FORTUNE

YUKKIN NEP

CONGR ATULAT I O N S BRONZE MEDAL WINNERS OF SASMO 2015 CAMBODIA

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

(P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, S1, S2, S3, S4)

50

BRONZE MEDALS

S4

S3

S2

SOYEAN CHEA

DANITA CHHIM

HANFONG LUU

S4

S3

S2

P6

VICHRAINGSEY DOM

S1

P6

CHANPHALLA BUN

P6

P4

P3

P3

P2

P2

P2

P2

SOPANHA UNG

HOUT VITHIDA DHAMOKOL SOKHOM VATTANA HENG

NITA LAY

NATALIE SOK RATH SOLEAK OHANASAR

P4

P3

P3

P2

P2

P2

SOUDOM TRY

SONITA HEAN KHUNKIMHENG SUN JOYDEEP DASH

DO SIEVTY SY CHEANG OUDOM PANHA KHIM HENG

IEV JOLYENE

LIM PEIZUE

YU XIAN GE

RUBINA HENG

P2

SIHAREACH SAROEUN

P2

CHUA JODIE RIYHAN ANNIKA

S4

S3

S2

S1

P6

P5

P4

P3

P2

P2

P2

SOPHEAVATEY PEOV SOCHEAT LONG

KHENG IRSENG

HOK HENG

PICHPISEY SOUN

KIMLY MOV

DARAWATH DINA

PANHAWATH EK

SOCHEAT JINNIN

TITHPHIT ALEXUS

SHIYU LIANG

P2

HENG MONIREACH

P2

TAN CHETTANA PRASITH

S4

S2

S2

S2

P6

P6

P4

P3

VOUCH LANG CHANG VIRA VAR

HASOKINA

SHEN HOUT SOKDIAMANT CHAN PAVIT VATHNA CHUA JACK RAYME ANTON NIZA YONG

P2

SOVANKIRY KHOV

P2

SEILANISA CHUON

P2

P2

KUY BUNTHEAN ASADULLOKH AKHMEDOV

C) O SIM e ( e ng ith th es e l l ha m w am C g r d ’ o r a mpi n platf Warrio y l O titio ths ics a e t p a ‘M them thy com tions, a l M heal es a u n q o ’ nati ing and mpiad r e t e In terest hs Oly s! r o gap s an in ‘Mat llenge n i S e of ’ cha d i n v o pro binati ports S com ‘Mind and

SIMOC

Singapore International Mathematics Olympiad Challenge

Date

Venu e

: 14 th - 18 th gapo re

: Sin

Augu

st 20

15

This 1st SIMOC 2015 is organised by the same group of education specialists who organised SASMO for the past 10 years.

This international competition is open to Year 2 to Year 11 students who have won Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals in SASMO 2015.

BRONZE

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

SILVER

GOLD

* There will be preparatory courses for SIMOC in the SUMMER SCHOOL PROGRAMME of ZIS

raining for ournament in hailand

The Third Place

Another tournament that ZIS has participated...Another victory that has been tasted. Another success story to scribble about and take pride in.Students from Lower High School section of ZIS returned to Cambodia from u14 Football Tournament, Thailand with bronze medals by ranking third in the tournament that 11 countries have struggled to become the champion. After a systematic and rigorous training for one month, eleven students set out their journey for Bangkok with their coach, Mr. Cihan Kazanci. Our team beat Bangladeshi team(3-0) and same score(3-0) was ensured against

34

May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Kyrgyzstan, a country located in Central Asia, in the first leg matches. Although we lost to Laos in the penalties dramatically in the semi-final, ZIS snatched victory by beating Pakistan(4-1) and completed the tournament the third place. The team players were awarded with bronze medals. One of the players, Lokey Mao, received the best player award while Soputhik claimed the best goalkeeper award. Our successful team enjoyed a superb welcome from the parents and teachers at the airport on Thursday evening. Congratulations!

SPORTS Mr. Cihan Kazanci Head of P.E. Department

35 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Running Contest, Battambang

T

2015

his year, ZIS has attended public schools sports tournament for the first time in the school history. Our student from 11-A, Maty Math, won first place Mr. Cihan Kazanci in the 100 m run in Phonm Penh.

Head of P.E. Department He earned the right to participate in country-wide tournaments held in Battambang. He won the 5th place and made us proud!

We are so glad that we’ve achieved excellent results from our first participation in the tournament.

We believe that our school will be successful in different sports branches in the upcoming years.

SPORTS

Maty Math:

Last week, for me, was a very proud week. I participated in our National Marathon in Battambang where each competitor is chosen to represent their province. I was representing Phnom Penh. During the first round, I received first place. I was very happy at that time, and even my friends cheered for me. However, in the final round, I got fifth place. I am still proud to be in the top five though, because there were many people participating in the contest.

I really enjoyed my days in Battambang. It is a beautiful city and people there were very friendly. Finally, I would love to join in such contests again if I get the opportunity to participate.

The most unforgettable moment for ZIS was when Maty went through to the finals despite the fact that he had strong opponents. He finished the first round in first place and he got the chance to participate in the finals that were held on Sunday, 10th May. After the first round, we had a couple of days until the final. Throughout that time, we had a small tour around the province; and, on the rest of the days, Maty trained for the finals. On the final day, we knew that there would be less chance for us to be in the top three, because all of his opponents were too fast. There are supposed to be two rounds in the final. Maty went through to the final round beating some of the opponents by 9.7 seconds.

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

ZIS Football Tournament Champions Rank Teams Played Wins Draw

Lost Goal score

Points

1

8B

6

4

2

0

32

14

2

8A

6

3

2

1

21

11

3

7A

6

2

0

4

8

6

4

7B

6

1

0

5

9

3

Champion Class 8-B Players 1. Vira Var 6. Socheat Luon 2. Soputhik Seng 7. Kunprorseth Long 3. Sovann Rothanak Pich 8. Belchhunna Nor 4. Odomrattanak Sok 9. Sopheara Chea 5. Povsamnop Phok 10. Buneng Huy Rank Teams Played Wins Draw

Lost Goal score

Points

1

10B

10

8

0

2

31

24

2

10C

10

6

0

4

34

18

3

9C

10

5

0

5

16

15

4

10A

10

5

0

5

15

15

5 6

9A 9B

10 10

5 1

0 0

5 9

17 6

15 3

Champion Class 10-B Players 1. Chan Billy Keo 6.Ty Chhorng Choeung 2. Hoklay Tang 7. So Panha Seng 3. Seuchhav Ea 8. Sopanha Mak 4. Mondero Sor 9. Allyas Iskandar Bin Ahmad Jais 5. Chhayhy Kourn 10. Rothvichet Poch Rank Teams Played Wins Draw

Lost Goal score

Points

1

12A

4

3

0

1

10

9

2

11A

4

2

0

2

5

6

3

11B

4

1

0

3

4

3

Champion Class 12-A Players 1. Sovanda Hun 2. Salamey Math 3. Ratanak Sethey Lin 4. Smael Kob

SPORTS Mr. Cihan Kazanci Head of P.E. Department

5. Noruth Nuon 6. Khunchettha Sivin 7. Kimlong Seng 8. Eng Huy Seang

37 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Time to Help Nepal Class representatives met Mr Santosh Khatri, a Nepalese professional working in Cambodia, to discuss the current situation in Nepal and ways of supporting Nepal’s people who suffered the earthquake.

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

since 1997

CLASS OF 2015 Date : SATURday, 13 june 2015 time

: 5:00 pm

venue: grand ballroom, sofitel phnom penh phokeethra

12-A

The graduation ceremony is coming up very soon. It’s really hard to think that our high school life will end in just a couple of weeks. We will surely miss all the jokes we have made, all the works we have done, and all the good times and tough times we have had in Zaman classrooms.

On behalf of 12A, we would like to say thanks to the principal, vice principals, teachers and stuff for all the support, guidance, and wisdom during our times at Zaman International School. We definitely wouldn’t have gained so much success without your inspirations. We also apologize for all the mistakes we have made throughout the years.

We all hope that six years full of experience, knowledge and lessons at Zaman will be our pathway to reach our future goals.

Thanks for being part of our lives.

ACADEMICS Bung Long Taing 12-A

42

May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Here at Zaman, 12B will always be a class.Howev- we will all leave high school.We will not be able to er,annually,the people in it will change.This year,the meet each other so often.We will not be able to share 14th generation of 12B is very special.Every memory what we have now,with each other,again.But ,those we have made over the past few years is un forget- memories that we have will be cherished and will table.We fought,we quarreled, we remain in our hearts.I hope that we ACADEMICS laughed and we had fun together. will someday be able to come together Kim Hav Dy We were like brothers.Although it again as 15 friends.We will be always 12-B is not genetic,we are able to have brothers. every moment with each other. We spent more time with each other than with our fami43 May-Jun 2015 lies.Unfortunatly,we only have 3 - weeks left before Zaman International School - High School Magazine

E

verything seems simple in theory, but when you actually try to put it into practice, it gets a little complicated.

Coming to Zaman solidifies this theory.

I was expected to come here, to study, to pass each grade, to take the final exam of year 12 and say my goodbyes, to take my final steps and leave. But, it is 3-weeks until graduation, and I swear there are quick sands all over the school.

Before we get too ahead of ourselves, let’s start from the beginning. First, you are born. You are expected to go to school.

You are expected to study, pass, and graduate high school.

You are expected to go to a university. Then, you are expected to get a job. Then, you are expected to get married and have children. Then, by the laws of nature, you are expected to die. Simple.

But, we are not even halfway through the grand plan that is life. And, the struggle is so real to finish high school that the graduating class of 2014-2015, 12E is barely hanging on.

I’m not going to sugarcoat the experience of the final year at Zaman for this article just because it is expected that I should be sweet and reminisce on past memories and write hauntingly beautiful words and advices for the later generation.

Instead, I will give you the harsh truth of being a senior.

It is difficult. Mainly because it consists of real life CTRL+C and CTRL+V: which is the main reason why we all have really powerful fingers and knuckles. Breakdowns in the classroom are a daily occurrence. Nap times and snack times are needed every day if we are expected to survive. Constant screaming is heard in 12E, because one has to shout at the top of one’s lungs while trying to share sips of coffee (because of aforementioned CTRL+C and CTRL+V of home-

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

work the previous nights), while discussing the national exam 99.99% of the time with the other 0.01% devoted to discussing colleges and universities, while complaining about sores and many other unspeakable truths, which I shall keep to myself for the sake of maintaining any last shred of dignity we should want to keep.

The entire academic year can be put into numerical values for a more simplified view: from Monday, September 15th, 2014 to Saturday, June 13th, 2015, for 8-months and 30-days or 272-days or 6,528-hours or 391,680-minutes or 23,500,800-seconds. All the lessons, the crises in class, the tears, and the laughter, virtually everything, happened in-between these 2 dates. And, just as we were expected to grow older and become mature young ladies, our brains also expectedly became very fried somewhere during February. This is when our will “to power through” the rest of the year became scarce and all we wanted to do was sleep for a really long time and wake up with our diplomas in-hand.

The one constant source of energy is the cumulative momentum of our hilariously embarrassing history. Selected stories include the following examples. One year a certain friend (you know who you are) wore pigtails to school every day for the whole year and cried whenever anybody shouted at her.

Or, the class day in the 8th grade when everybody was serious about the show, but there were preliminary rounds, and then finals, before we could finally go on stage. Or, that time in the 9th grade when some of us went through the emo stage and aced our staring game (said stare was compared to a Japanese

ghost in a horror movie). Or, the possible coup d’états or the infamous flash mob we did as a class.

The bad haircuts, the weird phases, the forming and breaking of cliques, the sing-along sessions, the dramas, the anger, the sweat, the burps, the snores and everything else smashed into one big ball of emotion. With the pressure of time and final goodbyes approaching, it is not abnormal to be scared.

I find myself forgetting things and small details of what happened 4-years ago and I think of 5-years from now when all this will not be the recent past, but a past I can look fondly upon from a distance. But, what if this past isn’t there anymore? What if there comes a day when I don’t remember my friend’s zodiac sign, or where she sat in class, or who the physics teacher was that year, or what club I had, or who I hung out with most? What if the day comes when I forget, and the pictures aren’t enough nor are the videos? What if the vivid present I am now living in becomes just another gray part of my life?

I worry because that is what the class of 12E is to me, a burst of colour in an otherwise black and white life. They are a constant and have been for 5-years. They are my niche of existence. To have that ripped away so suddenly and so forcefully, only to be expected to “move on” into what right now seems like a black hole, or what adults call the future, is not only unreasonable, but unjustified and cruel. (Slight exaggeration, oops.) This is what I fear. I fear forgetting what it is like to eat in the canteen or what it is like to be in PE class. I fear learning how it would feel to eat in a different canteen with

different people and how the classes would feel without that constant hum of familiar voices.

12E is a relatively normal class. We do not proclaim to be weird, or special, or good at anything. We do not serve an important role to the students or the school. We would not be sorely missed nor would we be needed by the school. 12E exists simply for the purpose of friendship to one another.

We are there for each other; and, this is enough. If 5-years with these people has taught me anything, it is that sacrifices should be made for the people you love. I now know to be optimistic and find the small, simple joys in the bad times, to block out comments made by strangers, and that flattery goes a long way.

What was said above, covers only approximately 0.00001% of the actual Zaman experience; but, I tried. I never believed it when former seniors said that after we leave, we would miss it; but, it is finally time, and… Man!... were they right.

Good luck, Class of 2014-2015.

Thank you for all the good times, the bad, and everything in-between.

ACADEMICS Priyanith Keo 12-E

45 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

12-F

T

his school year is coming to its end in less than a month. To everyone else, it’s going to be “ just another school year” coming to an end; but, for us, seniors, it’s our last year as high school students.

We would like to say thank you to all the teachers who taught us. Without your help and guidance, we wouldn’t be here today. This past 6-years, you taught, guided, and nurtured us to become good students, daughters, and future citizens of the society; and, through this, you went through troubles and were tired on many days. We would like to say អរគុណ and THANK YOU. Thank you to all the staff and administration for all your hard work, and sorry if we caused you any trouble.

To our homeroom teacher: It’s been 4-years since you became our homeroom teacher. In those 4-years, you took care of us and loved us. Even though, we caused you trouble, with a smile on your face, you always said, “It’s ok”. You always said thank you and seemed so touched no matter how small the presents we gave you were.

To our assistant teacher: You became like our sister last year. But, trust us, you are our favorite abla. Your love and care touches us.

Thank you for cooking and baking for us. We will miss your cakes and food- for sure.

---No words can describe how thankful we are to both of you. This year is nearly coming to an end and we have three words for you two, WE LOVE YOU, SENI ÇOK SEVIYORUZ To 12-F class: Last but not least, it’s been 5 years since we became a class. Through those 5- years, we went through a lot of things together. We fought and we made-up, but that’s what made us as close as now, sisters. All the time we spent together, the tears, the happiness, the laughter and the food we shared (especially in class), these memories will stay in our minds and hearts forever. This school year will end, we will go on our separate ways, and stay in different countries. But nomatter-what, our class is here to stay. Let’s do our best in the future and slay the government exam.

To Everyone in ZAMAN, THANK YOU! WE LOVE YOU! WE WILL MISS YOU. ACADEMICS 46

May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Phearnique Ly Class 12-F

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Happy

This

year I became a mother for the first time. My newborn daughter is the center of my world. I learned to incorporate

her into every aspect of my day. From the start, she was opinionated. The pregnancy was filled with mustard cravings, hamburger cravings and an odd aversion to cucumbers that I may never

Mother’s Day

totally erase. Today, I watch her make faces as she sleeps peacefully, sometimes wrinkling her forehead, raising an eyebrow, or giving a big smile. I giggle at the thought of her growing up and being able to live out all of those dreams that keep her so busy in her little bassinet.

Meanwhile, during class, the seniors at Zaman have dis-

cussed cloning, androids, and three-parent families. They have learned about the terminology and current discussions regarding a variety of scientifically-enabled child rearing techniques. On a less dramatic and more traditional note, they have written paragraphs on family vacations. Many have written essays or completed other assignments that allowed them to share how they felt about someone who influenced or inspired them. I got to read more than a few papers about “mom.” So, as such, what does the term “mother” mean? A mother often makes us who we are. And, a mother is who we make her.

It is a testament to humanity that so many find their mother essential or inspirational. In the 19th Century, Ann Jarvis was a wife, community Almost all 7 billion persons and counting on the planet have someone they call mother. If you are ever feeling depressed about mankind, remember that there are billions of people capable of this beautiful love and devotion to another human being.

leader, and a mother. She helped organize local medical services within her community in the southern United States during the Civil War. Notably, she insisted on providing equal care to those fighting for the Union. She refused to use the medical service or the lack thereof as a weapon. This strong-willed woman had a daughter, Anna. When Ann died, her daughter sought a national holiday to honor mothers. In 1914, Anna Jarvis, the pioneer of Mother’s Day, was formally given her wish. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson made Mother’s Day a national holiday. The holiday was so well-received and enjoyed that it is now celebrated in many countries, including Cambodia, on the second Sunday of May. Almost all 7 billion persons and counting on the planet have someone they call mother. If you are ever feeling depressed about mankind, remember that there are billions of people capable of this beautiful love and devotion to another human being. A mother is expected to hug and console us when we are un-hug-able and inconsolable. A mother is expected to encourage and nurture us with limitless energy. In stark contrast to the often quoted

CULTURE Mrs. Katherine Hart Senior English Teacher

schemes and plots of Machiavelli for politics and power, the everyday family, with a handful of such loyalties, often silently maintained by “mom,” is extremely flexible, and stronger than any tyrant.

So, this Mother’s Day, I hope you find the same beauty and meaning in life that I find when I see my daughter. For years, I desperately wanted one child, a daughter, yet life was not so kind. Then, one day, it was. She is a child I never thought I could have. Life is full of so many obstacles and difficulties that things seem and often are impossible. Remember to count

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the miracles, the people around you. If you do that, you will always have a

wonderful Mother’s Day. May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

MOTHER’S DAY

Essay & Drawing Contest

And the winners are...

Many Participants from different grades have submitted their entries.

We are grateful to all participants for their interest and time they allocated for this contest.

“Why I Love My Mom” Joydeep Dash (winner of 7th grades) Chanbopear Peng (winner of 8th grades) “What makes a mother special?”

Tepolak Seth (winner of 9th grades) Taing Huong Hao (winner of 10th grades) “My mom is my hero” Rosa Nhim Khemara (winner of 11th grades) Chamroeun Kalyanney Chhoeung (winner of 12th grades)

Winner of Drawing Contest Chhayhong Leang (7-A)

Mother’s Day

Grade 7

Why I love my mother?

A mother is someone who sacrifices her life for her family and, especially, her children. There is no substitute for a mother. She bears her child in her womb and we all see the world only for her.

I love my mother for a lot of reasons. She takes care of me all the time. That is not the only reason why I love her. She fed me, bathed me, made me sleep and did so much other stuff to make me feel comfortable when I was a child. She had to bear so many sleepless nights when I was small, to take care of me.

There are so many reasons why I love my mom.

She makes me feel special by treating me in a unique way. She is a very nice and kind person and isn’t biased. She helps me in whatever work I need help in. When I feel bad about something, she caringly explains why it isn’t my fault or anyone else’s fault. My mother is always interested in doing things that could help me.

I believe that my mother is one of the best moms in the world because of her love for me. She has always been there for me and I never thought of losing her love and affection in my life. I love my mom very much and I am sure that she loves me much more than that.

I love you

I love you,means very much I love you means a lot Joydeep Dash (7-B) I love you ‘s for someone special I love you ‘s for my mom I love you ‘s all I need To describe my feelings Oh,How many times I repeat it I love you – mum HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY When my mom is old I will take care of her like she took care of me, too, when I was a kid. I will take her to good places,the places that she likes the most…

Jeremi Fernandez (7-B)

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Grade 8 Why I Love My Mom

Mothers are the ones who carried us in their wombs for nine months.

They had to suffer from pain and had to change their lifestyles just for us to grow up healthy. They have a lot strength and would do anything for their children. I have an amazing mother. When I was young, she had to take a break from her job for weeks. My grandmother took care of me when she went to work. She wanted to provide money for the family.

When she was free, she would take me to shops and buy stuffed animals for me. Whenever I cried, she calmed me down with her soothing voice. She cooked my favorite dishes and washed my clothes. Sometimes, she had to stay up all night to take care of me when I was sick. As I started school, she always explained to me the homework that I didn’t understand. She also taught me more things that I would need to use in the future. I remembered in the 1st grade, the final exam results were announced and I got 21st place of 26 students. My mom was very disappointed at that time, so she started becoming more strict and encouraged me to study harder. She provided me all the things I need for school projects. She supported me when I felt determined to achieve something.

She guided me to the right path. When I was in the 3rd grade, I finally got the highest result. My mother was very proud of me. Even until now, she continues to support and encourage me and told me never give up.

My mother is truly the most fantastic of all. She is the light to my darkest nights. If I were a plane, she would be my wings. I really feel grateful for everything she has done for me and all the hardships she had to go through because of me. I hope that when I have my own children, I become like my mother, too.

Monkolraksmey Cheam (7-F)

Chanbopear Peng (8 E)

My mother or Mother’s love

My mother

My mother is like an angel who flies from the sky and helps me out when I am in need. She is my everything, my bank account, my doctor, my chef especially she is lovely, beautiful and kind.

Panchapor Pich Saing (8-E)

Momma

Mom is a person that will always stay by your side no matter how wrong you are. Sometimes she will scream, shout, blame or try to stop you from doing something, but that doesn’t mean she is bad, she is just caring about you and wanting you to look through the right way. No matter what, her love and caring will never end. Seeing you walking through the right way is all that matters to her.

Every mother is like a warrior to their kids.

She will always be there when we need help. Mothers always love their children no matter what.

Chan Lychouleang May (8-E)

Thidavan Meng (8 E) My mother

Caring and sharing that’s my mother. Inspiring and supportative, the best model for me. Her love and feelings for me are even stronger than gigantic waves of Pacific Ocean, which never stops flowing, just like how her love for me is endless.

Always running back and forth to work and back home for my sake .She supports me even as an endless atm bank that never stops.

She helps me when I’m in need, supports me when I need support, gives me love when I need it, and she never stops helping me.

She scolds me to teach me the difference of bad and good, corrects and tells me my mistake as a counsel guiding me into a world of success and happiness as I get older, which no one can do for me. She cares and heals me when I’m sick, as if a nurse.

Vuthiya Saly (8 E)

55 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Grad What Makes a Mother so Special?

Our friends and family play a large role in who we are today, and who we will be in the future. The biggest inf luence may come from our mother. Mothers are the ones whom we owe our lives to. Though, what makes a mother so special?

One of the reason why mothers are so important is that they are always there for us. They are willing to listen to all our problems and help us. They tend to try their best to make us feel at ease and assist us in any way they can. Mothers dislike seeing their children upset. Because of that, they are constantly giving us advices and wise words to aid us. Whenever we are feeling down, mothers will always try to cheer us up. They will try to make us feel important and loved. Even when we are sick, mothers will nurse us back to health and make sure we have everything we need. In addition, mothers also provide daily requirements like food and water, shelter, clothing and other belongings.

Mothers will always forgive you. Whether we broke her favorite vase, failed to do an important task or forgot her birthday, she will always forgive us. Mothers are also special because they are like our personal protectors. She will do her best to keep us from getting harmed. Even though she gets a little upset when we get bruised or wounded, she will always bring out the first aid kit and clean the injury. Let’s say I tripped and scratched my knee. Yes, my mom will be upset and maybe a little mad, yet she still tells me how to clean the minor injury and what to do to protect it from the bacteria. She even asks me how I was feeling just to check up on me and to make sure I was okay.

If you think about it, our mothers carry a lot of load on their backs. Not physically, as in lugging a crate on their backs, but mentally, as in she has no other choice to be burdened by many different problems, big and small. From learning how to walk to potty training to learning how to ride a bicycle, our mother was always there to cheer us on and motivate us. 9 months before the day we were born, they had to endure the pain of carrying us in their stomach. Some days they couldn’t sleep. Some other days, they suffered from nausea and vomiting. For 9 whole months, they went to agony. After that, they went through more aching when we were born. For 18 years, maybe even more, our mothers raised us and took care of us. They are the light that guided our paths. They taught us many things unimaginable. Whether it’s the physical actions, like tying our shoelaces, or the mental actions, like how to show respect towards other people. All of these little things they’ve taught us make up who we are today.

A few of the most significant lessons they taught us are believing in ourselves, owning up to our actions and never lose hope.

Believing in ourselves is tough when the whole word is against us. However, our mother believed in us when no one else did. They tried their best to boost our confidence so we are able to achieve goals. When we have mastered the art of owning our actions, that’s when we became a better person, a respected one, too. Hope is nearly impossible to hold onto for a long period of time. That is the reason why our mothers give us hope everyday, just so we don’t lose it. She constantly reminds us to never give up.

Our mothers have been such an immeasurable force in our lives: an eternal source of strength, optimism and hope. Her love cannot really be explained using words. It is made of deep devotion, sacrifices and pain. They gave us our voices and made us who we are today. There are times when opportunity, love and hope were showered on us. Other times, they whisper so quietly amidst the chaos in our lives. All we have to do is listen to them when they are talking to us. We should all be forever grateful for all of our mothers’ doings, because for everything they did, they did them with love. Their love is endless and unselfish and nothing can destroy it or take it away. Their love is beyond defining; it defies all explanation. Angels cannot even compare to them. A mother’s love, most importantly, is unconditional. And, that is what makes them worth more than you can imagine.

Tepolak Seth ( 9 F)

de 9

Chungsiv Kuoch (9F)

As I grew up , she would always whisper to me : ‘’Stay strong, be brave.’’ “Choose the choice you think will be right.’’ ”Don’t be afraid of people.’’ I would recite these lines every morning when I woke up. Through all the years that we fought like teenagers. We burn each other. We cry.

We smile. We laugh. I still love you. You are my best-friend , my hero and my mother.

Norpheakmoni Samreth (9F)

Sam Vichet Pen (9B)

She guides us through the big moments in life. No matter what mistakes we make or how serious it is , she tends to always forget it in the end. This is due to every mother’s trait of always forgiving their children. She doesn’t want to discipline us , it’s just that she wants to guide us through the right paths in life.

When I first started to tiptoe with my fragile legs, my mom was the first person to ever catch me in her arms before I fell, and she was the first to encourage me to not give up. Because of her, I was born. Because of her unconditional love, I’m happy. Because of her lessons, her warmth, her everything, I’m the person I am today. She’s a loyal friend, a teacher, a doctor; she’s everything beyond my description. She is beyond special.

Kim San (9B)

Ung Heng So Viriya (9E)

She knows that she might have to wake up to morning sickness and nausea for the upcoming two months or even more. But she still smiles, because she knows she’ll see your face after that. She no longer has time for herself; but, being able to spend time with you is enough. She’ll keep on worrying for you until the day she leaves this world. She does all those things , suffers all those things , but she asks for nothing from you. That is why all mothers , alike , are undoubtedly ‘SPECIAL.’

She is the person who’s always there even when we do not know it. Isn’t it an amazing thing to know that she endured all that pain from 9 months to the next 18 years of raising us, maybe more? Our mothers work really hard from day to night to provide us with the best they can , so appreciate every single little thing you are offered. They protect you from all the dangers ahead, guiding you along the best paths of life that will most likely bring you to success. It’s kind of sad isn’t it? How the world works? Undergoing limitless pain just so the one who caused you pain can be happy. If animals could talk, they would all agree to the fact that ‘’Mothers’ value cannot be illustrated through words’’.

Grade 10 What makes a mother special?

A burden of an Everest mountain, the care of an Angel, and the love of a woman – this is mother. Nine months of pregnancy, shedding tears, screaming in pain and when the day comes, a new human is born – that’s me. People say pregnancy is the hardest for a mother to bear. But, there’s even a more difficult time for mom. Childhood – during our early time, mother has to look after us every minute. She feeds us when we are hungry. When we cry, mom tries her best out of the heart just to comfort us and see our smiles. Years pass, we can go to school. Mom does not give up on encouraging to work harder and makes us strive to become a superior leader of the country in the future. After that, we become teenagers, and more mature, so does mom. We now want independence, unlike mom, she wants to be together with us, and still treat us like her lovely baby and kiss us on the cheek every night.

Time goes by; it’s the time for adulthood. Mom also turns old and weak. And, it’s when we realize how valuable a mother is. But, unfortunately, we leave no time for her due to our busy schedule. She was lonely and sad, but it’s too late. Mother is the only woman in this entire universe who will risk her life for the life of her children. She will do anything to make them happy and cherishing in life. We may sometimes argue with mom. However, mom’s love is nothing else compared. Use time wisely, and redeem the time she spends on us. “Mothers hold their children’s hands for a while, but their hearts forever”

Taing Huong Hao (10 A)

What makes mother special?

So, you have to take care of your mother like she did to you. Keep her safe like the way she kept you. Fit her like a baby and look after her when she gets old.

Make her feel comfortable. I love you

Kunneta Long (10 F)

What makes a mother special?

A mother’s love is worth more than anything in this universe, trust me, mothers will always be there for you to support you through it all, to always be with you, to help you through life, until you can.

The work of a mother time and effort us o took all of her precio

She was the one wh re just one for us, ever since we we in giving love and caring e who puts on that she dies. She is the second old until the day are both we en to just care for us wh everything else on hold in this son per ing person is the only u. Let sick and not. This one lov yo for t the best and only the bes make gigantic world who wants to can bly rything that she possi us not forget, she does eve present and future. us a better person for the

Meilan Loh​​​​​ (10 E)

Hoklay Tang (10 B)

Secondly, it’s her way of showing care. Unlike the mothers that students would probably write about; with all their sunshine and rainbows attitude. My mother has an uncanny way of showing her care.

Instead of sugarcoating her words when I break a dish, go out in the rain or stay out too late; she lays out the bare truth, even if I appear to be hurt, she won’t try to comfort me because she knows that I’m her child.

She knows that I’m strong enough to overcome mere words. So, I guess her way of showing kindness is also a way to show trust. A roundabout way indeed, but an effective one that

Oussa Chea (10 B )

What makes a mother special?

I have watched her running a household with my father and encountering obstacles in her labor. However, she never failed her duty as a super mother to lecture my brothers and me to become fine citizens and assist us with our personal and public affairs.

Her hardworking and determination has influenced me to study harder and steer away my laziness. Moreover, she has also been a convenient best friend to me. I really admire how amazing and capable my mother was to manage to do so much.

Vimeanrachana Heng (10 E)

Imagine a person

Imagine a person who is willing to go out of her way to do absolutely everything for other people’s well-being. A person who stays up all night worrying about every single day, from where we walk, to what we eat, to who we meet, and even what our future looks like, even before the word future ever comes into mind. She’s also the person who secretly cries herself to sleep out of exhaustion and stress, but still carries a warm and loving smile every single moment of the day. After all I have said, you might already know who this wonderful woman is. To those who don’t, this amazing woman is no other than my beautiful mother.

My mom is the strongest woman I know. When I was younger, my parents had some troubles they didn’t want us to know. However, my mom never let on anything more than she wanted to, everything was normal during the day; but, when she was alone, to her, everything was falling apart. I remember walking in one day seeing her crying. I was scared and ignorant. I wish I wouldn’t have done what I did that day; I walked away. If I had the chance to go back to that particular moment again, I would give anything to be able to walk up to her and hug her.

My mom never wants anything more than a good education and a secure future for me and my brother. She is able to give everything up for the sake of family. Although she’s always under stress, she continues to take on so much work, until it consumes up all her time, just so she can provide the very best for us. Above all, my mom is my role model. She can be fierce and strong any time she wants. She’s fearless of the obstacles being thrown at her. She is the reason for our wellbeing.

Since today is Mother’s Day, I would like to thank my mother. And, on behalf of everyone, I would also like to thank all the mothers all around the world, who are undeniably the most amazing women anyone can possibly look up to. Thank you for your biggest gift of all, the gift of life.

Rosa Nhim Khemara (11-E)

Angelina (8-F)

Tet Sam An Ma (11-E)

In all for all, our mother is like our own personal goddess, someone who gives us life and teaches us love. Therefore, as we are our parent’s child, we should put all our effort into our study to achieve success and become our family’s pride because there is nothing a mother wouldn’t want more than to see her own child accomplish great things.

Kristine Marina Chann Keo (11E)

I have to say that my mum has been raising me well, because without her, I might not be able to write this essay or enjoy the life that I’m living nor have an idea of where to stand, to talk, to dress up, or to organize myself to fit in the society. After reading this essay, I suggest you should call your mom and tell her that you love her, apologize for your mistakes and also tell her how appreciative you are to be her son/ daughter.

59 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Chamroeun Kalyanney Chhoeung (12 E)

The most important thing my mom taught me is that, “no one’s gonna look after you better than you, yourself, so learn to do everything for yourself”. Since a very young age, this has been drilled into me every time I got sick, injured or scared to go somewhere by myself. I started riding a motorbike at 14-yearsof-age. I ran errands while my friends were still being chauffeured around. She gave me this kind of independence at a very young age. I started learning how to buy food, clothes, and do everything for myself. My mother provided only the money. I looked around for schools by myself and found extra class teachers by myself. I feel like mother raised me the right way, despite the fact that she was always busy at work. I feel like I turned-out alright. She has always given advice and encouragement from the sidelines as I made my own way. My mother has complete and utter trust in me and I value her trust too much to break it. I don’t think I could have asked for a better mother.

Linna Heng (10-F)

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

T

he legendary ability of cats to land on their feet when falling provides an interesting example of an application of the conservation of angular momentum. To understand how a cat can land on its feet, you must first understand some concepts of rotational motion, since the cat rotates as it falls.

Rotational motion is similar to motion in a straight line (linear motion); however, the constants are slightly different. For example, instead of the mass of an object, we use what is known as the moment of inertia.

The moment of inertia of an object is determined by the distance its mass is distributed from the rotational axis.

Think of a ball tied to a string that you swing around your head. The greater is the length of the string, the greater is the object’s moment of inertia. Relating this to the cat, if the cat stretches out its legs and tail, it increases its moment of inertia; conversely, it can decrease its moment of inertia by curling up.

You can prove this by extending your arms while spinning around on a swivel chair.

Just as a more massive object requires more force to move,

an object with a greater moment of inertia requires more torque (which is the angular equivalent of force, and is proportional to the distance from the axis of rotation) to spin. Therefore, by manipulating its moment of inertia, by extending and retracting its legs and rotating its tail, the cat can change the speed at which it rotates, giving it control over which part of its body comes in contact with the ground.

The laws of conservation of angular momentum are : • In situations where angular momentum is conserved, any change in the moment of inertia of an object causes an opposite change in the angular velocity of the object.

• In situations where angular momentum is conserved, producing angular momentum, by moving one component of the object, motion is generated in the other parts of the object in the opposite direction. This keeps the total angular momentum of the system constant.

When dropped from an upside-down position (with no initial rotational movement), a cat has an angular momentum of zero. In the first section of the fall, the cat will extend its hind legs and pull in its front legs. Because of this, the hind section of the cat would have a relatively large rotational inertia compared to the front section, allowing the front section to rotate faster in a counterclockwise direction, while the back section rotates very little in the clockwise direction, keeping a net angular momentum of zero. When the front of the cat’s body is in position, the same maneuver is performed, but this time with the front legs extended and hind legs pulled in. The cat’s rear section would have less rotational inertia and spins more than the front. Finally, the cat is in position to land on all fours. The conservation of angular momentum allows the cat to rotate its body and slow its rate of rotation enough so that it lands on its feet safely.

ACADEMICS

Mr. Mustafa Ozgur Head of Physics Department

61 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

HANDOVER The highlight of the academic year 2014-2015 must most certainly be our Solidarity Festival. Zaman High School has collected over $9,000 as part of the Solidarity week which included numerous activities such as, the Charity Concert and the Food Festival.

The money collected has been used to sponsor a project prepared by Mekong Charity Institute. The project consisted of the construction of toilets, libraries and water wells for 3 schools in Prey Veng province. The money left over from the renovation and construction of these buildings were used to buy stationary (pens, pencils, notebooks, etc.) and have been put into packages to be donated to the students.

CULTURE Thank you to everybody who has contributed to this important cause.

Priyanith Keo 12-E

Before

After

Bro Moi Prom Primary School

Bro Moi Prom Primary School

Svay Cho Primary School

Chroul Thmey Primary School

Glee Club Concert

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Have you ever heard the saying, “Music on, World off?” Have you ever felt like you needed music to surround you because it is the only thing to relax you after a long day? When I say music, I mean every little sound around us; the sounds of the wind, the rustle of the trees, the chirrup of the birds, and the shouting of a crowd. If we look at the world from the point of view of a musician or a real music lover, you will see that every single sound around us is music to our ears… I think these introductory sentences are enough to share with all of you the importance music has in my life… If you are a reader who feels the same way as me, then you will have an interesting read on your hands.

This year, I found many little musicians who shared the same feelings about music as me. Starting from October, we met every Wednesday to share our happiness, sadness, and secrets through the music we produced. The sounds were not always in harmony, but we always succeeded in creating what we love.

Glee Club was one of the few occasions that I impatiently waited for every week in order to meet my little musicians and create something amazing. Every minute that we spent together trying for better sounds was really difficult,

May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

but we were excited and happy to be creating music together. We wanted to spread this happiness with others, so we arranged a mini-concert to be held on 30th May at CJCC. Since it was the first music concert outside of our school, we were all so excited and overwhelmed to be experiencing a real stage with a grand piano. Only teachers would understand the thrill you get when you get to see the result of your teaching come to life on the stage. Watching my lovely students playing the grand piano like professional musicians and singing in harmony was one of the happiest moments of my life. For a music lover, music is not only a way of teaching or learning, but it is also a lifestyle that has a place in everyone’s heart. Therefore, I would like to offer an abundance of special thanks to all the young music lovers who were confident enough to play and sing in front of people on a huge stage. Also, my additional thanks go to those who came to share our happiness and excitement on Saturday.

I strongly believe that our life is a harmony and we are the notes that make the harmony into a musical masterpiece.

CULTURE Ms. Sibel Kayis Music Teacher

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Glee club had its second concert. Each concert featured remarkable performances both

by Zaman students as well as the professional musicians and colleagues, the living prides of Cambodia.

One famous thinker defines this music in a succinct sense: really serious, dignified and rich.

We observed this dignity and richness all along the performances. These staggering performances helped forget the daily routine, the tensions of illogicality as well as the pressures of the academic year. It told us of hope and revival; it refreshed the mind to become a better being, provides an opportunity to hear and feel beauty of tones. In other words, the music’s almost mystic austerity allowed its passionate climax to achieve a stark nobility.

I thank everyone who was at the stage and provided us with this wonderful experience.

Thank you for taking us from one realm to another. A wonderful journey with many stops. A short glimpse at flawless pieces.

Thank you all our students who were part of this programme.

Our special thanks go to our guest stars, Ms Him Savy, Ms. Meng Keo Pichenda, Mr. Sereyvann, our colleague, Mr. Pacquito Corbe.

These performances were the result of the tireless effort by a dear friend, a supporter of excellence and beauty, Mr. So Sorornos as well as Ms. Sibel, our colleague.

We hope to see you in the next event and next year’s Glee Club concert.

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Mr. Muhtor Adashev Vice Principal

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Puzzle Contest

I

ACADEMICS Mr. Ibrahim Yalcin Maths Teacher

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am the type of teacher who only feels satisfied by hearing the students’ voices and the sounds of many pencils scribbling away.

During this puzzle contest week, especially, I felt this type of satisfaction about being a Maths teacher deeply because my students were always around me asking questions and wanting explanations for the challenging exercises. That week, I was super busy, even at break times. Despite the fact that I was tired of solving mind-boggling puzzles, I was quite pleased with how the days were passing.

From that day on, I enjoyed being a teacher more, and it has marked a milestone in my life and my career. I can now see why people prefer teaching and show the willingness and devotion to tackle students’ issues from morning to evening for most of the year. In this article, I want to write my reflections on the puzzle contest.

First of all, the country-wide Puzzle Contest, organized by Zaman International School, is two years old. It was held on Saturday, April 4th. As a matter of fact, not only is this contest important for the Maths department, but it is also admittedly beneficial for all the students in many other ways.

For the school, the policy is to hold or pioneer citywide or even country-wide activities. It is written in the school handbook. Our mission to inspire students in pursuit of academic excellence can be seen carried out through the puzzle contest.

When we look at the contest from the students’ perspectives, they are always seeking knowledge and trying various ways to better themselves. These kinds of activities broaden their horizons. They can excel in their problem-solving and critical-thinking skills.

Secondly, the fact that around 500 students have participated in the contest gives the opportunity for each contestant to see his/her own level and challenge him/herself.

Last but not least, the award ceremony was held at Koh Pich island during the STEM Festıval. The students who were in the top 20 received achievement certificates and special gifts. The grand prizes were given to the winners of each category (Primary 5-6, Secondary 7-8-9 and Secondary 10-11-12). My immense congratulations goes to all the winners.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

H

ave you ever imagined what will happen with technology in the next decade? Are you ready to see flying cars, robot fighters, teleportation between galaxies, medical technology and so on? Nowadays, technological improvements have reached the top. Not many days pass where we hear or read about some new technological advancement. Technology covers all the fields. However, I want to focus on artificial intelligence (AI) alone. Artificial intelligence is a software which studies how to create computers and computer software and it is capable of intelligent behavior. Our devices are getting cleverer each day by using AI. I would like to point out the positive and negative sides of artificial intelligence.

Human knowledge doubles in a year. We also hold and analyze these tons of information on computers. Think about all the information processed by only one computer. This means analyzing is quite easy and making decisions is easier according to the result of analyzed information. I want to give a specific example about artificial intelligence: Google is using artificial intelligence.

When you type anything into Google’s search engine, it instantly sends you to popular links according to what you write. Google’s servers are constantly analyzing and holding information from many people. Because of these machines, Google’s company is earning over 50 billion dollars a year. Today, many companies are using AI such as Facebook, YouTube, Msn, Yahoo, and etc. It is not surprising to think that computers will become more intelligent than all of mankind in the future.

Our life is getting easier thanks to AI which replaces us in many ways. In the future, nobody will need to work on agricultural fields, buildings, and dockyards because of intelligent robots who can work more efficiently in their place. I want to give you a real example. According to the researchers, 90% of people worked in agriculture 200 years ago. Nowadays, this ratio has decreased to only 2%. Maybe the next decade will show nobody working in agriculture. Moreover, the next generation of robots will have self-learning capability, so they will analyze soil. Then, according to the result of the analysis, spread out fertilizer, water and pesticide soil, depending entirely on what the soil needs. We will be able to use soil more efficiently thanks to AI. Here is a different example.

Think about a disabled person who has lost an arm. AI will assist them by replacing it with an artificial mechanic arm.

This technology will pick up his brain signals, then the AI arm and his brain will simultaneously move together. Many parts of the human body, even the brain, will be able to be replaced with AI technology, for example:

ACADEMICS Mr. Timur Celik IT Teacher

AI arms, AI legs, AI stomach, AI heart, AI brain, etc. Many people’s lifespans will increase due to this amazing technology. We can increase the number of examples with sky crafts, robot fighters, and unmanned aerial vehicles.

Although AI has many benefits in our daily lives, we have many reasons to be concerned about it. Next generation AI will have self-learning capability, so the new kinds of AI will be smarter than ever before. Our concerns are that they will convert into super intelligent machines, and we won’t know how to control them. AI’s impact depends on who controls it; in the long term, it depends on whether it can be controlled at all. The world’s biggest brains such as Stephen Hawking, Bill Gates, and Elon Musk line up to warn us about something that will soon end life as we know it, which is superintelligent machines. One obvious example is autonomous killing machines. More than 50 nations are developing battlefield robots. The most sought-after will be robots’ “kill decision” --the decision to target and kill someone—without a human in the loop. And the problem is how it will understand friend or foe? Combatant from civilian? Who will be accountable? These questions go unanswered as the development of autonomous killing machines turns into an unacknowledged arms race, which may show to be the extinction of human beings.

One other point is the fact that AI will use sophisticated data-mining software that can probe and categorize volumes of information so immense that it would take human brains millions of years to analyze. AI would be able to individually observe human lives and then know every person’s actions, so humans will be more vulnerable to super intelligence machines.

The crux of the problem is that we don’t know how to control them. It is possible that this technology will detect humans as a threat, so they will fight us to survive, and they won’t want to be turned off. Moreover, they will have more opportunities to find out how to kill us.

All in all, nowadays AI improvement is getting gradually faster. New AI technologies bring many advantages to all fields of our daily lives. Nobody will have to work the tough jobs and life will be easier than in the past. In addition, AI technology will save a lot of people’s lives. On the other hand, mankind could be detected a threat by AI technology, and this situation could convert into a battle for survival. In the next decade, artificial intelligence-enhanced products are projected to create trillions of dollars in economic value.

Shouldn’t some fraction of that be invested in the control of autonomous machines, solving the AI control problem and ensuring mankind’s survival?

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Trip To Siem Reap Nothing is

better tha

n being w

hit friends

at ngkor W A t a y a D Typical

Getting Closer to the Ancient Structure!

Tuk-Tuk for a Day!

Cycling Around the City of Wonders The Road That Guides Us To Friendship

Trip to

Sihanoukville t Day ff on a Ho Cooling o

Taking a Break A fter a Long Ride

Perfect Day to Celebrate

er!

Partying Under the Moonlight

Chilling at the Beach

n Time for Din

T

he holiday during King Norodom Sihamoni’s Birthday, my class and I took a trip to Bangkok, Thailand. Being from a different city, I had never really been exposed to such a wonderful city as Bangkok. My trip there was like discovering a new way of life, people and transportation.

On Monday 11th of May, our flight departed around 10 AM and we safely arrived at Bangkok’s Sovannaphumi airport at around 11 AM. It was not long until we found a taxi and headed straight to our hotel. We decided to stay in a wonderful hotel called Holiday Inn which is located in Silom Street. After checking in, we agreed to go shopping and have our dinner at Central World. It was just the first day, but we were already having very much fun.

On Tuesday, 12th May, everyone had to wake up at 6 AM in order to get ready for our trip to Siam Waterpark City. We decided to start our first ride on the Trolley Spider, and it made everyone dizzy. It was pretty much the worst experience to start off in an amusement park. Then we went on the highest sight-seeing tower in Siam City, where we were able to see everything from the top.

Finally, we swam the largest artificial pool and

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rode the longest waterto the hotel. After buying slide in Siam Waterlots of stuff, we went park. on to Central World On Wednesday, for one last dinner.

13th May, we went to the On Friday, 15th May, Safari Zoo together with the we checked out and left our Safari Marine Wildlife.Seeing hotel, but the trip didn’t end the animals from different asyet. We visited an International pects was one of the most amazing School in order to exchange some experiences we had during the trip. learning skills and see the school’s We were able to feed the giraffes at very close distanc- basic setup towards the learning programs and rules. es and watch different shows with talented animals like After finishing with our visit, we decided to head to the dolphins, seals and elephants, which were trained to do airport. Our plane back departed at 6 PM and we landed incredible things. But, one thing that really thrilled us in Phnom Penh International Airport at 7 PM. It was the the most, was the part where we got to feed the tigers. end of our trip.

The only things that separated us from the tiger was the bars of a reinforced cage. Not for the faint-hearted!

CULTURE On Thursday, 14th May, once again we went to an amusement park, but this time it was Dream World.

So Oudom Try We really enjoyed most of the rides and especially the 10-A haunted house, which is very scary. It didn’t last long, because we all had to go shopping. Around 4 PM we went to MBK shopping mall, then we moved on to Siam 73 May-Jun 2015 Paragon where we had to be separated, because some of our classmates felt very tired and wanted to go back Zaman International School - High School Magazine

IT’S BUSINESS TIME IN PHNOM PENH Zaman University we recognize that Cambodia’s business sector is in need of qualified employees. Our aim to fill this gap and help Cambodia develop faster with a qualified education is not enough without good, hardworking learners.

We all know that universities are places where students act more responsibly and are aware of the importance of education. To have a better career and well-paying job, university students push themselves to study harder and stay motivated. Our university’s policies, rules and regulations are set by keeping this fact in mind. Here at Zaman University, our classes provide a perfect environment for young men and young women to study and learn together. Zaman also offers exciting extra lessons that help students improve themselves in other areas related to their future jobs, such as second foreign languages or IT. Our mission is to furnish our students with the best education possible, so that they will not have any difficulty finding a job, hopefully reaching the top of their career path after graduation. To achieve this goal, faculty programs are designed according to the needs of the business world and in harmony with the best universities around the world. We believe that combining theoretical knowledge from a university with practical corporate knowledge will make our graduates a perfect fit for businesses and the demands of the modern world.

MATH DEPARTMENT’S TRIP TO

D

MALAYSIA & SINGAPORE

uring the mid-term holiday, nine Zaman International School (High School Campus) mathematics teachers and three students had a 5-day educational trip to Singapore and Malaysia. The aim of this trip was to explore new places, get introduced with people of different cultures and races, meet different school teachers and exchange our ideas with them. It was a great experience for all of us and we enjoyed every single moment of the trip.

During our trip to Singapore, we visited many attraction centers, took a city bus tour, were hosted by a

CULTURE Mr. Abdulkasim Akhmedov

Head of Math Department

Turkish Culture Center, took pictures at Marina Bay and went to some other places. In Malaysia, we had a short seminar at UniSel (University of Selangor) and exchanged ideas regarding studying and opportunities for Cambodian students in Malaysia. Time International School, National Zoo, Petronas Twin Towers, SOGO Shopping Mall, The Big Mosque in Putrajaya were among the places we visited. We all had unforgettable memories and now we are very excited to have the next trip together in the immediate future.

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I-SWEEEP aggregates all young scientists together to share different scientific ideas for the same purposebuilding a sustainable environment in the future.

I-SWEEEP results

Being qualified in I-sweep is an incredible accomplishment. Experiencing the competition, however, is another one entirely. We had never felt so happy, over the moon. We swore it was the happiest moment of our lives.

It was an accomplishment we should be grateful for, after all the studies, experiments, analysis, and the time spent devoted to the project. There were times when we were paranoid, procrastinating, and struggling to finish our research paper-to the last nano-second we had. Well, that was merely the beginning.

DAY 1: After an extremely exhausting 20 hours of flight, we reached Houston/ Texas. We were warmly welcomed by our friends’ relatives who drove us all the way to Hilton-Americas which was surprisingly huge and elegant. The pillars were enough to snap us out of our senses, and so was the convention center. When we were settled and rested we immediately set up our boards for the next days’ public viewing. The convention center was vast and beautifully designed. Every new thing we saw, just hit us harder with how far we have come. This feeling sank in even further when we entered and opened up our eyes to the many rows and columns of stalls that had no two of the same project boards on display.

DAY 2: The next day was the public viewing event. There were many students from different schools who were coming to visit. Seeing the interest in the pupils’ eyes on our project made us more and more enthusiastic. After the public viewing, we visited the science museum, where we feasted our eyes on interesting things, ranging from seeing industrial operations to scientific models and displays of a variety of creatures. Later on that night, we attended an opening ceremony. There were speeches given by important people and contestants presenting their flags on the stage which was, as always, amusing.

DAY 3: The next day was the judging day. All the excess fear and the note taking prior to the journey were long set aside. It was a competition for young scientists, and the other contestants looked like it, indeed. Although we probably did not look like it, we were able to gather full focus on that day. It certainly encouraged us to believe and have faith in the value of our own project just like any contestant or young scientist should do with the knowledge that he/she had. We were able to pass a full day of inspection from 6 judges on our project. We felt quite content at the end of the day with the effort we exerted.

The following event was one of the most memorable experiences. We had the most fun that night at the ‘social event,’ where we were actually given the chance to socialize with the other contestants from every country. The social event consisted of gift exchange and the opportunity for us to get in contact with everyone. We made friends and took photos with many people. That was a beautiful end to a hectic day; we wished it would pay off the very next day.

DAY 4: We were given a fantastic opportunity to go on a field trip to Johnson Space Center that used to be the space center of the NASA team. We spent the day sight-seeing enormous rockets and operating systems which we were all really impressed by. Nonetheless, we were also starting to feel a bit nerve-wrecked about the most anticipated award ceremony held that night. It was extremely exciting to be in the event hall, but we were impatiently waiting to hear the names being called out for each of our categories. Suddenly ‘Cambodia’ was called out for ‘Environment and Pollution Bronze medal category.’ We were extremely shocked and got instantly to our feet when our friends and relatives burst into cheers. We have no recollection of how our names being called had led us to the stage. It was, however, the proudest and happiest moment to be handed the medals and certificates; to stand on the stage representing our country and, most importantly, the outcome of our hard work.

In conclusion, it was such an honor just to participate in the competition and to get the most life changing experience, plus the time of our lives out of it. I-SWEEEP aggregates all young scientists together to share different scientific ideas for the same purpose- building a sustainable environment in the future. This has definitely engaged our interest in science and especially in saving the environment.

Moreover, we had the most enjoyable time making friends by getting to know all these people with different cultures from all around the world, which is not something that happens every day. This competition is the greatest experience in our lives so far. We won’t be able to forget the entire experience, and will be forever grateful for what we have achieved from our efforts and faith in our project in this competition. Nevertheless, we couldn’t end this without expressing our thanks to our amazing supervisor. Thank you for always encouraging and believing in us. We could not have come this far without you Mr.Davut.

Thanks a lot, sir!

ACADEMICS Catherosette Meas (11-E) Sevval Nur Kokten (11-E) Pichvyda Tuy (11-E) Rosa Nhimkhemara (11-E) Soksereysophal Dep (12-E) Channimol Touch (12-E)

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CULTURE Ms. Sheela Naidu Head of English Department

What is internationalism in education?

Fundamentally, Internationalism in education is a program/curriculum development to instill cultural identity as well as create an awareness of intercultural connectedness, global awareness, global appreciation and global mindedness.

Why the need for Internationalism in education?

(1) To successfully ride the high waves of globalization, schools around the world are inculcating Internationalism into their curriculum and/or creating programs to ensure that their students are better equipped with facing the challenges of tomorrow. * Increasingly, students and individuals around the world are realizing that there is a potential that they might land themselves in a career that is based in a different part of the world. The knowledge and skills acquired through Internationalism enable the student to better understand and appreciate the new culture and environment he/she is in and learn to view him/ herself as a global citizen that will help him/her to assimilate into his/her new environment.

(2) To encourage students to explore, develop and express their own values and opinions whilst listening to and respecting the views and opinions from different cultural backgrounds. * Modern technology and media exposes young children and students these days to controversial issues such as poverty, effects of illegal migrants, devastations of wars and catastrophes and financial economic downturns. Internationalism in schools enables these young children and students alike to have their voices heard, to have an international mindset and an intercultural understanding to the issues surrounding them and how to respond to these issues with a global perspective.

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(3) It aims to create the awareness of global community and interconnectedness despite the vast cultural differences and the manner in approaching problems and finding solutions. * Yes, Internationalism opens the eyes, minds and hearts of students to recognize the character of their own culture and that of others, to have an appreciation of the other cultures and take the best aspects of what the other cultures have to offer. Through Internationalism, students gain the perspective that there is a bigger world beyond their borders and that despite the cultural differences, students gain the understanding that we all have the inherent universal need for peace, love, harmony, safety and growth.

(4) It enables students to think from a global perspective and to find solutions to problems that will benefit their society and the world at large. * Internationalism affords students the opportunity to make contributions to a better world. Recently, two ZIS students had the opportunity to represent Cambodia in an international competition in the U.S., showing the rest of the represented countries of the world the use of Morianga as an alternative biodiesel fuel to help the environment; a research that will help both Cambodia and the world.

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Does ZIS foster Internationalism?

Let’s explore and decide.

(1) An International curriculum • Apart from the National curriculum, Zaman offers an International curriculum that prepares students for International exams such as Cambridge Checkpoint, IGCSE and ‘A’ level. * A successful completion of these international exams affords students the privilege of having world recognized certification that will take them across the globe to further their education and secure successful careers.

• The frameworks of the Course books used in classrooms are based on Internationalism. * Apart from integrating the core academic skills, ZIS curriculum helps integrate skills and content in a real-world context.

* For instance, in English, apart from learning about Grammar, Vocabulary, Reading and Writing, students from Grade 7 onwards learn about various matters of global content and concerns, such as wars, natural catastrophes, poverty, value of friendship, the effects of migration, slavery, peace and environmental issues.

Through these lessons students discover the inter-connectedness of their lives.

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(2) Participation in International competitions * Every year, ZIS students have numerous opportunities to participate in international competitions such as the Turkish Olympiads, I-Sweep, Genius Olympiads, Math Olympiads. Each of these competitions opens a window, if not the door, to experience internationalism and intercultural-ism.

(3)

Inter-school debate: UN model conference * To enable students to have an understanding of current issues of global significance relating to geopolitics, the environment, health, trade, sustainable development and human rights, ZIS encouraged students to participate at inter-school debates such as the ISPP UN Model Counsel that was held earlier this year.

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(4)

Cultural trips to other parts of the world * Through organized trips/tours ZIS students have had the rare opportunity to gain an insight into the cultures around the world such as Turkey, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Europe, and the U.S.

(5)

Summer school programs to UK and the U.S. * Another opportunity that ZIS students have in understanding and appreciation of cultural differences and gaining a global perspective.

(6)

Cultural and Language Festival * The cultural event that took place on 31st January aimed at exposing our students to the cultural differences and yet connectedness through dance and music whilst instilling the respect and appreciation for people from a variety of cultural backgrounds.

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(7) A growing number of international students * ZIS is now a growing potpourri of cultures; students from Korea, India, Malaysia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Turkey and Cambodia are represented here. Each of these students bring along with them a unique cultural heritage and the opportunity for students to learn, integrate and see their differences and yet interconnectedness.

(8) International teaching staff * ZIS has a teaching staff that spans from Asia to Europe. Need it be said more, that the background of the teachers presents students with a cultural exposure and internationalism in the classrooms and lessons?

(9)

Emphasis on projects * As a commitment to internationalism/ intercultural-ism, ZIS inculcates the understanding of histories, cultures, beliefs, values and perspectives of a range of individuals and people through project work. * For instance, Gr 8 students studied about prominent disabled people who have changed the course of life and living for the deaf and blind of the world whilst Gr 9 students had the opportunity to study, research and present their work on Slavery. It doesn’t just stop there – at ZIS, every grade and every subject has the opportunity to explore internationalism and intercultural-ism.

(10) Local community endeavors * In collaboration with other organizations, ZIS students were encouraged to participate in various local initiatives, such as tree planting, clearing and cleaning Hun Sen Park of its litter, making charitable donations to the poor and underprivileged in Cambodia. * These opportunities set the stage for students to first impact their community and correspondingly, the world.

The world is fast changing and it is dawning upon many that isolationism isn’t the way to sustain growth.

The current wave of globalization demands that we embrace integration in every facet of life, in homes, classrooms, hospitals and offices, to sustain growth. To ensure that the leaders of the next generation are well equipped to take on the challenges of tomorrow, every child today, needs an inculcation of Internationalism.

Hop on and let’s ride this wave of globalization ….. yonder shores of inner and external growth are definitely assured at the end of the journey.

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Fidelity

B

eing one of the staff and administrators, I have worked for Zaman school for 10 years. I would often wonder if our students ever felt loyalty towards their alma mater and teachers. We observed the acts of loyalty in our current students on several occasions. But, I still wondered if this was the case with the alumni, years after they left Zaman. I found answers to my wonderings in May of 2013, when I supervised the trip of the I-SWEEEP. I went to USA, Texas, and Houston with three students, Narong, Kambo and Visot. The family of one of the team members resided in the United States. He was going to stay with his mom after the Olympiad

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and continue his education over there.

We stayed in Houston for 6 days. One of our first graduates also lived in Houston. Just before the trip, I contacted Mr. Selmani, then Zaman Alumni Coordinator, for his information.

The evening we arrived at our hotel, I sent him a message that I wanted to pay him a visit. We agreed to meet in a couple of days.

Around 6 AM in the morning, I received a message that fresh and hot doughnuts were awaiting us and could be delivered within 30 minutes. Unfortunately, we had a prior engagement elsewhere and we had to skip them.

A couple of days later, we visited the former Zaman student’s doughnut shop. Along the way, the team members voiced unwillingness; they sure could have used this time more efficiently on other errands. Instead, they were visiting a doughnut shop.

We were warmly greeted by Dyvorn and his wife Davy, also a Zaman alumnus, as well as their uncle, who owned the place.

They treated us to doughnuts. One point my companions could not grasp was why the hosts were serving the doughnuts free of charge. At the end of the visit, we all agreed to meet at the I-SWEEEP awards ceremony.

Dyvorn and Davy, Zaman team and I were anxiously waiting for the results when they announced that we won 3 bronze medals at the awards ceremony. We took photos together.

We were supposed to leave Houston a day later, but we had so much to do.

Dyvorn offered his help: he would be with us and drive us wherever we wanted to go. We gratefully accepted his offer. As Davy was expecting a baby, she couldn’t join us for the last day.

The next day Dyvorn picked us up and we went directly to the bank. After we completed our transactions, we went to the shopping center. We were looking for a suitcase, but we couldn’t find anything suitable.

Dyvorn suggested we use a cardboard box instead.

But where would we find it at that time? Dyvorn had them in his shop. We directly drove to his place.

On the way, Dyvorn pulled over in front of a market and bought special packaging tapes. He asked us to wait in the car. Meanwhile, I turned to students and asked them why Dyvorn was helping us. After a pause, I broke the silence: because it was his fidelity. In fact, I was showing the same trait when I put the visit to Dyvorn and other former students in my priority list. The group was silent. I never meant everyone should follow the same pattern, though.

We collected the boxes from the shop, packed our stuff at the hotel, and went directly to the airport.

Dyvorn was with us until the border check. It was time for our departure.

I looked at Dyvorn, ‘I really don’t know how to thank you. Without your help we could not have managed to pack all this. I cannot find proper words to show my gratitude.’ ‘When I was studying in Turkey,’ he replied, ‘People assisted me more than what I have done today. I learned how to express fidelity in practice from them.’

In fact, the students who accompanied me also experienced what fidelity was. With these feelings we flew to Los Angeles.

Dyvorn’s family: Chandyvorn Thai (Husband) Kimdavy Un (Wife) Sovan Aniza Thai (Daughter) Sovan Rithivorn Thai (Son)

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It has become a Zaman culture that younger generations learn from older ones.

We stayed in Los Angeles for 3 days and we also visited some of our alumni. One of them was Kuchsar Srey. When we were in Houston, I informed her about my visit. She wondered if I wanted anything in particular; I insisted it was just a visit. The second day, after we returned from Six Flags, we went to visit Kuchsar at her shop.

It was nearly evening. Kuchsar and her husband closed the shop early and took us to dinner. The food was delicious with a warm and sincere atmosphere. I invited them to join the Anatolian festival.

The night before the festival, I called Kuchsar to remind her of our arrangement. Kuchsar was to come alone, as her husband would remain in the shop.

She was also expecting, so she could not come to the festival, as she was not feeling well.

The festival was well-organized with a buffet of foods and delicacies.

As Kuchsar used to visit her teachers, often when she was a Zaman student, she used to taste the Turkish food.

I called her again and asked what she desired to taste. I made a pack of all the meals and sweets she asked. We had a flight that night and her place was on the way to the airport.

She gave me the presents for the teachers in Phnom Penh in exchange. The students experienced the same fidelity with Kuchsar’s family, too.

The last thing was to leave Visoth with his aunt.

In his aunt’s office, Visoth asked if we would visit him in the same way the next year when the next group joined the I-SWEEEP. I promised we would. The next year, Mr. Davut supervised the trip to I-SWEEEP and they were welcomed by Visoth’s family when they visited him.

Davy and Dyvorn have a daughter and a son now.

Kuchsar and her husband have two daughters.

I wish them a happy and peaceful life.

As Zaman International School, we still keep in touch with our alumni. Our one and only Zaman Alumni Association actively engages with all of them.

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CULTURE Mr. M. Gurkan CIL

Principal of ZIS

Srey’s family: Pouv Sam ( Husband) Sreykuchsar Rith (Wife) Teresa Pouv ( 1st Girl) Melisa Pouv ( 2nd Girl)

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REFLECTIONS ON THE 99TH ISSUE

I

read our school’s 99th published High School Magazine. There were many new and difficult words for me to learn. My memory is not great but thanks to reading and doing the magazine’s quiz, I was able to improve my memory a little.

I wrote a story and I asked our English Teacher to check it for me. She read two of my stories, and asked me to share one of my stories for the magazine named, “Abyss”. I like that students have a place to share their work and achievements with other students.

Another student had their work shared in the last issue, I was most interested in reading poetry that was written by Ms.Chanvathna Chea from class 8-E, “One Day”. It was attractive and interesting. It was a poem filled with wondrous melody. The poet described many deep meanings and it was a true representation of the world. As I read it, I could really imagine myself standing there. Note to the author: You are an amazing poet.

The other stories and activities in the magazine are all interesting and funny, also it was aspiring. I could really feel the hard work they hard work put into the magazine.

Looking through the magazine, I can’t seem to believe how all of these events pass by in

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May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

1 year. Everything seems so miraculous and magical. It’s really interesting to find that when we start reading, we can’t stop reading until the last page.

This magazine also shows the united love of teachers and students. The difficulties or obstacles between the teachers and students and how it turns into a bond. Like how Mr.Haci Ibrahim Yalcin, wrote about his field trip with his 11-B class, and how the invisible barrier was broken. It was a touching but also an amusing story.

There were also many competitions like soccer, basketball, ping pong, football, singing contest, spelling bee, storytelling,…etc. it was really inspiring to see how everyone tries their best to achieve and experience new things.

The magazine tells stories of many different types and themes, like how Ms. Ivy Dawber felt when she was new here, in a new place with different a culture and a different language. Reading her essay made me notice how this school is filled with helpful people, kindness, and a warm aroma which makes it feel like home.

Seeing pictures of teachers and students, I also feel sad, almost at the brink of tears, at how friends and teachers are left still smiling until their very last minute with us in school.

Now enough with the sad stuff, let’s go on.

Reading the experiment done by two students from 11-A class got me even more pulled in than before. “How to make SOAP” was an interesting experiment which was also really helpful. My applause goes to the genius who managed to created soap.

“Charity Week”, the best of the best and an event I had entered, which was organized by Mr. Mehmet Esen. Plenty of thanks for creating an event like “Charity Week”. It was fun to make and sell things with friends, but also buying other things from students too. Seeing many great inventions or creations and delicious baked food made many get really excited and a few go head over heels.

JOKES! “Mouthology” joke was really, really, really funny! I think it also has a moral, “Don’t think you’re smart just because you go to school.” The “Elephant” joke was also amusing, I really love the students in that joke, “You did well boys!”

The last page of all, “The eye does not see.

The brain sees.” No matter how hard I try, I still can’t see it, my eyes are about to go crazy.

All in all, I have had a great time reading this magazine. A big round of applause and cheers to ZIS for publishing this magazine.

ACADEMICS Sin Srey Pov Chin (7-F) Dyleta Nor (7-F)

91 May-Jun 2015 Zaman International School - High School Magazine

Blood A teacher was giving a lesson on the circulation of the blood. Trying to make the matter clearer, she said, "Now, class, if I stood on my head, the blood, as you know, would run into it, and I would turn red in the face.." "Yes," the class said. "Then why is it that while I am standing upright in the ordinary position the blood doesn't run into my feet?" A little fellow shouted, "Cause your feet ain't empty."

White Hairs One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the dishes at the kitchen sink. She suddenly noticed that her mother had several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her brunette head. She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, "Why are some of your hairs white, Mom?" Her mother replied, "Well, every time that you do something wrong and make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white." The little girl thought about this revelation for a while and then said, "Momma, how come ALL of grandma's hairs are white?"

Wool In Ears Teacher: Why have you got cotton wool in your ears, do you have an infection?

Pupil: Well you keep saying that things go in one ear and out the other so I am trying to keep them it all in!

Birds’ Legs

Joe, a college student, was taking a course in ornithology, the study of birds. The night before the biggest test of the semester, Joe spent all night studying. He had the textbook nearly memorized. He knew his class notes backward and forward. Joe was ready.

The morning of the test, Joe entered the auditorium and took a seat in the front row. On the table in the front was a row of ten stuffed birds. Each bird had a sack covering its body, and only the legs were showing. When class started, the professor announced that the students were to identify each bird by looking at its legs and give its common name, species, habitat, mating habits, etc.

Joe looked at each of the birds' legs. They all looked the same to him. He started to get angry. He had stayed up all night studying for this test and now he had to identify birds by their LEGS? The more he thought about the situation, the angrier he got.

Finally he reached his boiling point. He stood up, marched up to the professor's desk, crumpled up his exam paper and threw it on the desk. "What a ridiculous test!" he told the prof. "How could anyone tell the difference between these birds by looking at their legs? This exam is the biggest rip-off I've ever seen!"

With that, Joe turned and stormed toward the exit. The professor was a bit shocked, and it took him a moment to regain his composure. Then, just as Joe was about to walk out the door, the prof shouted out, "Wait a minute, young man, what's your name?"

Joe turned around, pulled up his pant legs and hollered, "You tell me, prof! You tell me!"

How to View 1. Put your face close to the screen or printed stereogram. Try to look through the image, pretending it doesn’t exist.

2. Then start to move back from the stereogram (or move the stereogram away from you) very slowly.

3. Once you can keep looking through the stereogram, keep moving it (or your head) back and force very slowly. At some

​distance, w ​ hen patterns overlap each other, you will notice that something strange is happening to the image.

4. Once you can see a blurry 3D picture, keep looking at it this way. Don’t force your eyes to focus yet, they will need some time to adjust.