Revised Completion Form

1. Increase Awareness
 Boys’ Volleyball
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/one-mistake-one-game.html
 Boys’ Basketball
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2012/02/blow-out-win-against-gordon.htm
Student Council 2010-2011
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/01/isacsubic-student-council-jan-19-22.html

 2. Undertaken new challenges
 CAAT Volunteer Worker
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/caat-cas-reflection.html
Lower School Soccer Club
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/04/april-30th-lower-school-soccer-club.html

 Tzu Chi Medical Mission
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2010/11/tzu-chi-medical-mission-111410.html


3. Planned and initiated activities
 Student Council 2010-2011
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/01/isacsubic-student-council-jan-19-22.html http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/06/reflection-student-council-2010-2011.html

4. Worked collaboratively with others
 Student Council 2010-2011
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/01/isacsubic-student-council-jan-19-22.html
Boys' Basketball
http://wildocas.blogspot.tw/2012/04/memories.html
Boys' Volleyball
http://wildocas.blogspot.tw/2011/10/2011-boys-varsity-volleyball-season.html

 5. Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities
 Boys’ Basketball 2011
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/04/boys-varsity-basketball-reflection.html
 LS Soccer Club Evalution

 6. Engaged with issues of global importance
 Tzu Chi Medical Mission
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2010/11/tzu-chi-medical-mission-111410.html
 POCCH: Make a Better World
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2012/05/pocch-make-better-world-reflection.html

 7. Considered the ethical implications of their actions
 POCCH: Make a Better World
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2012/05/pocch-make-better-world-reflection.html
 CAAT Volunteer Worker
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/caat-cas-reflection.html
Boys' Volleyball
http://wildocas.blogspot.tw/2011/08/one-mistake-one-game.html

 8. Developed new skills
Tzu Chi Medical Mission
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2010/11/tzu-chi-medical-mission-111410.html
 Student Council
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/06/reflection-student-council-2010-2011.html
 CAAT Volunteer Worker
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/caat-cas-reflection.html

Revised Final Reflection

The IB CAS program’s goal is for students to achieve 8 learning outcomes which are: Increased awareness of his/her own strengths and areas of growth, Undertaken new challenges, Planned and initiated activities, Worked collaboratively with others, Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities, Engaged with issues of global importance, Considered ethical implications of their actions, and Developed new skills.

            My longest activity was Student Council 2010-2011, it was school year long activity. Being in this school for all my life, I’ve been hearing election speeches every single year and very rarely was there a good speech that wasn’t repetitive. I wonder every year whether or not these candidates know what it means to be part of the Student Council, and so curiosity hit me, and I was lucky enough to have been elected as Student Council Treasurer. While in Student Council I learned the importance of careful planning and collaborative work. Although my work ethics on a good day were at most merely satisfactory, I do take into thought of the results due to my actions and lack of attentiveness. I have become more aware of my bad habits, in which being my lack of organization and motivation. Throughout the year, these two factors have always been the key to success; I know this because most of the problems that rose up were due to these reasons. The hardest part being in student council was prioritizing and time management. As an extracurricular activity, you often have to go out of your way and give up your free times just so your work in the council would collide with other requirements and commitments. One of the expectations from our council adviser was to be initiative, propose our own activities and share ideas. My idea was that we setup a sari-sari store(Filipino convenient store) by the school playground as the ISAC sports tournament was going on. As proposer I went down to buy the goods we will sell and materials we will need. I felt very in control of the situation but in the same time it was a big responsibility when my other council members showed little help while I’m stressing out to make things work.

            Throughout my high school year I’ve always engaged myself to joining varsity sports teams such as basketball, volleyball, soccer and at times track & field and cross country. In the 2 years of IB, majority of my action requirement are covered by my sports activities. CAS for sports are generally the same, you set a goal for yourself then formulate ways to reach it and then in the end you have an evaluation of whether or not you reached the goals. With CAS in my mind I was more concentrated in my overall development as a student athlete; I have gained awareness of my own strengths and looked for ways to improve my weaknesses.  One of my very own mottos for sports is that commitment and perseverance will pay off and it definitely has for me this year as our commitment together as a team led to our ISAC championship in basketball. Never would I have known that sports are not only dependent on a person’s physicality but also their mentality. After so many years of athletics, I have embraced it into a lifestyle of mine and would have never thought that it can really build a character of a person. I am very lucky to have such wonderful coaches that not only taught me how I could improve my game but also gave me the confidence to strive for better. Another factor to my success and joy in sports are the presence of my teammates. My motivation in sports were if not always, are majorly dependent on my teammates. Especially sports like volleyball and basketball, I’ve understood the significance of collaborative work. One of the reason to our success in both our varsity volleyball and basketball seasons were because all of us on the team KNEW each other, we were always together whether it was during practice or outside which enabled us be able to support our teammates when they needed it without much complication because we are not only teammates but also close friends, we did not take any criticism personal at all, and this is one of the reasons why I am very proud to be a Razorback. In addition, without the great coaches we wouldn’t have been united as we are today. Both the memories and friendship that have been made through sports will definitely be life-lasting.

            The Tzu Chi Medical Mission, Lower School Soccer Club, and POCCH completed the service parts of my CAS: Make a Better World. These 3 services gave me the most feedback as I was writing up my reflection. All 3 made a point to me that every single person in the world has the rights to live and be heard. Although the kids of the lower school soccer club were not underprivileged as the people in the medical mission and POCCH, but while I was working with the little kids I realized that even their thoughts and actions can be valuable because I feel that often times the voices of children are undermined. As a global citizen I believe every single person has a role to play in the overall wellbeing of our universe and mankind.

           The interesting part of CAS is allowing me to open many creative door and this allowed me to learn and develop many new skills. One of the most obvious skills that I developed is soldering. When I was an assistive technology volunteer I was very fascinated by the creativity that people had in the workplace, their job is to come up with technology that would help assist the ones in need so that they could live a better quality life. I felt really honored that I could contribute to such a cause and so I was very eager to learn not only soldering but also how these many designs were made to suit patient needs and the feedbacks gotten from doing this job.

           One thing I’ve tried to do as much as possible in my 2 years of IB CAS was that I do the activities that I really have the passion of doing, not only because I know it would be enough to meet the minimal CAS requirements but also so that I could have the motivation and commitment to the activity. On the other hand, I can have more sentimental value in doing what I do in which allows me to think more deeply and have more to reflect on. Looking at the activities I’ve done for CAS there is not one in there that I would say I did not enjoy doing and would never do it again. All though I was not always punctual, but every time I’m present, I give in 100% to doing what I need to do because I actually am genuine in what I do. In conclusion I have grown into a mature young men being experienced and worked together with many kind of people which allowed me to think through the many perspectives in life. I believe CAS has made me truly an “International” scholar and citizen.  

Final CAS Reflection

One of the core requirements for the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma is CAS, which stands for Creativity, Action, and Service.  Although it has made my last two years of high school very occupied, it has definitely developed me into a much more open-minded thinker, a global citizen and a lifelong learner, the perfect description of an “International” scholar. These aspects of an individual is also what Brent International School want for their students, stated in the ESLRs( Expected S). The CAS program forces us to engage ourselves to not only our school but also our community and maybe even the global society in general. It reminds us of the things that count and matters, by this I mean academics are important and we learn multiple subjects so we can build skills that will allow us to enter the professions we want but when you graduate and go into the big world, there are many things that we will need to learn that can be simply be attained through reading books but actual on-the-spot experience. For me, the hardest part of CAS is not engaging ourselves and to participate in activities but is the documentation of our progress. To document, we are required to write up a proposal, then keep journal entries through out the timeline of the activity and then finally write up a reflection. All this writing can be extremely frustrating but I think this is an essential factor to the success of CAS, making it more then just participating. Writing journals and reflections has allowed me to think twice about a subject matter, see my own progress throughout the activity, and constantly participating (except for short term activities).  The IB CAS program’s goal is for students to achieve 8 learning outcomes which are: Increased awareness of his/her own strengths and areas of growth, Undertaken new challenges, Planned and initiated activities, Worked collaboratively with others, Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities, Engaged with issues of global importance, Considered ethical implications of their actions, and Developed new skills.

            My longest activity was Student Council 2010-2011, it was school year long activity. Being in this school for all my life, I’ve been hearing election speeches every single year and very rarely was there a good speech that wasn’t repetitive. I wonder every year whether or not these candidates know what it means to be part of the Student Council, and so curiosity hit me, and I was lucky enough to have been elected as Student Council Treasurer. What I realized as I was learning the functions of the Student Council and keeping up with journal entries was that the things the council provides is nothing that’s a “NEED.” For example, there is no need for throwing parties, having a spirit week, raising funds and helping the ones in need in our community. There was not a TO-DO list on the first day, the only job is to satisfy the student body and meet their expectations, we had to make our own to-do list, which took a lot of initiative, creativity and collaboration between council members.  One huge lesson I learned throughout the year, is that it takes a lot of careful planning for an activity to work otherwise many on-the-spot problems will come up and everything will just be a mess, and when things are a mess it is very hard to work with your fellow council members.

            Throughout my high school year I’ve always engaged myself to joining varsity sports teams such as basketball, volleyball, soccer and at times track & field and cross country. In the 2 years of IB, majority of my action requirement are covered by my sports activities. CAS for sports are generally the same, you set a goal for yourself then formulate ways to reach it and then in the end you have an evaluation of whether or not you reached the goals. With CAS in my mind I was more concentrated in my overall development as a student athlete, I have gained awareness of my own strengths and looked for ways to improve my weaknesses.  One of my very own motto for sports is that commitment and perseverance will pay off and it definitely has for me this year as our commitment together as a team led to our ISAC championship in basketball. Never would I have known that sports are not only dependent on a person’s physicality but also their mentality.

            The Tzu Chi Medical Mission, Lower School Soccer Club, and POCCH completed the service parts of my CAS: Make a Better World. These 3 services gave me the most feedback as I was writing up my reflection. All 3 made a point to me that every single person in the world has the rights to live and be heard. Although the kids of the lower school soccer club were not underprivileged as the people in the medical mission and POCCH, but while I was working with the little kids I realized that even their contributions and thoughts can be valuable because I feel that often times the voices of children are undermined. With this said the learning outcome of engaging with issues of global importance and considering ethical implications of their actions were met.

            In conclusion I have grown into a mature young men being experienced and worked together with many kind of people which allowed me to think through the many perspectives in life. 

CAS Completion Form

1. Increase Awareness
 Boys’ Volleyball
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/one-mistake-one-game.html
 Boys’ Basketball
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2012/02/blow-out-win-against-gordon.html
 2. Undertaken new challenges
 CAAT Volunteer Worker
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/caat-cas-reflection.html
Lower School Soccer Club
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/04/april-30th-lower-school-soccer-club.html
 3. Planned and initiated activities
 Student Council 2010-2011
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/01/isacsubic-student-council-jan-19-22.html http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/06/reflection-student-council-2010-2011.html
 4. Worked collaboratively with others
 Student Council 2010-2011
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/01/isacsubic-student-council-jan-19-22.html
 5. Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities
 Boys’ Basketball 2011
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/04/boys-varsity-basketball-reflection.html
 LS Soccer Club Evalution
 6. Engaged with issues of global importance
 Tzu Chi Medical Mission
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2010/11/tzu-chi-medical-mission-111410.html
 POCCH: Make a Better World
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2012/05/pocch-make-better-world-reflection.html
 7. Considered the ethical implications of their actions
 POCCH: Make a Better World
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2012/05/pocch-make-better-world-reflection.html
 Tzu Chi Medical Mission
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2010/11/tzu-chi-medical-mission-111410.html
 CAAT Volunteer Worker
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/caat-cas-reflection.html
 8. Developed new skills 
Tzu Chi Medical Mission
 http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2010/11/tzu-chi-medical-mission-111410.html
 Student Council
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/06/reflection-student-council-2010-2011.html
 CAAT Volunteer Worker
http://wildocas.blogspot.com/2011/08/caat-cas-reflection.html

POCCH: Make a Better World Proposal

Supervisor's name: Mr. Tolentino
Year 12
Activity Name: POCCH: Make a Better World
Duration of Activity: May 2012

What is my past experience with this activity? 
I have been to orphanges here and there with the school and sometimes with my parents. It is always heart warming seeing the people at the orphanage happy at the end of the day and there is always so much to reflect on.
 What new learning or skill do I hope to pick up or develop?
 Communicating and working with younger children is one think I will definitely try pick up since the children at the orphange do not speak perfect english which can be a challenge to me.
 How will this experience be different from that of the past?
The difference between this time and the past is the frequent collaboration with the same orphanage. This means that we are affecting these people long-term rather than short-term and our interactions with them can make a lifelong impact on their well being and future growth.
 How am I going to know if I am making progress or experiencing growth in this activity? 
If I am making progress, it will be obvious in my interaction with the kids as we will be less awkward towards each other and have a more amiable relationship. Also, I will know if I am experiencing growth when I feel good about what I am doing and when I feel a connection with the kids at POCCH.
 Goals
My goal is to bring smile and laughter to the children at POCCH. They already underprivelaged but they need to know they are the same as us, and we are all just human beings and we all deserve to be happy.
 Impact 
The activity will definitely impact the children and community of POCCH since their well being is the main focus of our activity.
 Timeline 
Every weekend at POCCH or Brent School Subic

POCCH Make a Better World: Reflection

Although only going to two of the four POCCH sessions, I can already feel a sense of bonding with these underprivileged children. I think it is very important that we know why we are spending time together with them even just once a week and why is doing this service. What we need to understand is, the purpose of having activities with the orphanage is to give them hope and let them know that their social status does not limit them to what they can achieve and to let them know that they are also part of our community, no one should be undermined. I think another very important point is that there is only 2 kinds of people, the willing and unwilling, for those who are willing they can go far in life, and the unwilling just look for excuses to justify their inefficiency to succeed. With that said, even though these orphans are underprivileged and unfortunate, they can still make something out of themselves, and our service to them is giving them that motivation and spark that ignites their potentially bright future, and hopefully someday they will realize the help we’ve given them and make them want to give back to the community, now that’s community service; the sharing of help to make the community a better and peaceful place. The perfect description for me to put it is team work. As a human being, our existence on Earth with each other makes us a one big community, in other words, a team, and in a team, the well-being of one individual leads to the progress of not other individuals but the whole team itself. This activity benefitted not only the orphans of the POCCH orphanage, but as well as me and my companions who were willing reach out. The whole experience enabled us to think less selfishly and be more grateful which in turns leads to the humbling of our mind. We live so that we can be happy, and being able to be one of the reasons to a person’s happiness is very honorable yet heartwarming, as having the ability to give is much more superior then to receive. With all this being said, throughout all our own individual courses in life, we will meet people that will help you and ask for nothing in return, we need to remember, when we do have the ability we need to give back to always find a way to give back to the community, with this concept we can together, without a doubt make a better world.

POCCH: May 26 Session

The May 26 meeting with POCCH was our final session of the school year 2011-2012. I have missed the last 2 meetings with POCCH but on this particular I was very touched when one of the little kids were looking for “kuya William” which was me. The little boy’s name is El John, he was my favorite in there and the one I remembered the most since because in our first meeting, we played ultimate Frisbee and soccer and he was the smallest little kid out there and he played his heart out! It was so touching for me that he remembered me because out of everyone he remembered me after missing a couple of session with POCCH, this shows that I have left an impact in his memory in which I am very glad to have done. On this May 26 session, we were split into two groups: Theater and Reading. I was fortunate enough to be put into the theater group because I am a horrible reader and I wanted to do something active. Our group started off by playing little games such as “Duck Duck Goose” and “Elbow Tag”. These activities were important because it allowed us to interact with them and so the awkward barrier when people first meet can be broken down. After these games we were split into smaller groups of 8, and now that everyone was warmed up and opened up to each other, we were given a task to come up with a skit that has the same message as the childhood story we had to draw for. Our group happened to get the story “Jack and The Giant Beanstalk.” The problem was we could not come up with a conclusion to what the main message of the story was, so we moved on and did a play on “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” to convey the message of not to lie, otherwise no one will listen to you again. It was a straight forward and simple which was reasonable for the situation because people actually understood our performance unlike the others, where their skits became way too complicated. After the skits, we all ran into the waterslide. At first they were all shy to slide down slide, so I took lead and slid down pulling some of my friends with me. When the next round came, it was the kids pulling me to ride down with me. After the slides we had lunch together in the cafeteria and then we sent them on the bus for long farewell and thank you. In the end it was a hot tiring day but the sweat was definitely worth the smiles that was there that day.