Dalat International School: Senior Scribble

With the Christmas Banquet only a week away, a group of senior guys at Dalat is already overflowing with joy after deciding to go as an all-guys table.  As December settles in and Penang starts showing its version of a “Green Christmas”, the whole campus feels different. Lights are going up, and there’s not a single bit of snow in sight. And everyone seems to have at least one conversation a day about the upcoming Christmas Banquet. We see a lot of people getting asked. Even though the event hasn’t arrived yet, the week leading up to it just feels memorable. For our group though, the excitement started when we randomly to sit together as an all-guys table. At first, we all laughed it out, and because we expected this year to be different, and we didn’t expect to sit with only guys again. But the more we talked about it, the more it felt like something we actually wanted to do.  When I asked Matthias Seevaratnam (12) how he felt about it, he said, “I’m all in for the idea of ha...

Among the different Dalat-specific cultures, such as Spirit Emphasis Week or Neuro-diversity Week, Mentoring is one of the most fantastic relationship development opportunities that Dalat offers.  Initially, I was unaware of the availability of mentoring until one of my mentors, Ms. Muvumba, introduced me to it. My mentoring helped me immensely in adjusting to new environments and facing situations that made me uncomfortable, more wisely. Being a mentee allowed me to observe and emulate my mentor’s strengths, including actively listening to and considering the perspectives of others.  Realizing the benefits of mentoring, I began to form more relationships with teachers whom I was drawn to because of their strengths, which led me to have three mentors – Ms. Muvumba, Mrs. Keister, and Mr. Jens – throughout my high school years. All three of my mentors had different strengths and characteristics, making each one unique and enjoyable.  Additionally, I was not the only one who...

 The scheduled 4:30 PM game against Uplands was delayed as Uplands arrived almost 20 minutes late, due to one of the roads being closed because of a sinkhole. The delay didn’t discourage the morale of Dalat; if anything, it fueled them to show what they had. The head coach, Mr. John Latham, made a comment saying, “Our boys have been warm for the past 30 minutes.” Slowly but surely, one by one, Uplands players started to arrive. Due to the delay, the game transitioned from an 8-minute stop-clock to a 10-minute running clock.  The whistle was blown, and the ball was tipped off. Dalat won the position, and they played with a relentless pace. Uplands were overwhelmed by Dalat's offense, being down by over 20 points in the first quarter. The game ended with an astonishing 49-point differential, 66-17. Dalat definitely showed preparation and focus despite the delayed start.  Our leading scorer for this game was Aaron Morrison (12), with an immaculate performance scoring 20 poin...

Many people have heard bubbling rumors of Clark Zhang (12), the previous superstar, performing during the Christmas Banquet. Though there has been speculation of his actual performance, many hope that he decides to perform as it would be essential for the purpose of watching. Previously, Clark took the heart of many fans as he sang and drew quite the audience during the After Sneak Dinner. Many hoped that perhaps he would make more music, or maybe even give another proper performance. This now, has led to many speculating that Clark may have an appearance during the Christmas Banquet.   Performing during the Christmas Banquet, would absolutely cement his legacy, as one of Dalat’s, if not Dalat’s best, singer. Many have seen his singing transformation over the years, once a freshman in chapel, and now bringing in the amount of hope he now has set out for him to perform on the biggest stage of his career. "Extremely excited to see Clark possibly perform, ever since after sneak I...

On December 1, 2025, Student IMPACT Club's Music Team arrived at Mount Miriam Cancer Hospital, kicking off the Christmas season with a heartfelt performance. IMPACT’s music outreach, though less renowned than its food drives or Zoom tutoring, is nonetheless a key part of its identity, involving just as much work, dedication, and behind-the-scenes mayhem. At 8 a.m, the Music Team members gathered at Dalat for last-minute practice, their passion for serving stronger than the irresistible urge to sleep in. “I just love the joy we bring by making music,” said Sharon Baek (12), the Music Team’s main Guitarist.  One would be mistaken, however, in assuming order or organization based on this enthusiasm. In fact, Haw Zheng (12) was meant to play piano at Mount Miriam before dengue confined him to a hospital bed, and two other members of Student IMPACT only announced their absence the day before the performance. “It was chaotic,” Sharon recalled with a laugh. Even with the frantic lead-up t...

What did one alumni, six seniors, three juniors, three sophomores, and three freshmen do this Thanksgiving? It might sound like the setup to a joke, but the real answer is that they went to the Dell Technical Skills Bootcamp. Organized by Dalat students, this two day event consisted of a mix of theoretical and practical learning in an actual Dell facility in Bayan Lepas. The first half of both days were theoretical lessons, where Dell employees taught the high school students the basics on how their servers, networks, and cabling works.  For Zachariel Ooi (12), these lessons were so important that “even though [his] transcribing app broke, [he prepared] a physical notebook and pen to take notes.” Notetaking was optional, but they would come in handy for the second half of each day: practical lessons led by Dell engineers. These consisted primarily of “server teardowns,” where actual servers were wheeled into the classroom and students were able to disassemble them. From fan compone...

 While most families in the Dalat community will welcome the long weekend attached to the American holiday, Thanksgiving is honestly something that very few families (outside of a select few) chose to celebrate this weekend.  Esteemed classmate, and future valedictorian, Lee Yan Tan (12), had this to say, when referring to her own family's thanksgiving celebration: “I didn’t do much.” This no-care attitude that Lee Yan brings to the table reflects how most people who are not American will simply choose to do nothing, or at least very little instead of celebrating the holiday themselves.  Another extremely important member of our school, head librarian, and junior class sponsor, Ms. Smail had this to say when I officially interviewed her and asked what she did over Thanksgiving: “I worked.” Dalat School themselves had our own teachers working on the famed holiday! This only serves to give even less respect to Thanksgiving, as the American faculty members are forced to work...

As the Thanksgiving and ICEC long weekend comes to an end, the Dalat seniors are busy, locked in their rooms, rushing through the “to-do” they have swept under the carpet since Wednesday night. Procrastination is a common symptom of senioritis, a chronic condition of seniors accompanied by a lack of motivation and melancholic retrospection. One moment, they may be scrolling social media for hours. Another moment, they may be crying that they are not ready to leave… and yet, they desperately beg for graduation every morning as they head to school. Each senior responds to senioritis differently; some suffer greatly from it, while others pay little to no attention to it. In this article, we will examine various extremes of Dalat seniors dealing with senioritis. Early in the morning, Jonathan Ooi (12) begins his day complaining about having to wake up early for school. In the library, rather than finishing the homework he boycotted last night, Ooi is fully immersed in daily Wordle, along w...

As a Malaysian, I’ve never celebrated Thanksgiving in my life. Don’t get me wrong,  we have Chinese New Year, where, like Thanksgiving, we gather with family to spend time together. But a day especially set apart for “giving thanks?” Is it really necessary? I thought that idea was wild; couldn’t we just be thankful every day? It wasn’t until I had almost completed all my years of high school, approaching its end, that I realized how important it is to have a day to be thankful and celebrate the little things every day.  The Thanksgiving holiday originated with the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Native Americans in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1621. It was initially a festival that celebrated gratitude for a successful harvest. As more years passed, it became a national holiday in the U.S., where family and friends gather to express gratitude for life over a shared meal. Some other things associated with Thanksgiving include turkey trots, sweet potato casseroles, and, of course, foo...

A week before, the atmosphere at Dalat was exceptionally warm. Although the unpredictable rainy weather has been annoying us, it was the energy of our staff community gathering for our annual Thanksgiving lunch. Seeing every single national and international staff member in one place, chatting and interacting, was awesome. It showed us a powerful reminder of how connected we are as a school community. This event is a highlight because it removes any imaginary dividing lines within the school. Getting to see all the staff, whether they were a national or international staff member, or if they've been here for decades or if just arrived, everyone was simply a colleague and a friend celebrating our shared community. That feeling of togetherness is what makes the day so memorable and truly makes Dalat feel like one huge family. But the real attention seeker of the lunch, as always, was the food, and the incredible initiative shown by our parents and staff. They truly went above expecta...

The tournament began not with a jump ball, but with a loud rustling of snack bags early in the morning on the bus. On November 21, the Dalat Varsity Girls and Boys Basketball teams departed for Kuala Lumpur to attend the basketball tournament at the International School of Kuala Lumpur (ISKL). Within less than 20 minutes into the ride, the girls were full of energy, eating nachos with salsa and hummus with vegetables. Soon, we arrived in K.L. in the early afternoon.  Our first game was against the host team, ISKL. Shoes squeaking, and adrenaline spiking, we secured our first win of the tournament. Then we played against a local club team, Selangor BA, who had won against us in a close game. After the games, we went to a mall for dinner and bought snacks with money that was generously donated to us by an anonymous parent. Not much later, back at the hotel, the girls gathered in one of the rooms to eat the snacks, play games, and talk. Not everyone had arrived, but people had already...