On September 23, 2019, the Royal Courier opened a poll for students and staff asking them what their favorite subject was and Math was the winner, securing 24 percent of the vote.

The other subjects included were English, History, Science, Art, and Religion.

After two weeks, the poll closed and it came with rather surprising results to some teachers and students. The total votes counted were 335, giving Math the win with 82 votes. 

English came in second with 73 votes. They were followed by History with 54 votes and Science with 53 votes. The last subjects were Art with 51 votes and Religion with 22 votes. 

Math’s win came as a surprise to some people because it can be seen as difficult or consuming. 

Mr. Vila, the head of the Math department, was shocked as well when he was asked about what he thought on math being a the number one voted in the survey.

“Math can be a polarizing subject and can sometimes not have the most positive impression on students, so I was extremely happy to see our students picking it as their favorite subject,” said Mr. Vila.

Ms. Ana Lourdes Garcia, English department head, was also somewhat surprised. “I was happy with the performance [of English], a bit amazed at Math scoring highest. I would not have predicted that, not because of the department, but because of the general attitudes towards math in society.”

Mr. Eric Beltran, head of the Theology department, questioned the sample size of the poll.

“This number doesn’t even reflect half of the student population. Would Math drop if we surveyed a different group of students?” 

Ms. Garcia has worked in both the English and Math department over the years. “I enjoyed teaching math because there is a clarity to it – there are many creative ways to solve a problem but there is a definite correct answer. So, one is not left in doubt about the value of their ideas – there is little ambiguity. I wonder if that is particularly appealing to our student body at this moment in time.”

Mr. Beltran was not upset by his department’s performance. “Being that the Theology department is the heart of the school, meaning that we are connected to most everything ILS does, I would simply continue to do all that we do.”

Overall, the poll gave some feedback to the teachers on what students think about the subjects they teach. Of course the answer on what your favorite subject is varies in every person, which is why the ILS community can take the poll as an overview on what students think, but at the same not put the whole school into liking only one subject.