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Science Curriculum Upper School
Science Curriculum Upper School
The Bishops School Science Department provides a wide range of courses. Upper school students can choose many different paths through the science curriculum based on their interests and abilities. Below are course descriptions for all courses taught on a regular basis.
SOPHOMORE COURSES
CHEMISTRY (Prerequisites: Physics or Conceptual Physics) This course will familiarize the students with the underlying principles that govern the chemical reactions in our world. Through extensive laboratory experiments, lectures and discussions, students will explore the answers to five fundamental questions regarding matter and the changes it undergoes. 1.) What is matter? (Structure of Matter and Atomic Theory) 2.) How does matter change? (Chemical Reactions) 3.) Why does matter change? (Thermodynamics) 4.) How fast do reactions occur? (Kinetics) 5.) How far do reactions go? (Equilibrium) In addition to the chemical principles covered in this course, a heavy emphasis is placed on the development of skills, including problem-solving, abstract modeling, experimental analysis, scientific writing, and critical thinking.
The Bishops School | Curriculum Catalog 2013 2014 | Science | Upper School Page 1 | 3/13/2013
HONORS CHEMISTRY (Prerequisites: Physics or Conceptual Physics with high achievement, and concurrent enrollment in Math 5 Enriched or higher is strongly recommended.) This course is taught at an intellectual level similar to that of an AP course, but emphasizes laboratory investigation and making connections between seemingly disparate topics in chemistry and between chemistry and physics. Students in this course will apply rigorous mathematical models to chemical processes and will be required to consistently work and learn independently. Topics covered will include: Energy Conservation, Thermodynamics, Atomic Structure, Intermolecular Forces and Bonding, Stoichiometry, Kinetics and Equilibrium.
JUNIOR COURSES
BIOLOGY (Prerequisites: Chemistry or Honors Chemistry) This course provides a thorough introduction for the students to the increasingly important field of biology, covering the core concepts of biochemistry, genetics, natural selection, and ecology. This challenging laboratory course allows students to experience biology as a scientific process involving inquiry-based work and collaborative activities. There is a strong emphasis on the development of skills, including experimental skills, critical thinking, cooperative learning, and study skills. ADVANCED PLACEMENT BIOLOGY (Prerequisites: Chemistry or Honors Chemistry with high achievement) This advanced level course is rigorous, fast-paced and equivalent to a first-year college biology course, taught with a college text. Coursework requires advanced critical thinking and analysis skills and a great deal of independent learning. This course is designed for students who have already demonstrated both a genuine interest in science and the requisite skills to meet confidently the challenges of an advanced course. ADVANCED HONORS BIOLOGY (Prerequisites: Chemistry or Honors Chemistry with highest achievement and recommendation of department) This is our most challenging biology course. This advanced level course encompasses similar topics as a Advanced Placement Biology but delves much more deeply into the biochemistry of the organic world. Laboratory experiments are a major component of the course and students are expected to have developed excellent lab skills and critical thinking skills that can be applied in this course. This course is the equivalent of an introductory college-level course in biochemistry.
The Bishops School | Curriculum Catalog 2013 2014 | Science | Upper School Page 2 | 3/13/2013
The Bishops School | Curriculum Catalog 2013 2014 | Science | Upper School Page 3 | 3/13/2013
ADVANCED PLACEMENT CHEMISTRY (Prerequisites: Honors Chemistry with high achievement and current enrollment in Precalculus or higher) This second-year chemistry course is designed to build upon the ideas and skills developed in Honors Chemistry in greater detail and in a more rigorous manner. There are several concepts that this course will cover for the first time as well. The topics covered include writing and balancing sophisticated chemical equations, stoichiometry, states of matter, solution chemistry, atomic theory, quantum mechanics, bonding, thermodynamics, equilibrium, kinetics, electrochemistry, nuclear chemistry, and organic chemistry. The course will be heavily weighted toward a discovery approach, both in its seminar format in the classroom, and the investigative nature of the lab program. Lastly, the course will afford the necessary time to prepare for the AP examination at the end of the year. Students taking this course should be very interested in the subject of chemistry, demonstrate advanced problem solving skills, strong independent thinking ability, and consistent individual motivation.
ADVANCED HONORS SCIENCE RESEARCH (Prerequisites: AP Biology or Advanced Honors Biology, and approval of the science department) In science lab courses the term unknown refers to an answer that, while it may be unknown to students, is known to the teacher and in fact to generations of students and teachers who went before. In this course, students perform experiments in which the term unknown means literally that. A small group of students (maximum 5 per year) will participate in ongoing research projects at local institutes, such as the University of California, San Diego, and The Scripps Research Institute. Students will handle human genes cloned into bacterial vectors, perform sub-cloning and analysis and basic gene expression experiments. Students will learn the principles and practice of handling recombinant DNA, as well as the basic cell biology needed to understand the role of these particular genes in progression of cancers. However, the main goal for students is the shift in mind-set that occurs as they realize that the right answer is not known, and it is for them, the researchers, to figure out what the results mean.
The Bishops School | Curriculum Catalog 2013 2014 | Science | Upper School Page 4 | 3/13/2013
The Bishops School | Curriculum Catalog 2013 2014 | Science | Upper School Page 5 | 3/13/2013
ROBOTICS (Prerequisites: Concurrent enrollment in Math 4 or higher) This fall semester elective course will offer students the opportunity to apply their mathematical, scientific and computer programming skills in the context of robot design and construction. Students will study and employ engineering design and iteration processes as they build small-scale prototype robots. Concurrently, they will receive tutelage in movement and sensor programming with RobotC software. Teams of six to eight students will collaborate to ultimately design and build a functional and competitive robot for a VEX robotics competition. This process will also lead each student to hone and evaluate their management, cooperation, and leadership skills. Students will be required to work with hacksaws, dremels, and possibly other tools. ADVANCED HONORS ASTRONOMY (Prerequisites: the first semester of either Physics II, AP Physics B, or Advanced Honors Physics) What provides the power for a stars furnace? How did the ancient Greeks measure the value of the circumference of the Earth, 2500 years ago? Is light a particle or a wave? How do stars send their fingerprints to the most distant reaches of space? Where and how are the atoms of the periodic table constructed? Why is the theory of relativity a theory of absolutes? How do we know the planets revolve around the Sun? What is the cause of gravity? What happens to stars when they die? What is the evidence that almost all galaxies are moving away from each other at incredible speeds? During the Big Bang, what banged? Why are simultaneous events not for everyone? How can supernovas help tell us the age of the universe? Why are all nuclear fission-bombs the decedents of supernovas? This course explores what physics has discovered about the universe in the last hundred years, and especially in the last five decades which have been called the golden age of astronomy.
The Bishops School | Curriculum Catalog 2013 2014 | Science | Upper School Page 6 | 3/13/2013