THE STONE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

STEM at Stone

Engaging in rich scientific research and authentic science inquiry design.

Students in STEM course at Stone will be inspired by the complexity and the signifcance of the problems they are asked to solve.

We understand that the work our students do in our classes prepare them for better work as scientists, but also better work as researchers, as academics, as college students, as citizens. To do so, we ask regularly: Why does it matter that students take this course? What problem is being solved, and what thinking skills are involved? Why is this important to problem solving? How does this course help students in life? How is this content applied in the real world? What couldn’t we do if we didn’t learn this? How will this way of thinking show up in other disciplines or jobs?

Throughout our Middle and Upper School programs, Stone students have rich opportunities to develop and practice skills in mathematics, physics, engineering, chemistry, biology, Earth sciences, coding, and technology, with ample opportunity to accelerate toward increasing levels of challenge. STEM classes are a core component of our Middle School program: all 7th and 8th grade students take pre-algebra and Algebra I, physics, engineering, science, and STEAM, and participate in our annual Middle School STEM Exhibition. In the Upper School, students choose from a wide array of core and elective STEM courses, with pathways that lead to Advanced Physics, Advanced Engineering, Advanced Chemistry, Multivariable Calculus, and Linear Algebra.

We believe that the application of skills is the primary act of learning. The Problem-Based Learning pedagogical approach sees the “doing” as the vehicle through which learning occurs in the classroom (as opposed to simple repitition of content and facts).

Put slightly differently — in the STEM department at Stone, our students in 7th grade and in 12th grade are challenged to acquire and apply a set of skills and to show evidence of that skill acquisition through authentic scientific research, problem-solving, and exhibition of work.

Pillars of STEM Education at Stone.

Skill Acquisition.

Wicked Problems.

The Stanford d.school categorizes problems into two broad types: tame problems and wicked problems.   Tame problems are often straightforward. They have clear answers and are usually binary in nature—they are either correct or incorrect. These include:

  • Introductory math problems (5 x 5 = 25 every single time).

  • Grammar rules.

  • Dates and names in history.

Tame problems aren’t defined as more or less easy, but they are solvable with a structured approach.  Wicked problems, on the other hand, are the ones which do not have a “solved”-state or a “done”-state.  They are not completable, they are complex, interdependent, and resistant to simple solutions. They often involve multiple perspectives, unintended consequences, and deep systemic structures.  Wicked problems can’t be solved with a single step or set of steps (and in fact they likely can never be solved so much as “improved-upon”).   Instead, they require frameworks that help us navigate complexity, iterate, and think systemically. .

Feedback
& Iteration.

How do we choose the method of feedback and design for students to have the opportunities and reason to iterate?

Content here.

Artifacts.

Our students choose artifacts that provide meaningful work in order to showcase the evidence of skill acquisition. We also want artifacts that teach students how a discipline communicates their work and call this type of product an “authentic artifact.”

For example, experimental design and outcomes can be authentically displayed in a lab report or scientific poster since these are the common communication tools of a scientist’s process.

An authentic artifact offers space in the classroom to notice aspects of communication such as organization, clarity, audience engagement, and formatting that may not have to do with the content at hand, but are transferable communication tools. Artifacts might also demonstrate the way in which people collaborate and demonstrate leadership and teamwork within a discipline.

For example, a stand-up meeting in an engineering project transfers information between team members efficiently and necessitates the understanding of how the student’s personal work adds to the greater project.

The selection of an authentic artifact sets the processes by which the class will model how the discipline works together and communicates.

A student in our STEM program will be regularly confronted with wicked problems of increasing complexity and sophistication.

The work of a Stone STEM student is to acquire a clearly defined set of skills—skills specific to a mathematics classroom, a chemistry lab, or a 3D modeling program, as well as skills transferable across disciplines, such as research, discussion, and formal academic writing—in order to design, create, and exhibit complex responses to those complex problems.

A question like “How do we optimize a chemical procedure?” (Advanced Chemistry) may initially feel simple; in truth, responding well requires that students master a great deal of chemistry-specific content, accumulate meaningful hands-on experience with laboratory techniques, puzzle through secondary and tertiary “problems” which arise naturally during the research process, and design an experimental process which tests and refines their initial ideas. The result may be a response that is “correct,” but still open to further iteration and improvement.

In short, our students pursue mastery while understanding that there is no such thing as completion.

Rigor.

Subhead here.

Content here.

Create. Evaluate. Synthesize.

Inside the STEM classroom at Stone.

STEM Honors letter intro from Molly?

Course Guide.

Middle School STEM

Quick intro copy about STEM courses here. Why do we teach the courses that we do?

Subhead

  • Science 7
    Physics 7
    Engineering 7
    STEAM 7
    Math 7

    Science 8
    Physics 8
    Engineering 8
    STEAM 8
    Math 8

  • Geometry (3 Mods)
    Required for 9th grade students or as determined by placement.

    Algebra II (4 Mods)
    Required for 10th grade students, or as determined by placement. 

    Statistics (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Algebra II  

    Discrete Mathematics (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Algebra II

    Precalculus A (Trigonometry) (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Algebra II

    Precalculus B
    (Analytic Trigonometry) (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Algebra II, Precalculus A

    Precalculus C
    (Advanced Functions) (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Algebra II, Precalculus A, Precalculus B

    Fundamentals of Calculus (2 Mods)
    Prerequisites: Precalculus A, B, C

    Calculus A/B (2 Mods)
    Prerequisites: Strong command of Algebra II, Precalculus A, B, C

    Math Modeling (1 Mod)
    Prerequisites: Calculus A,B

    Calculus C (1 Mod)
    Prerequisites: Calculus A/B
    and Analytic Geometry

    Linear Algebra (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Calculus A,B  

    Multivariable Calculus (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Calculus A/B.
    Linear Algebra preferred.

    Statistical Narratives (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Algebra II  

    SAT/ACT Test Prep (1 Mod)
    Open to all Upper School students

  • Physics 9 (3 Mods)
    Required for 9th grade students.

    Chemistry 10 (3 Mods)
    Required for 10th grade students.

    Biology 11 (2 Mods)
    Required for 11th grade students.

    Waves, Sound and Quantum Mechanics (3 mods)
    11th and 12th grade only | Prerequisites: Strong command of Algebra II; Co-requisite: Precalculus A, B

    Advanced Chemistry (3 Mods)
    Prerequisite: Chemistry 10

    Advanced Biology (3 Mods)
    Prerequisite: Biology 11

    Advanced Physics (3 Mods)
    Prerequisite: co-enrollment in Calculus

    Engineering 11/12 (3 Mods)
    11th and 12th grade only

  • Wayfinding (1 Mod)

    Marine Biology
    Open to all Upper School students

    The Science of SCUBA (1 Mod)
    Open to all Upper School students

    Human Biology: Sleep
    Open to all Upper School students

    Human Biology: Addiction
    Open to all Upper School students

    Astronomy: The Night Sky (1 Mod)
    Open to all Upper School students

    Anatomy & Physiology: Wilderness First Aid (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Biology

    Watershed (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Statistics

    Watershed II (1 Mod)
    Prerequisite: Watershed I

    Material Science (1 Mod)
    Prerequisites: Physics and Chemistry

    Sustainable Food Systems (1 Mod)
    Open to all Upper School students

    Ecology and the Environment (1 Mod)
    Open to all Upper School students

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Upper School STEM

Quick intro copy about STEM courses here. Why do we teach the courses that we do?

inquire
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#ExploreEverywhere

Every great advance in science has issued from a new audacity of the imagination.

~JOHN DEWEY, The Quest for Certainty

Driven by feedback.

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