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Science
Mrs. Betty Sitton
The goal of the science curriculum at Cistercian is two-fold: to provide all students with a fundamental understanding of the physical world, and to train them in the use of the scientific method. The four major areas of science are investigated in the middle school, and again in the upper school, through the required coursework and a variety of elective classes that are offered each year in the upper school. In all classes, inquiry activities, laboratory work, and computer use provide students with a variety of tools that facilitate the learning process.
Form I Earth Science introduces students to processes used in scientific study while they learn about fundamental forces that shape the universe. In Second Form, life science capitalizes on the boys' natural curiosity about living things and provides an informal, descriptive approach to the world of plants and animals. In Third and Fourth Forms, introductory physics and chemistry are presented in an increasingly rigorous way with the use of abstract models, mathematical formulas, and graphical analysis, while laboratory and project work continue. Computer Science, taught in first and second forms, builds a foundation for the subsequent use of computers throughout the curriculum. In the upper school, one year is devoted to the study of each of the fundamental sciences: Biology (Form V), Chemistry (Form VI), and Physics (Form VII). In Form VIII students are required to take a second, college-level course in one of these three disciplines. At each level laboratory work is combined with the teaching of scientific theory. The accelerated nature of the mathematics curriculum allows a strong emphasis on the use of appropriate mathematical analysis in each course.
For more information, please see the CPS curriculum guide
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