Click on the departments to the right to jump to departmental course listings or scroll through for a complete list. English Fine Arts World Language Science Mathematics Experiential Learning and Community Engagement Computer Science Social Sciences P.E. and Health Academic PoliciesCOMPUTER SCIENCE The Computer Science Department courses are designed to teach Upper School students modern theories and problem-solving skills while introducing them to various topics within Computer Science. The Computer Science curriculum covers topics within Web Development, IT Infrastructure, and Programming.ENGLISH The English Department in the Upper School offers a series of challenging courses designed to instill in students an affection for books, to prepare students for the rigors of reading and writing at the college level, and to acquaint students with major works of world literature. As a department we work toward carefully articulated goals in the areas of vocabulary building, the mechanics of English composition, speaking and listening, literary comprehension, writing in a variety of styles, technology use, research, and media literacy. 9th Grade and Sophomore year During their 9th and 10th grade years, students take two required year-long courses, English 9: The Heroic Journey and English 10: Identity and Change. Both courses expose students to diverse cultural and literary viewpoints while shoring up grammar, vocabulary, and writing skills. For more information on these two courses, see the full course descriptions. Junior and Senior year For their fall and spring semesters, juniors and seniors choose from a range of English electives designed not only to inspire passion for reading and appreciation for literary complexity, but also to refine critical thinking and analytical expression. Juniors and seniors who have received the requisite recommendation from the English Department—one contingent on a proven track record of excellence in analytical writing—can receive advanced designations (ADV) on their elective courses by completing two extra, teacher-assigned analytical writing assessments per elective course. For more information on these fall and spring electives, see the full course descriptions.EnglishENG511-S1Dystopian LiteratureOne0.5Fall11,12 EnglishENG521-S1Wonder Women: Rule Breakers, Trend Setters, & World Changers What is the future of gender and sexuality? What happens after humanity has all but destroyed civilization? Are utopian dreams destined to degenerate into dystopian nightmares? In this course, we'll examine these questions by immersing ourselves in seminal dystopian works of literature. We'll begin by sampling from two of the most canonical dystopian novels of the twentieth century: Aldous Huxley's Brave New World and George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four . After exploring the central ideas from those two influential texts, we'll read Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale , set in a misogynistic patriarchy in which women are stripped of individuality and identity by being reduced to procreating chattel, and we'll complement our study of this novel by viewing Alfonso Cuaron's landmark film Children of Men , which envisions a grim future in which women have inexplicably been rendered infertile. We'll then turn to Cormac McCarthy's postapocalyptic masterpiece The Road , which follows a vagabond father and son making their way through a charred and ruined American landscape. While studying these texts, we'll consider how they underscore our cultural fears and critique our contemporary values. We'll also complement these texts by examining other timely dystopian works: television shows, long-form journalism, films, short stories, and essays. Students will engage with these narratives through in-class and online discussions, collaborative activities and group projects, and analytical writing. This course will explore how texts both written by women and featuring female protagonists reflect and challenge societal and cultural expectations of femininity. Starting with arguably the first feminist, Geoffrey Chaucer's Wife of Bath , we will work chronologically to explore the shifting roles and visions of women. Moving from the 14th century to the 19th, we will encounter Edna Pontellier, heroine of Kate Chopin's The Awakening which challenges the notions of marriage and motherhood. We then travel to the pre-Civil Rights South, where we will witness Celie's quest for self-actualization in Alice Walker's The Color Purple . Along our journey, we will explore contemporary and multi-cultural representations of female empowerment in pop culture, including music, film, television, poetry, and non-fiction texts. We will also consider questions such as: Does a feminist hero have to be female? What expectations does our society place on those who identify as female? Ultimately, in our age of gender fluidity, is gender even a significant factor in shaping a person's identity? One0.5Fall11,12EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Our Center for Community Engagement (CCE) coordinates cross-divisional work in experiential learning; service learning; entrepreneurship and leadership; and diversity, equity, and inclusivity initiatives.Next >