Math & Science

Energy, Economy, Environment:

From STEM to STEEEM

Many independent schools and colleges speak about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, or STEM.

At this small coed rural college preparatory high school in southeastern Ohio, we are beginning to talk about “E cubed.” Instead of the usual designation of “STEM” to stand for “science, technology, engineering, and mathematics,” we are replacing the “e” in “engineering” with three “e”s – as in, “energy, economy, environment.”

Land-Based Learning

We already make use of our bountiful 350-acre campus and its creek, pond, fields, and forest land to study outdoor science. With the aid of grants in curriculum, professional, and laboratory development across the sciences – in biology, chemistry, and physics – we are integrating the school’s strength in environmental science into more of our programs.

What’s beginning to emerge is a college preparatory curriculum centered around the natural resources of Appalachia, the region where we live. Students already play a leading role in assisting local water quality authorities with monitoring and protecting the health of Captina Creek Watershed. Students also travel locally to educate the public about features of the watershed using a 7’ x 13’ display map they created with GoogleMaps.

Science Classes at Olney

Olney Friends School’s college preparatory curriculum is land-based, nowhere more than in the sciences. Land is at the heart of learning at Olney Friends School, and the natural sciences are at the heart of an Olney Friends School education.

Olney Friends School students are required to take three years of science. All students are encouraged to take a fourth year as well. All science classes are laboratory-based. Within each class, students have the unique opportunity to learn about the beautiful Appalachian Ohio surroundings in context with the class curriculum. For example, the Biology and Environmental Science classes will focus on watersheds and native plants. The chemistry class will analyze the contents of the soil and water testing. Our physics classes will infuse the mechanics of renewable and non-renewable energy sources.

The prescribed sequence of classes is listed below. NOTE: It may not be possible or logical for all transfer students to follow the prescribed sequence, in which case students may petition to take courses out of sequence. The sequence described below is designed to make the best use of students’ developmental as well as mathematical strengths.  Our goal is to help students acquire a true love of scientific inquiry and the natural world in which we live.

• Biology – 9^th grade
• Conceptual Physics – 10^th grade
• Chemistry – 11^th grade
• Environmental Science or AP Physics* – 12^th grade

*We offer two courses in AP Physics. Students taking AP Physics: Mechanics must have taken AP Calculus or be enrolled in that course. Students taking AP Physics: Electricity and Magnetism must have already completed AP Calculus.

Mathematics Classes at Olney

Our mathematics sequence is designed to mirror the skills needed in our science courses. In this manner, students are applying skill sets needed for cross-curricular application. Students are required to successfully complete the sequence through Algebra II for graduation. After completing Algebra II, students may elect to complete Statistics, Pre-Calculus, and/or AP Calculus. The graduating classes of 2014 and beyond will be required to complete four mathematics courses. In some cases, students are able to take two mathematic courses simultaneously. 

Algebra I — 9th grade

Geometry — 9th or 10th grade

Algebra II — 10th or 11th grade

Pre-Calculus —11th or 12th grade

Statistics —11th or 12th grade

AP Calculus — 12th grade

AP Physics: Electricity and Magnetism — 12th grade (doubles as a post-calculus mathematics course)